I've spent the last two days in Cowes, sailing a boat of extraordinary beauty and speed.
When you enter the world of disability, design is generally left behind. You join a world of monochrome and straight lines, of function without form.
The Artemis 20 breaks the mould. She's been designed to be fully accessible and yet to be an object of desire for able-bodied sailors. With her sleek black six metre carbon fibre hull and 25m2 spinnaker she looks like an America's Cup boat. And she performs like a racehorse, accelerating through the water in a flash. Take a look at this video to get a taste.
I got to sail her in the Artemis Even Keel Challenge Trophy at Cowes Week. On Sunday, twelve of us went out with instructors to practice race training in six boats before racing in the evening and on the Monday. We were a mix of people with spinal cord damage, strokes, Parkinson's, cerebral palsy - all competing equally. I'd forgotten how much I miss the thrill of competition, where skill and tactics are the ingredients you need to win, rather than a high level of fitness. Watching everyone's faces after the racing and hearing the excitement in their voices, I know I wasn't alone in my feelings.
And if you want to see a short programme about the Challenge, watch the video here (and I'm there too, at about 3 mins 50)...
