After some discussion the crews opted for a long sail overnight to Peel on the Isle of Man. This visit coincided with the famous TT although no racing took place on the boats day of arrival. The crews spent a pleasant day on this wonderful island and at least one skipper pledged to return for a longer stay. The islanders were extremely hospitable and the Marina waived fees which was a lovely gesture of support for the work of Macmillan in helping people living with cancer.

This leg has some long distances to cover and much of it is in the Irish Sea which has a formidable reputation.  On this occasion the sea was beautiful and the night sailing spectacular. The boats left Peel and sailed the short distance to Ardglass  - to enjoy a Guinness, before sailing down the coast across Dublin Bay to Dún Laoghaire in Eire.  Where there was a difference of opinion regarding what liquid refreshments should be enjoyed.

It was here that a glitch occurred with the instrumentation on Florence. All the instruments went off suddenly and the fuse was found to have blown. Investigation by the crew found that there seemed to be a short circuit within a Raymarine cable.  Our thanks go to Mantsbrite of Maldon for supplying a set of spare parts and also to Marinestore Chandlery for arranging overnight delivery for a Saturday.  The crews then spent a long 19 hour sail from Ireland across a stunning Irish Sea to Milford Haven in Pembrokeshire. The crew of Florence did a brilliant job and sailed "old fashioned style to Milford Haven where the electronic repairs were successfully completed.

Here you can see the damaged cable and on looking inside the manifold it was obvious that the pins were damaged due to a short circuit.

The crews had the ubiquitous group photos and then it was clean up ready for the new crew to take Florence and Galliver round Lands End and the Lizard on their journey back to Burnham.

If you would like to donate to Macmillan the do follow this link: https://www.justgiving.com/fundraising/premier-sailing23

Premier Sailing would also like to thank all of our sponsors and crews for this year’s endeavours. Their generous donations are all going straight to Macmillan, so they can help those who need it most.

Volspec Ltd, Marinestore, MOB Lifesavers, Tiptree, http://www.whitehillsmarina.co.uk/,, clarkeandcarter.co.uk/,