Clipper Venture Round the World 09/10 - Leg 6 - San Francisco - Panama City - Jamaica on

                                      Uniquely Singapore Clipper - April 11th to May 20th 2010

On April 11th this year I leave San Francisco on a 68 foot stripped out racing yacht with 17 other team members and 9 other identical boats to tackle Leg 6 of the Clipper Venture Round the World Yacht Race.  The first part consists of 3.500 mile drag race down the west coast of USA - fast and furious, this is the leg that set the race 24 hour speed record in Clipper 07/08.  A stopover at Panama City is followed by the whole fleet travelling through the Panama Canal and then racing again up to the Caribbean through busy, choppy seas and a fantastic welcome in Jamaica. 

The yachts are purely designed for racing and are basic to say the least!  Little comfort - "hot bunking", no showers, 2 unpredictable "heads", no hot water, one small and tempremental cooker and a 4 hour watch system 24/7  - despite this  the most exhilarating, terrifying, fantastic thing I have ever done (if my 3 weeks training is anything to go by!)

Clipper Venture is the only non-professional round the world yacht race and as such is self-funded by the crew. My previous sailing knowledge consists of a week on the river Orwell and capsizing in the path of a container ship and a voyage on an oil tanker!  I am paying for my leg myself (Thanks Dads  - 19 years since you left us and  I think you would approve of me doing this and I hope you are proud).  However, I would like to use this trip to raise awareness and money for a vital and little known group of people living with a condition called Friedreich's Ataxia.

Ataxia - have you ever heard of it?  Maybe not and nor had I until last year when we discovered that the lovely 15 year old daughter of a very close friend has started to exhibit some strange symptons.  A desperate search to find out what was wrong - and boof, the devastating news that she had inherited a faulty gene that would have far reaching implications.

The cerebellar ataxias are a rarely heard of group of neurological conditions that have devastating effects on those misfortunate enough to inherit the gene that causes the problem.  Although suffers are relatively few in number - 10,000  in the UK - the disease is little understood, poorly publicised and sufferers are often discriminated against.

Ataxia literally means poor, weak co-ordination or clumsy.  With feeble muscle control, lifes' simple chores become almost impossible to undertake independently - and suffers end up unable to walk or to cope living on their own.  Brain function remains undiminished during this time.

Ataxia UK is the sole charity in Britain working to raise and distribute funds to various research bodies desperately searching for a cure and the change our perception and understanding of this terrible condition.

Recent research is finding some exciting results and now is it more important than ever to keep funding coming in.

Donating through JustGiving is simple, fast and totally secure. Your details are safe with JustGiving – they’ll never sell them on or send unwanted emails. Once you donate, they’ll send your money directly to the charity and make sure Gift Aid is reclaimed on every eligible donation by a UK taxpayer. So it’s the most efficient way to donate - I raise more, whilst saving time and cutting costs for the charity.

So please dig deep and donate now.

Thank you and please follow me on www.clipperroundtheworld.com and click on the "race viewer" to see our position in the fleet.......watch this space for my blog address coming soon.  Watch the video too - it shows a little of life on board and what we will experience during the voyage - yes, I will be the one in the bow with waves breaking over me and the one up the pole spiking  the spinnaker (well, occasionally!). 

Thank you to my lovely family - especially Charlie - who have let me go on my "adventure of a lifetime" without complaint (yet!)  -  I promise not to "fall overboard or get eaten by sharks" 

Anneli Tritton