Challenger 1 – The Naval Children’s Charity
This February, we had a group of young people from the Naval Children’s Charity join us on board Challenger 1 for a 5-day voyage. Read all about what they got up to in their daily blog, below.
Day 1
Tuesday 13 February
Today we left the port at Gunwharf Quays in Portsmouth and went sailing for three hours around the Solent before arriving at West Cowes.
We learnt how to sweat, tail and tie the fenders to the boat. We learned what equipment we use and how to use it correctly. We got told what to do when a man goes overboard and how we can prevent it from happening by using a carabiner that is attached to your life jacket and then you attach it to a stable metal wire that stops you from falling over.
I got splashed in the face with sea water even on the opposite site of the boat, it was fun and exciting though. I really enjoyed day one and look forward top sailing tomorrow and the rest of my trip.
Freya and Adam
Day 2
Wednesday 14 February
Today, we woke up at 7:00am and got straight to work.
We had scrambled eggs and muffins for breakfast and started preparing the boat for sailing.
The weather was very windy and rainy, but we managed to keep the boat moving. The focus today was on the main sail as that was our central power. At 2:00pm we came into port and docked up with slight difficulty as there was a ferry in the way.
When we got back, we went to the RNLI and had a talk about the way a lifeboat/rib, all the calls that come in, how to deal with them and how to stay safe around the water (staying afloat).
Day 3
Thursday 15 February
We woke up for breakfast at 8:30am. We had bacon baps with a fried egg, the best breakfast so far!
We were all looking forward to setting sail because the rain had stopped, and the sun finally came out. Before we went sailing, we learnt about the different points of sail, and checked the engine. I was surprised the engine wasn’t bigger.
When we were out sailing, port and starboard watch did a Yankee sail hoist race. Port watch won, whoop whoop, with 1 minute 30 seconds and starboard hoisted it in 1 minute 50 seconds.
Will
