Dad hopes to cross Atlantic Ocean in 3.2-foot boat he built himself

By Douglas Whitbread via SWNS

A daredevil dad hopes he'll smash a world record with the shortest vessel to ever cross the Atlantic Ocean.

Andrew Bedwell, 49, will leave from Newfoundland, Canada next month in the self-built, 3.2 foot, boat.

He said he isn't worried about his ship’s performance but does fear “hitting an iceberg."

The mariner, who’s spent years building his micro yacht "Big C," said it felt "bizarre" when it was shipped from Hull, UK, to its starting point in Canada.

His mammoth journey begins at the end of May.

He describes operating in the vessel on open water as similar to being: “Stuck in a wheelie bin, on a rollercoaster."

He said: “Everything has pulled together exceptionally well, there’s nothing that I am apprehensive of on the vessel at all. Absolutely everything has gone to plan.

“I personally think I’ve gone over and above what I need to do for the whole trip.

“But you never know you could hit an iceberg. The Titanic was considered unsinkable but it hit one, and there are a lot of icebergs out there."

Andrew wasn’t concerned about spending three months alone at sea in his tiny vessel but said it would be tough not seeing his ten-year-old daughter Poppy.

He added: “I think the biggest thing I’ll miss will be a cuddle from my daughter.

"But I wanted a big challenge before I’m 50 - and I'm taking on a huge challenge in a tiny vessel.”

Andrew, of Scarisbrick, UK, who delivers yachts around the world and works as a sailmaker, has spent most of his life embarking on nautical adventures.

He previously sailed non-stop around Britain and has taken a 21-foot carbon racing yacht across the Atlantic and up to the arctic circle.

Andrew came up with his idea after reading a book by current record holder Hugo Vihlen, who made the perilous passage in a 1.6m (5ft 4inch) boat 30 years ago.

He said: “For the last two and a bit years, I’ve been working on this boat, and it’s been taking up 70 percent of my time.

"It’s the start of things getting properly real now. I’ll be waiting for a good weather window and then jumping in her and sailing back.”

Andrew expects to face five storms during his journey, and despite his rigorous testing, he'll only find out if Big C is up to the job when she encounters her first one.

He said: “When you get into a storm, you’re then just battening it down and just hoping for the best.

"You’ve got vessels who are also in the storms, and they’re not always looking out for you. That’s probably my biggest apprehension.

“Ships still go down, but we’ve done as much as we can do to make it as bulletproof as possible.”

Andrew will spend most of his three months at sea sitting down inside his cockpit - only being able to stand up and exercise when the weather is calm enough.

He'll survive on a special food supplement made from beef jerky, raisins, and fat, which will be molded into the walls of his craft before he sets off.

Andrew says the challenge he now faces was more of a mental one because he has been advised not to work out until the journey begins.

He said: “At the moment, I really just need to chill and not do too much to get myself too fit.

“It seems crazy, but it’s not an actual physical challenge, it’s more of a mental challenge now. So you need to get into a frame of mind that this is all doable and we’ve done everything.

“No one can really say how much weight I’ll lose because there are not many people who have sat still for three months with so little movement.

“When I get back, it’s debatable how easily I’ll be able to walk. So I will have to be careful with my legs.”

He added: “I’m not a person that needs people around me, but the only thing that will play on my mind is that I’ve got a ten-year-old daughter, and we idolize one another.

“I’m going to massively miss her, and my wife."

Andrew said he’ll only need to reach a point within 50 miles of the West of Ireland to claim the record, but hopes to finish in Falmouth harbor in late August.

He said: “Ideally, I’d like to arrive in Falmouth just for the iconic side of things and to sail into England.”