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'Sip' sailor Hilary takes on another challenge
First it was the Channel, and now it's round the British Isles
ILARY LISTER made
history when she
became the first quadriplegic
to sail single-handedly across
the English Channel.In an extraordinary feat of courage and endurance, she sailed into the record books in six hours and 13 minutes, using a system of 'sip and puff' straws to control the boat, overcoming severe physical pain in the process.
Hilary, in her mid-30s, has received numerous awards following her Channel crossing, including the Helen Rollason Award for Inspiration, as part of the Sunday Times Sportswomen of the Year Awards. She was also voted New Woman magazine's Woman of the Year in 2005, and was nominated for BBC Sports Personality of the Year.
Able-bodied until she was 15, Hilary has a progressive neurological disorder, which means that over the years she has gradually lost the use of more and more of her body. These days she is able to move only her head, and she spends her day - when she is not sailing - in a wheelchair or in bed. She confesses to being in constant pain and requires large doses of morphine just to get her out of bed in the morning.
Once a keen sports player, Hilary's first taste of sailing came in 2003 - less than two years before her solo crossing of the Channel.
She says: 'It's true to say that sailing saved my life. I fell in love with it
Hilary Lister: 'Sailing saved my life'.
Hilary Lister on board the boat.
from my
first moments on the water,
on Westbere lakes, near
Canterbury. It gave my life
new meaning and purpose,
and brought me out of a
terribly low period where I
had hardly left the house. Sailing gave me a longing for
independence and a taste
of freedom. Before long,
it wasn't enough to be a
passenger - I wanted to sail a
boat myself.'
Hilary's dream came true in August 2005, when
Hilary's dream came true in August 2005, when
she completed her historic
Channel crossing. To
control the boat, she used
a mechanism of straws
connected to switches. To
steer to port, she blew down
the steering tube and, to
steer to starboard, she sipped from the tube. The sip and
puff system also allowed her
to pull the sails in or to blow
them out.
Hilary says that she took on the challenge not for personal achievement,
Hilary says that she took on the challenge not for personal achievement,
but
to demonstrate that all kinds
of people - able-bodied and
disabled - can achieve their
goals in life.
'I would like to encourage everyone to pursue their dreams, whatever their situation in life' she says. 'I also hope to challenge people a bit to re-think their views on disability. Raising money is one of my goals now, though, so that other disabled people can enjoy the thrill of sailing'.
Her next challenge is to sail solo around the British Isles in the Summer of 2007 - a task that could take up to eight weeks. This will involve venturing into the North Sea and the Irish Sea. Her plan is to sail around the coast, from port to port.
Hilary says: 'A large part of the pleasure I get from sailing is the joy of being out in the elements.'
The latest recognition of Hilary's achievements came in November, when she received an honorary degree from the University of Kent at Medway. She says that the news of her honorary degree was one of her proudest moments so far. 'It was a huge surprise and such an honour. I felt like asking "Why me?" Among those attending the ceremony was Hilary's husband, Clifford, whom she describes as 'my number one supporter'
To find out more about
donating to Hilary's Round
Britain Challenge, log on to
www.hilarylister.co.uk
'I would like to encourage everyone to pursue their dreams, whatever their situation in life' she says. 'I also hope to challenge people a bit to re-think their views on disability. Raising money is one of my goals now, though, so that other disabled people can enjoy the thrill of sailing'.
Her next challenge is to sail solo around the British Isles in the Summer of 2007 - a task that could take up to eight weeks. This will involve venturing into the North Sea and the Irish Sea. Her plan is to sail around the coast, from port to port.
Hilary says: 'A large part of the pleasure I get from sailing is the joy of being out in the elements.'
The latest recognition of Hilary's achievements came in November, when she received an honorary degree from the University of Kent at Medway. She says that the news of her honorary degree was one of her proudest moments so far. 'It was a huge surprise and such an honour. I felt like asking "Why me?" Among those attending the ceremony was Hilary's husband, Clifford, whom she describes as 'my number one supporter'
To find out more about
donating to Hilary's Round
Britain Challenge, log on to
www.hilarylister.co.uk
