Hilary Lister completes her round Britain and Ireland dream

Hilary Lister, the inspirational quadriplegic yachtswoman, yesterday completed her ambitious project to sail solo around the British Isles by returning to Dover.

Hilary has completed the incredible feat using her trusty Artemis 20 yacht, sailed using a 'sip and puff' system. The same yacht that saw her successfully sail around the Isle of Wight in 2007. She has sailed around the British and Irish coast in legs of between 30 to 50 nautical miles, venturing into the North Sea and crossing the Irish Sea. The voyage commenced in 2008 when Hilary and the team sailed from Dover to Newlyn, but she was unable to complete the project in 2008 after bad weather and technical issues hampered her progress. It was a tough decision to take, but she decided to postpone the dream and complete the journey in 2009.

On 21st May 2009, Hilary and her team set sail from Plymouth and, after 2 legs, returned to Newlyn to pick up from where she had left off in 2008. Three months later she has returned to her starting point in Dover to celebrate a momentous achievement that has inspired thousands of people across the UK and around the world.

Talking about the highly adaptable Artemis 20 yacht, Hilary concluded, “I love the Artemis 20, she is a fantastic boat to sail that has looked after me so well, seeing me through everything from force 0 to force 6 and gusting 40 knots. The important thing is that she is a great looking boat that people want to sail, whether they are professionals, amateurs, have never sailed or go on the water every day, and that is very important for disabled people. Everybody is very excited about the prospect of what the Artemis 20 can do and I hope I have shown some of that potential.”

The Artemis 20 now forms the core of the Even Keel Project in the UK, designed to offer sailing to disabled and disadvantaged audiences who would not usually have access to the sport. Dave Rutter, Managing Director of the Even Keel Project concluded, “The Artemis 20 has been a fantastic vessel for Hilary and everyone at the Artemis Even Keel Site UK congratulates her on this wonderful accomplishment in successfully finishing her round Britain and Ireland dream. Hilary embodies the core values of the Even Keel Project; sailing is one of very few sports in which having a physical disability does not have to be a disadvantage. Our site at UKSA in Cowes now offers free sailing opportunities onboard the Artemis 20 to a huge number of disabled and disadvantaged individuals across the UK. The projects philosophy stems from the importance of accessibility, the idea of breaking down barriers and creating a fun and functional environment that will increase participation.”

The Artemis 20 was designed by Simon Rogers and built to be accessible to all. By making a few small adjustments to the control mechanism, the boat can be sailed by people with a wide range of disabilities making it an ideal platform for both the able bodied and disabled sailor to compete on a level playing field. As well as being functional, fast and stable these boats are also visually stunning and great fun to operate making them highly desirable to sail by all. The boat is built to be strong as well as safe and it is a true testimony to the design that the boat can and has been sailed around Great Britain and most importantly kept Hilary safe from harms way in at times some very uncomfortable sea conditions that she has encountered on route.

If you would like to try sailing with the project or know of anyone who you feel might benefit then please contact the team via the website www.theevenkeel.com