Harrogate's Sean McPartland and his team 'Dare to Lead' have arrived in South Africa in first position as part of their 40,000 nautical mile race around the world.
Harrogate man arrives in South Africa in first place as part of race around the world A Harrogate man and his team are the first to arrive in South Africa as part of their 40,000 nautical mile yacht race around the world. 53-year-old Sean McPartland is taking on the ‘Clipper Round The World Race’ on a 70-foot ocean racing yacht. And last Thursday (9th November), Sean, who is part of the 'Dare to Lead' team, arrived in Cape Town in South Africa in first position after the second of their eight leg journey. The 40,000 mile journey to South America is divided into eight legs and between 13 and 16 individual races including six ocean crossings. As winners of the third race, Sean's team are now in second place overall. [caption id="attachment_87140" align="aligncenter" width="960"] Sean McPartland with Bertie the Birstwith Bear.[/caption] Since arriving in South Africa after leg two, Sean and his team have been posting updates and photos on social media. He spoke about the relentless rhythm of racing across an ocean and the unbearable heat. Approaching Brazil he said:
“The last land we saw was Fuerteventura. Since then we have passed the Scoring Gate and endured some intense heat both above deck and below. Sleeping has been difficult at the best. “The crew are in good fettle, although a bit battered and bruised, spirits are high, and the camaraderie is good.”Before signing off, Sean passed on a message to pupils at Birstwith CE Primary from ‘Bertie the Birstwith Bear’ - the mascot presented to him by the school's pupils. He said:
"What an adventure I am having kids, the ocean life is the life for me. I met with King Neptune a few days ago as we crossed the equator. "So finally, my lifelong ambition of becoming a shellback has come true. Keep supporting us."
You can track Sean's progress here. Sean is also fundraising for Unicef and his JustGiving page can be found here.
[caption id="attachment_82595" align="aligncenter" width="768"] Sean McPartland and the rest of the 'Dare to Lead' team.[/caption]Clipper Round the World Race
The brainchild of Sir Robin Knox-Johnston, the first person to sail solo non-stop around the world, the first Clipper Race took place in 1996. Since then, almost 6,000 Race Crew from all walks of life and more than 60 nations have trained and raced in the Clipper Round the World Yacht Race. The route of each edition of the race is unique, often formed by Host Ports around the globe. In the race’s twenty five year history, more than fifty cities have played host to the Clipper Race. Read more local stories from Your Harrogate here.
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