Adventurer to cross Atlantic in 3ft 3in boat

A man has built a tiny boat, which he is going to attempt to sail from Canada to Cornwall in a bid to break a world sailing record.

Andrew Bedwell will set sail in his 3ft 3in boat next May, on a 1,900 mile journey. He’s attempting to break the record for sailing the smallest boat across the Atlantic Ocean.

According to the Daily Mail, his fibreglass boat – which has a top speed of 2.5mph – is a modified version of a vessel that another ex-record holder, Tom McNally, designed.

“The vessel itself is incredibly strong,” says Bedwell. “It’s literally built to survive oceans. It has a fibreglass exterior, then it’s got a foam core and fibreglass on the inside.

“Everyone who sees it – and a lot of naval architects have seen it – say, ‘she’s solid, she’s built to do it,’ and I know she is as well.

“Capsizing is absolutely not an issue whatsoever, because she’s designed to go over. The hatch seals down to keep it completely watertight, and it will self-right.

“We know she will be rolled, and she will be battered around, but I’ve got a full harness in there.

“There are also two big vents on the front of the vessel, and if waves hit them, they will just slam shut and that stops any water ingress in there.

“And if it is sealed, I’ve got 40 minutes of air.

“This is like being stuck in a wheelie bin, on a rollercoaster for 90 days – and that’s what it could be in the worst-case scenario.”

During the expected three-month crossing, Bedwell will survive off water from an onboard desalinator and a protein-rich substance that, the Daily Mail says, will be moulded around the internal walls of the cockpit to save space.

“My wife’s going to be making these protein bags, basically, of food. And then we’re going to mould them into the hull to maximise space as much as possible.

“It will taste pretty vile, but it’s just to do the job, basically. There’s not going to be any kind of niceties in there – but my daughter might put the odd skittle in.”

He’ll be on a reduced diet, take one change of clothes and a flannel as his luxury.

During the crossing, Bedwell says he’ll be making all shipping aware of his presence.

“There are risks,” he says, “but we’re fitting the vessel out with as much safety equipment as possible to basically make it so that every other vessel can see us at all times.

“As we are going across one of the main shipping routes, in bad visibility [and] bad weather, we want the captains to be aware of us as well.

“I’ll be contacting as many as possible to make sure they’re aware of me on their radar.”

Bedwell believes his boat will cope with even the roughest of oceans. He’s taken more than three years to complete the fabrication work with his team on his boat, which measures just 3.5m (11.4ft) tall and has a sail area of 26ft (8m).

He’s previously sailed non-stop around Britain and has taken his small 6.5 carbon racing yacht across the Atlantic and up to the artic circle.

Bedwell is currently looking for additional funding.

“The vessel so far has been completely funded by myself so far, I’m not trying to get this back.

“The funding I am looking for is for all the electronics onboard, the safety equipment, getting the vessel and me to St Johns Newfoundland, and to literally cover the cost of fuel for a support vessel,” he says.

Images courtesy of Paula Ryding