Sailor fulfils dream of sailing around the world

A woman who dreamed of sailing around the world has fulfilled her wish by competing in an eight-month long global race.

Willow Bland, 26, from Waldringfield, Suffolk was a member of an all female crew taking part in the Ocean Globe Race.

The crew sailed on The Maiden - the same boat which the first all-female crew sailed around the world on in the 1990 Whitbread Round the World Race.

Ms Bland arrived back home in the UK last Tuesday and described competing in the event as a "privilege".

"It shows what a group of females can do and you don't have to have come from anything to get to here, you just have to be given the right opportunity," she said.

Ms Bland began sailing when she was about six or seven at the Waldringfield Sailing Club on the River Deben.

She developed a passion for the sport and took part in competitions racing small boats.

When she was 18, she made the decision to race in larger boats.

"I wasn't ever going to be good enough if I kept going in dinghies - I would never make the Olympics or anything like that," she continued.

"I decided bigger boats were for me and I just got the bug for it completely."

Ms Bland heard about the opportunity to sail on The Maiden in the Ocean Globe Race last year.

Immediately she knew she wanted to be a part of the team to fulfil her dream of sailing around the world.

She made the bold decision to email the project manager, Tracy Edwards MBE - who skippered the first all-female crew in the same boat.

"Growing up there were a few really iconic sailors and Tracy Edwards was definitely one of them," Ms Bland added.

When she found out she made the team, Ms Bland said it was "a pretty amazing moment, it's like living a dream".

The first leg of the race began on 10 September last year setting sail from Southampton journeying to Cape Town, South Africa.

The rest of the journey took them from Cape Town to Auckland in New Zealand, to Punta del Este in Uruguay before finishing off back in Southampton.

During sailing, the 11 crew members alternated every four hours between sailing and resting.

"We didn't get very much sleep on legs two and three in the southern ocean where it's really cold," Ms Bland said.

"You are wearing all your layers and you're in two sleeping bags when you sleep.

"We didn't have a heater onboard so we were freezing most of the time.

"You're mostly using your energy to warm yourself up."

The journey also saw many unexpected encounters with wildlife.

"On leg one from England to Cape Town we had a pod of whales that followed our boat for three hours and they were jumping out the water and playing with the boat as if they were dolphins," Ms Bland added.

"They were massive whales almost the size of the boat - that was pretty incredible."

While the crew knows they have won their class, the overall race results are yet to be finalised.

"We are waiting on one other boat to see if we have won the overall race," Ms Bland explained.

"One of the others boat who isn't on land yet could sneak in and steal first place.

"We'd be second which would still be incredible."

The crew was welcomed back to the UK last week with friends and families waiting for them before a large party was held at the weekend.

"I have to go back to my real life and my job in London which I am very fortunate to have," Ms Bland continued.

"I've already planned more sailing for the summer and I have races coming up which should be really good fun.

"Maybe I'll look for another big project but I think I need to spend some time at home to rest and recover."

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