Man to cross Atlantic in boat 'size of wheelie bin'

A sailor and adventurer is due to set sail on a punishing voyage across the Atlantic in a boat about the size of a wheelie bin.

Andrew Bedwell, from Scarisbrick in Lancashire, is aiming to break the world record for the shortest vessel to cross the ocean at the second attempt - after an earlier effort had to be abandoned.

Bedwell will leave from Newfoundland in Canada in mid-May and believes the almost 2,000 mille (3,218km) journey back to the UK - without any kind of support vessel - will take about three months.

The boat repair shop owner said part of the reason for the voyage was to raise money for Cancer Research UK after losing both his parents to the disease.

Describing conditions on the micro-yacht, christened The Big C Version Two, Bedwell said: "When the conditions are bad I'm seated, and what I'll be doing is I'll be fully harnessed into the boat with my hands, my elbows, everything harnessed.

"When the conditions are good, I can stand up, open the hatch and stand up. I've got a host of exercises to do."

However, Bedwell, who is 6ft, will not be able to lie down flat on the journey.

Most of his food will consist of beef jerky, raisins and fat condensed into bars which are then vacuum packed and molded into the frame of the boat - providing extra insulation and strength to the body of the yacht.

The experienced sailor, who has previously completed a solo journey to the Arctic in another small boat, said he was willing to accept the risks involved.

"It's like everything," he said.

"If you slowly increase your levels you get used to what you feel comfortable with.

"So outside the boat looks awful, but from inside the boat it's actually not that bad, It's quite comfortable, I shall say, for a while.

"It's not the best of places to be but it's an amazing challenge and it's what I do. I do like challenging myself."

In 2023 Bedwell's dream seemed to lie in tatters.

About 12 hours after launch, the first version of the yacht began taking on water from around a bolt in the frame of the vessel.

He returned to port intending to fix the problem, but as the tiny yacht was being winched out of the water it dropped and smashed onto a concrete surface, damaging it beyond repair.

Bedwell said: "Three years worth of work all destroyed in nanoseconds.

"But as I said, I'm trying to inspire others to do things, so I decided, well, there's no way I can stop.

"So what we did, we came straight back to the UK, built another boat and three years later we're here to this point ready to go again."

For Bedwell, part of the drive to complete the voyage is to inspire other people.

"It's a tool for me to fulfil my dreams, which is to get the world record for the shortest vessel to cross the Atlantic." he said.

"But also, we're using it more so to get people, maybe just to open their front door and say hello to someone, or for someone to swim 100 metres. Anything.

"So, that's the bigger picture of the whole challenge."

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