Man tests tiny boat he plans to sail across the Atlantic Ocean

By Douglas Whitbread via SWNS

This daredevil dad is taking to the water in his 3.3 feet long boat for the first time – which he hopes to sail 1,900 miles across the Atlantic.

Andrew Bedwell, 48, made the maiden voyage in his tiny self-built fibreglass vessel, ‘BIG C’, at the port of Whitehaven, in Cumbria, last week.

During his trip out, the experienced mariner gave his support boat the “thumbs up” from his cramped cockpit, which is just big enough to accommodate his 6ft frame.

And he seemed at ease in the tiny ship ahead of the massive transatlantic crossing, which he compared to being “stuck in a wheelie bin, on a rollercoaster for 90 days."

The intrepid sailor plans to depart from Newfoundland, Canada, in May next year, before trade winds bring him to Lizards Point, in Cornwall.

His boat is about 1.6 feet shorter than the last record-breaking small boat to make the journey across the Atlantic and has a top speed of just 2.5 mph.

Throughout his expected three-month crossing, he’ll survive off a cold protein-rich substance that's moulded around the internal walls of the boat to save space.

The thrill-seeking father-of-one admitted his wife thinks he’s “crackers” but said he wanted to achieve something “amazing” before he turned 50.

He said: “I always like to have a real challenge on the go - although my wife quite often feels I’m crackers - but I said before I’m 50 I want to have done something amazing.

“All my life, I’ve done unusual challenges, and it’s slowly got more and more important to myself to get smaller and smaller and smaller.”

And speaking about his purpose-built tiny boat, "Big C", he said: “I think a space rocket would have more room.

"This is like being stuck in a wheelie bin, on a rollercoaster for 90 days - and that’s what it could be in the worst-case scenario.”