The development of young people is central to everything the Tall Ships Trust does and they have an excellent reputation for providing good quality services to young people.

Sailing as part of a Tall Ships crew makes for a participative and empowering experience and their fleet provides a unique, physically and mentally challenging residential setting in which young people can explore their true potential.

Outcomes include:-

• Increased self esteem and self confidence
• Healthier, more active lifestyle
• Improved life skills
• Improved citizenship skills

The JTYAF is delighted to provide support to young people from Dorset to take part in Tall Ships Voyages.

Award to the Tall Ships Trust

Bursary awarded to Matthew Rickman for the Challenger 3 Voyage from Portsmouth to Cowes

In August 2011 Matthew joined a 5 night sailing expedition aboard Challenger 3 sailing from Portsmouth to Cowes with the Tall Ships Trust and the JTYAF were delighted to support his voyage.

Matthew’s report of the expedition gives a great insight into his experience:-

“The Challenger 3 weighs almost 40 tonnes and is 71 foot long and sleeps 18 people. It certainly was the biggest yacht I had been on, let alone sailed.
Below deck the boat was fitted out to the highest standard with separate bunks which were comfy and had adequate space but did prove quite a challenge to squeeze into late at night. The saloon area was where the crew could relax, discuss plans, eat dinner and most importantly play cards around the large table situated in the centre of the boat. The kitchen that led off from the saloon area was tiny but had all the equipment and gizmos like a cooker that stayed parallel to the horizon no matter how many degrees the boat was leaning either side of it! This was needed to provide food for all the 14 hungry sailors on board (12 crew, 1 skipper and one watch mate).

Picture: Matthew and the crew aboard Challenger 3

The ‘crew’ were all young people like me – aged between 16 and 18, also mostly like myself doing this adventure as part of their Duke of Edinburgh award. With very little sailing experience between us (apart from the Skipper and Watch mate of course) it was quite a daunting prospect for me having to learn all the ropes from scratch.             

After only a couple of hours onboard where we got to settle in and introduce ourselves to everyone we had a quick brief about the yacht and were on our way from Gunwharf Quays to Cowes on the Isle of Wight.

We motored (rather than sailed) over to Cowes to fill up with fuel. It was very busy in the Solent as it was Cowes Week! We filled up with fuel and moved onto Yarmouth to try and escape the hustle and bustle of Cowes week and this was where we rigged up and slept for the night in preparation for an early start the next day as we wanted to make the most of the fantastic sailing weather we were expecting the following morning.

It certainly was quite windy - great sailing weather but not so great for some of us – I for one had not found my sea legs yet and was finding it hard to keep my breakfast down along with a few other members of the crew. The wind died down a little in the afternoon which made us feel much better and we enjoyed some glorious conditions and scenery, passing the Needles and a number of other famous land marks along the coastline such as Hurst Castle Spit. We sailed west past Christchurch, Bournemouth and Poole and into the tourist town of Weymouth for the night. However before we could explore the town there were a few jobs that needed to be done on the boat. The crew were split up into two watches with alternate jobs everyday and shared the chores between them. Every night one watch prepared the evening meal while the other watch made sure everything was looking good on deck. This involved keeping the snake pit tidy which is the central hub were all the boats ropes from the masks lead to, putting the main sail cover on the boom and just generally making sure everything is looking in tip top shape.

The evening meals were always healthy, full of goodness and prepared from scratch by the crew. There was no cheating with ready meals, it was all hand prepared by us every evening. Dishes such as chilli con carne and fajitas seemed to be hands down favourites. But the washing up was definitely not a favourite.

The evening entertainment for that night was a firework display down at Weymouth quay which was a nice way to finish off a hard but enjoyable day of sailing.

The following day we sailed from Weymouth eastwards to Poole. Poole is another tourist town but best known for having the second largest natural harbour in the world – second only to Sydney. After staying overnight in Poole, we then sailed east again, went around the Isle of Wight (i.e. the channel side rather than up the Solent) and then turned back on ourselves to return to Challenger’s home port of Portsmouth. We spent our last night on board in Portsmouth and the following morning cleaned the yacht ready for the next lucky group to come on board.

I really enjoyed the adventure and enjoyed meeting and getting to know a whole bunch of new people. A few of the youngsters came in pairs. I didn’t. I didn’t know anyone but left with a group of new friends to keep in contact with via Facebook etc!”

What I gained from the experience

• Experience of sailing in a large yacht
• Working as a team member with people you have never met before
• Working with people from very different backgrounds to myself
• Learning that sometimes, your first impression of people can be very wrong.
• Learning that I was wrong to ignore the Tall Ships Trust advice to take sea sickness preventative tablets! and that when taken as directed, they are very effective (unless I just got used to it.)
• A fantastic experience that I shall remember for many years to come

Thanks

“I would like to thank the Skipper and Watch Mate from Challenger 3 for their help and guidance throughout my stay and for making it such a great experience and also Chas Cowell and the office staff from the Tall Ships Trust. I would also like to thank the John Thornton Young Achievers Foundation for their sponsorship without their support I would not have been able to go.”

An Extract from Matthew Rickman’s report on his expedition on Challenger 3

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Award to the Tall Ships Trust

Bursaries have been awarded to Crew Members Jason Sotheran, Scott Brown, Charlotte Horn and Lewis Wollage, who are all pupils at St Michael’s Middle School.

These four lucky youngsters will be taking part on a 4 day voyage aboard the Catamaran XC11 07 04.

The JTYAF is delighted to support these students from St Michael’s Middle School and looks forward to hearing all about their voyage.

Tall Ships Voyages are unique, they are not just about sailing. In a world that can be excluding and challenging, sailing as part of a Tall Ships crew can make for a participative and empowering experience.

Young people learn to:

Acquire new skills, knowledge, understanding
Make use of information and resources
Learn to problem solve, communicate ideas and information
Evaluate achievements
Increase self awareness, self confidence and develop a sense of empowerment
Be able to make choices and influence decisions
Be able to discuss and debate
Take responsibility for self and others
Form positive relationships with supporting adults and peers
If you would like to find out more please visit their website www.tallships.org

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Award to the Tall Ships Trust

Brianne Wright from Poole has recently been awarded a JTYAF Bursary to support a Tall Ships Voyage aboard the Stavros S Niarchos from Brixham to Swansea. This 7 day voyage will give Brianne an unrivalled experience onboard one of the world´s most magnificent brigs, sailing as part of a Tall Ships crew.

Brianne´s ambition is to become a Merchant Navy Deck Officer and she has been selected to study a Foundation Degree in Marine Studies at the University of Plymouth starting in September 2011. The opportunities that the Tall Ships Voyage will provide, will support Brianne with this ambition and give her the required experience at sea.

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