'I'm sailing around the world and want a record'

A sailor is aiming to be the first woman to finish a 24,300 mile (45,000km) race around the world for a second time.

Pip Hare, 50, was born in Huntingdon in Cambridgeshire and grew up in Suffolk - where she learned to sail on the River Deben.

She set off in her 60ft yacht Medallia on Sunday, describing the experience this time around as "surreal".

"Coming down the dock, your family and friends are waiting at the boat and that's pretty emotional," she said. "Then you sail out of the marina down a canal lined by people and they don't stop cheering. It's a fantastic way to start this race."

The sailor, based in Poole, Dorset, added: "It's a completely different experience to 2020 when I walked down the dock alone, not able to touch anyone because we were under Covid restrictions."

Ms Hare, who set up her racing team in 2019 with a £25,000 bank loan and a crowdfunding appeal, is being tipped as a top 10 finisher in the prestigious and gruelling race, which has been expanded to 40 yachts from the previous 33.

"For me this is my version of a World Cup or the Olympics," she explained.

"It's the Vendée Globe race - it's the toughest sailing race in the world."

Ms Hare previously took on the race in 2020 finishing in 19th place and said she could not wait to perform in the 10th edition of the race.

"Being a human being on a high performance boat that is flying above the surface of the waves in a place in the world that so few people will ever see," she said.

"You are the interface between man's ingenuity and the power of nature.

"I can't wait to go out and perform at the top of my ability in a sport that I love."

Ms Hare set off from Les Sables-d'Olonne and will spend the three months completely alone.

She explained the 40 sailors competing will take on the weather and huge waves all while operating the high performance boats.

When asked what she would do about sleeping, Ms Hare said: "You sleep for about 20 minutes and maybe in the southern ocean when there's no traffic around and the weather is very stable you might be able to sleep for an hour or an hour and a half."

Her food has been entirely prepared by her team and she will eat between 3,500 and 4,500 calories a day.

About 200 sailors have taken part in the Vendée Globe over the years, but only 114 have actually managed to cross the finish line due to the extreme conditions.

The sailors will follow a route south past the continent of Africa and then head east toward Australasia.

They will then sail around Antarctica, before sailing close to the tip of South America and up through the Atlantic Ocean towards France.

Hare said she was often asked if she got lonely during her sailing.

"I always say in answer to this question there is a massive difference between being lonely and being alone," she said.

"I choose to be alone, nobody chooses to be lonely.

"I know I have my friends, my family, the people who follow the race, I know there are so many people thinking of me, wishing me well, and I know they're going to be there when I get home."

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