How long will the Atlantic crossing take? There are so many different companies creating amazing products but we’re limited by space. There’ll be as much in there as we can carry. There’ll be a fixed VHF, handheld VHF and then obviously EPIRBs. Internally we’ve got a class B AIS transponder, then we’re going to have an AIS receiver – two separate units so that if one fails I have backup. We’ve got an Iridium Edge Solar, which has been used up into the Arctic and down in the Antarctic, and that’s a very small self-contained solar beacon that will be mounted on the deck. My version is beef drippings, beef and raisins – all dehydrated. Pemmican – it’s what Amundsen ate on his Antarctic expeditions. It won’t stay inverted or anything like that. Yes, this will roll, but because it’s actually quite light, as soon as the wave passes it will pop to the top. Tom didn’t want Big C to be too deep drafted because that gives it a very odd motion when it’s sitting in the waves. If we get storms, that’s what the boat is designed to do. It’s not going to be pleasant but then no real record attempt will be too pleasant! Will the boat invert then right itself? It’s going to be like the best fairground ride! A lot of people pay for that kind of thing at Alton Towers. With Big C, we can actually fold the boat away – by which, I mean, we take the outriggers up against the mast – so if we know that we’ve got a big weather system coming through, we can get the hatch down, buckle up and sit it out. We see big container ships breaking up in the middle because they’re on the peak and the trough and basically on the peak of the next wave. Small is actually sometimes better in a big sea state. The whole hull is about 12mm thick everywhere so it is absolutely solid and designed for the job. With breaking waves, the boat can still contain itself. Big, big rolling seas are no issue at all. We’ve made the boat so it’s actually quite lightly ballasted so it reacts to the waves really well. With twin headsails but no mainsail, Big C can only sail downwind Just how seaworthy is Big C? When Tom McNally and other microyachters have had a go they’ve literally gone to the quayside, put the boat in, maybe done some last-minute modifications, then shot off! You often find it’s the more quirky people who do this kind of challenge. We’ve only done about 10 miles in it, but you know what? That’s probably more than a lot of the other people have done before attempting to break the record. Not so far, initially, because it’s really difficult to get a downwind boat in and out of the harbour. Tom designed and started building this boat so we’ve got great confidence in the boat’s design. In 1993 he broke the record in a 5ft 4½inch boat. We’ve got spare sail if we need it, but it’s a simple system and not a lot can go wrong. No, it’s not typical, but there’s no room for a mainsail on here, and the boat is designed to sail dead downwind. Is it typical for a microyacht to just have twin headsails? It might not work but we’re going to go as far as we can. If you don’t go for it, you’ll never know what could have been. I want this challenge to show her that she should be able to get out and do things. She thinks it’s just a brave thing to do. Andrew’s daughter has illustrated the hatch What does your daughter think of your voyage?
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