A NOVICE sailor from Leamington has completed the first of six epic ocean crossings.
Stuart Mace has arrived in Uruguay after completing the first part of his epic Clipper Round the World Yacht Race circumnavigation, which began in London on September 1.
The 57-year-old swapped the day job as a company director to spend 11 months racing around the world.
And he arrived into the South American resort of Punta del Este after spending a month racing 5,196 miles around the clock across the Atlantic Ocean.
Stuart is one of around 220 everyday people who set sail from Portimão in Portugal, in mid September in the first big test of the 40,000 nautical mile Clipper Race.
Four in ten of crew – who hail from 43 different countries and many walks of life – had no sailing experience before signing up for the four weeks of intensive race training. They are competing on
11 identical specially designed ocean racing yachts.
Stuart and his 20 novice teammates on board the Dare To Lead yacht battled through storms, intense heat, rolling sea states and crossed the equator – a ceremonious milestone steeped in sailing tradition – to reach Punta del Este.
After a week-long break in Uruguay’s upmarket holiday resort, Stuart and his team will be heading across the South Atlantic for Cape Town in South Africa, to embark on the second leg.
From Cape Town, they will be heading for Australia, China, the Philippines, back to China, Seattle in the USA, Panama, New York, Bermuda and then heading home to London via Derry in Northern Ireland to complete the circumnavigation.
When Stuart completes the Clipper Race next year, he will join an elite group as more people have climbed Mount Everest than sailed around the world.