What a woman!! Congratulations! Didn't she do well? Just watching her coming into Falmouth, she must be absolutely dellighted with herself, not to say absolutely shattered!!!

Now, I know a lot of people make up all weird and wonderful excuses to miss family Christmas's but sailing around the world is a bit extreme! ;)

Wonder what she will say when she finds out she is a Dame? I would love to read her book, she comes across as such a lovely person, but she must have been so dedicated as she says there were times when she jsut wanted to give up. delighted for her that she managed to keep on going!

I wish she would bog off. All she does is moan and whinge and complain that she was cold, tired, hungry...........

I mean, who forces her to go on a yacht? For God's sake, if you want to be dry, fed and warm, STAY AT HOME!!! :wallbash:

And as for being a hero...I don't regard someone as a hero for imposing difficuly on themselves. If you find yourself caught up in unexpected danger/trauma and rescue people/save lives, THAT'S being a hero.

I wish she would bog off. All she does is moan and whinge and complain that she was cold, tired, hungry...........

I mean, who forces her to go on a yacht? For God's sake, if you want to be dry, fed and warm, STAY AT HOME!!! :wallbash:

And as for being a hero...I don't regard someone as a hero for imposing difficuly on themselves. If you find yourself caught up in unexpected danger/trauma and rescue people/save lives, THAT'S being a hero.
Lol, I'm glad it's not just me! I have similar feelings about her myself Ceri.

I'm another with similar feelings too :D

Maybe Hero is a bit much, but I do still admire her sheer dedication and that's what got her on her boat. It has been her goal to break the world record, held by the French, c'mon even that is an acheivement within itself to steal the record from the French! Yes, she complained about being cold, tired etc, and I am sure she was, there were times when she could have gave up but she didn't, she carried on. I still congratulate her and I know that I am not alone!

We are all very quick to put down our sportsmen and women when they do bad, and even when they do well we always seem to pick faults. She has a lot more dedication and skill than any Premier footballer who just kicks a football around! ;)

Maybe im an old bag, but i just dont get excited about things like this.

I mean, people were travelling from far and wide to welcome her on her return ...... but why :glare:

Obviously im not patriotic :ohmy:

My husband is always saying that all the boats that go around the world should all be the same. Otherwise one boat may have an advantage over another.

OK well done to her, I suppose she'll be getting her gold blue peter badge now as well:ninja: (well that's if she hasn't already got it)

Well I am delighted for her, she is a bit of a dedicated and motivated sort. I would not fancy it myself - maybe with a crew of lusty pirates I could be tempted however.

But give her her due - she has raised the profile of yachting and sailing - which made Britian Great a long time ago. She has motivated lots of youngsters to take up the sport - which we are pretty good at in the Olympics.

She has proven that with sheer determination anything is possible - bear in mind she is a 28 year old from Derbyshire - a landlocked county! I think it is marvellous and I am proud of her being British.

But what is a Dame - I have never understood this term - it sounds like she will be in panto next year!!

My husband is always saying that all the boats that go around the world should all be the same. Otherwise one boat may have an advantage over another.

OK well done to her, I suppose she'll be getting her gold blue peter badge now as well:ninja: (well that's if she hasn't already got it)


I suppose the boat is actual competition itself, now it is up to the next person to make an even better one and if they acheive it and do it in faster time, good on them! Let's just hope they are British! It's the same in all sports though Andrea, in Formula One you have a fleet of far more superior cars, and it even happens in football, and it is all to do with money. So if every boat should be the same, should every car, football, rugby team etc be the same too. Where would the competition be then?

And if she has a Blue Peter badge then she joins a long list of celebs who own one.

I think she is an inspiration and if I lived nearer Falmouth I would have made the journey to see her. We should be proud of British sports people. she has done the country proud and she deserves every bit of coverage she gets. Well Done Ellen! :thumbsup:

I'm not much of a sailor myself, but if the BBC screen it live first thing in the morning for a couple of hours, then it must be some kind of achievement. I just want to know one tiny detail before I fully congratulate her.....those people on the boat as she came into Falmouth harbour - were they part of the journey she made "single-handedly" or did they just jump on board as she appeared into the horizon??

She had already passed the finishing line earlier in the morning, Woodstock, The people on the board were part of her land crew who got on board when she passed the finishing line and then they sailed to Falmouth. She did do the whole thing on her own.

This is taken from Ellen's website and pretty much sums up why this is such an acheivement for her:

WHY IS THIS RECORD SO EXCEPTIONAL...

• 1800+ people have reached the summit of Everest...*

• 450+ people have been in space...**

• 12 astronauts have stepped on the moon...**

• Only 5 solo sailors have attempted to race around the globe non-stop on multihulls (the fastest and most extreme boats on the oceans) in pursuit of a new world record...

• Only 1 sailor succeeded to go the distance non-stop...

And now Ellen has made it two and done it in faster time.

I haven't posted here for a while, although I have been checking in now and again. I have to comment
Reading what has been said here about this achievement tells me 100% that this is a British Board. We get a loser and they are applauded, told they did well, get hugged, blessed and damwell sainted.
But a winner?? Oh no, that really isn't cricket, we can't have one of them, something wrong with that, let's put them back down where they so obviously belong, in the gutter.
No wonder the rest of the world has adopted calling us Whinging Poms. For heavens sake be thankful for a bit of bright news, that this tiny slip of a woman has physically and mentally worked herself to exhaustion for 71 days, and that she can fly the Union Flag, and most of all that she kept Blair, Bush, the Middle East etc off the news channels for a day.

I haven't posted here for a while, although I have been checking in now and again. I have to comment
Reading what has been said here about this achievement tells me 100% that this is a British Board. We get a loser and they are applauded, told they did well, get hugged, blessed and damwell sainted.
But a winner?? Oh no, that really isn't cricket, we can't have one of them, something wrong with that, let's put them back down where they so obviously belong, in the gutter.
No wonder the rest of the world has adopted calling us Whinging Poms. For heavens sake be thankful for a bit of bright news, that this tiny slip of a woman has physically and mentally worked herself to exhaustion for 71 days, and that she can fly the Union Flag, and most of all that she kept Blair, Bush, the Middle East etc off the news channels for a day.I can see what you are saying Censor, but, to be honest, I'd have been apathetic whatever nationality she had been! I do see this as an achievement, but it's a personal one for Ellen, that has NO impact on me whatsoever. I didn't have anything to do with her success so I see no reason or justification for me to bask in her reflected glory just because we happen to have been born in the same country!

She did it for herself, in order to break a record, and good on her if that's what she wants to do, I just don't see it as a cause for national pride, that's all :)

I can see what you are saying Censor, but, to be honest, I'd have been apathetic whatever nationality she had been! I do see this as an achievement, but it's a personal one for Ellen, that has NO impact on me whatsoever. I didn't have anything to do with her success so I see no reason or justification for me to bask in her reflected glory just because we happen to have been born in the same country!

She did it for herself, in order to break a record, and good on her if that's what she wants to do, I just don't see it as a cause for national pride, that's all :)
Im of the same view Voicey........to me it is once more about "man" (as a race) trying to conquer nature and I dont see the point to it all - the money that has been spent could have been put to far better use in my opinion......

When I saw on the news the other night that she was going to break the record, I just thought to myself "big fat hairy deal"..........so what?!?!?! She hasnt saved someones life, she hasnt invented a cure for cancer, YES she has achieved her personal goals and targets - but like Voiceys says - it doesnt affect ME and mine does it..........and if that makes me a whinging pom then so be it :)

OK, I get where you are coming from. So, neither of you support football, they do it for themselves. Singers? Oh yes, they just want to earn loads of money. Actors - same. Tennis, never get excited about that either? I could go on and on, but I bet you support them in their earning capacity. Ellen worked her socks off to buy her first boat, then fought every inch of the way to get her sponsorship, she wasn't born some rich kid by any means. I have even seen other forums (not this one) decrying her as 'Just a Dyke' - I am lost for words at how nasty and evil we are to winners - we ultimately destroy them.

I just hope that no kids read this who have an ounce of ambition, no wonder we are an apathetic nation.

I agree with most of the posts on here, I can appreciate what Ellen has done for herself, but I cannot muster any excitement personally from it. Ok its a real achievement for her as she battled on the sea, but as has been mentioned before, she did it for herself therefore why should it affect me one way or the other.

Fiona Phillips [GMTV] was saying that she was seated next to Ellen at some charity meal and ALL Ellen talked about was sailing. Fiona gave the impression that Ellen is so determined and dedicated [as you would have to be] that she has no space in her life for anything else, even for idle chit chat. If, like Fiona, you are not interested in sailing, you must think you have drawn the short straw being stuck next to her.

OK, I get where you are coming from. So, neither of you support football, they do it for themselves. Singers? Oh yes, they just want to earn loads of money. Actors - same. Tennis, never get excited about that either? I could go on and on, but I bet you support them in their earning capacity. Ellen worked her socks off to buy her first boat, then fought every inch of the way to get her sponsorship, she wasn't born some rich kid by any means. I have even seen other forums (not this one) decrying her as 'Just a Dyke' - I am lost for words at how nasty and evil we are to winners - we ultimately destroy them.

I just hope that no kids read this who have an ounce of ambition, no wonder we are an apathetic nation.

You can't enjoy every sport etc, some you have an empathy/ interest in and others you don't. I am not a footie fan, but I love Rugby - it doesn't make me a bad person, I can't even explain why I am attracted to one and not the other. It is part of the great differences between people which I for one applaud. I think Britain is great, and my not getting over excited about Ellen does nothing to diminish this.:) In fact its part of the reason I love it here, I can't stand all the banner waving etc you get in other countries like USA.

OK, I get where you are coming from. So, neither of you support football, they do it for themselves. Singers? Oh yes, they just want to earn loads of money. Actors - same. Tennis, never get excited about that either? I could go on and on, but I bet you support them in their earning capacity. Ellen worked her socks off to buy her first boat, then fought every inch of the way to get her sponsorship, she wasn't born some rich kid by any means. I have even seen other forums (not this one) decrying her as 'Just a Dyke' - I am lost for words at how nasty and evil we are to winners - we ultimately destroy them.

I just hope that no kids read this who have an ounce of ambition, no wonder we are an apathetic nation.
Dont even START me off on footballers and the obscene amount of money they get for kicking a ball about a pitch - and they cant even win an international game???? I think that it is high time that footballers got paid in accordance to what they win - I bet we would win a world cup if their wages depended on it!!!!

Singers - well thats different slightly, I DO get enjoyment from their work, I have always said I could live without TV and Books but not music!

As for Ellen personally - good on her - she HAS achieved her goals, but it doesnt "float my boat" if you get what I mean.......it has no effect whatsoever on my life, so I cant get excited about it........I think the name calling towards her is disgusting, she doesnt deserve that at all...

As for kids and ambition, errrr, I think you will find that the "right on" Labour Party have put the kybosh on that - with their "right on" approach to there being "no losers"....no more competitive sports in schools incase little Jonny is labelled a failure....poppycock - WE are all responsible for what WE want to achieve - if you work hard you reap the benefits, sit on your ass and you get jack s**t.......but nowaydays kids seem to think that they should get it all handed on a plate........

Dont even START me off on footballers and the obscene amount of money they get for kicking a ball about a pitch - and they cant even win an international game???? I think that it is high time that footballers got paid in accordance to what they win - I bet we would win a world cup if their wages depended on it!!!!

As for kids and ambition, errrr, I think you will find that the "right on" Labour Party have put the kybosh on that - with their "right on" approach to there being "no losers"....no more competitive sports in schools incase little Jonny is labelled a failure....poppycock - WE are all responsible for what WE want to achieve - if you work hard you reap the benefits, sit on your ass and you get jack s**t.......but nowaydays kids seem to think that they should get it all handed on a plate........

Sad but so very true, Queenie.

To be honest though, I would rather my kids got some inspiration from someone like Ellen McArthur or others like her than some jacksh8t footballing nobody who seems to think it is his divine right to get paid £30k a week!!! Yeah, ok she maybe boring, and all she talks about is her sailing, but at least she has gone out there and done something about it and acheived her goal. I am sick of hearing footballers, politicans making us promises that are never delivered. And I have sat next to a few "dedicated" football fans at dinners, weddings etc and by God if Fiona Phillips thought Ellen McArthur was boring then she should thank her lucky stars she wasn't sat next to some football nerd!

I am not a sailing fan, but people like Ellen McArthur, Ben Ainsley and Shirley Robertson have raised the profile and if it shows inspiration to even a handful of youngsters to take up the sport, then good on them. As I have said I would rather they held a sportman/woman who has acheived their goal in high regard than some pill-taking junkie popstar or some pill-taking footballer, for that matter!!!

That said and as much as I do admire Ellen I won't be watching the TV programme tonight as it clashes with Desperate Housewifes!!!! :w00t:

Queenie if anyone starts on about football I will be there with bells on - I would rather sail round the world twice on limited rations and no lusty pirates for company than watch a footie game - regardless of which country they come from.

I am delighted for Ellen and her crew and her sponsers and Great Britain - that we have motivated and dedicated people willing to forgo a 'normal' life to achieve great things. And go down in history for the genuine amazing person she is. But to achieve such an amazing record, she will have had to compromise on other things, friendships, family, children, - and in her own words she prefers the sea as company. Her philosophy reminds me very much of Alan Hinks [the climber - who is also very single minded about his passion].

I do know what Censor is saying, we are like that in Gt Britain, we tend to favour the underdog, or we are seen to favour the underdog. It is more British to not show national pride - it is almost vulgar [that is not me saying that btw - just my thoughts on the GBP as a whole]. I see the Americans being as proud as punch that they are American and that their fellow countrymen win things - they go ape!! Which is fascinating - I just wonder whether in the UK we sort of look at them and think 'hmm very brash and OTT'? I don't know? Just a few thoughts.

I've followed her career since she first appeared on the scene and I love her to bits. I'm a sucker for lonely heroic types... mountaineers and single-handed sailors and such. Yesterday morning I had tears in my eyes watching her come into Falmouth. If what she does doesn't float your boat, then that's fine. Everyone to their own. But for me, she is a hero.

I wish she would bog off. All she does is moan and whinge and complain that she was cold, tired, hungry...........

I mean, who forces her to go on a yacht? For God's sake, if you want to be dry, fed and warm, STAY AT HOME!!! :wallbash:

And as for being a hero...I don't regard someone as a hero for imposing difficuly on themselves. If you find yourself caught up in unexpected danger/trauma and rescue people/save lives, THAT'S being a hero.
Ceri, my sentiments exactly! She's about as intresting as haemorhoids, imo.

Ceri, my sentiments exactly! She's about as intresting as haemorhoids, imo.

She speaks very highly of you, Peej!! :D :w00t:

Thank you, thank you, both Flip and Bella, you actually brought a lump to my throat. Ellen is one of those very few amazing people with a vision of achievement, like those that conquered Everest or the Poles.
She was genuinely touched at the number of people that turned out to meet her, and not once did she say "I did it", it was "We did it" meaning the whole team.
I have the utmost respect and admiration for what she has done, and I will be watching her programme tonight, I suggest that those of you who see this as insignificant do as well, then maybe you will understand just what she physically and mentally had to cope with. I am from a seafaring family, and I KNOW that she has achieved something special and exceptional.

I will be watching her programme tonight, I suggest that those of you who see this as insignificant do as well, then maybe you will understand just what she physically and mentally had to cope with. I am from a seafaring family, and I KNOW that she has achieved something special and exceptional.I do understand and I can appreciate the achievement for what it is, I'm just not that fussed about it myself. I'm glad for her and in fact anyone who makes their dreams and ambitions a reality, but I wouldn't have been bothered if she hadn't done it either.

I do understand and I can appreciate the achievement for what it is, I'm just not that fussed about it myself. I'm glad for her and in fact anyone who makes their dreams and ambitions a reality, but I wouldn't have been bothered if she hadn't done it either.

This is how I feel. I shall not be watching tonight as neither her or her achievement interests me at all.

She had already passed the finishing line earlier in the morning, Woodstock
ok thanks Bella for clearing that small one up for me. Then I congratulate her. It's not right up there or anything, for me personally but it is an achievement, in that it is a real test of endurement - from what I've heard on tv commentary, she only averaged 20 minutes sleep. How much truth is in that one, I'm not so sure as I think she would have arrived in Falmouth an exhausted woman.....and she didn't look "20 minutes a night sleep exhausted", put it that way. But that is not relevant anyway.

She deserves a pat on the back, though Dame is rather excessive. But then, you can send off for these awards on the reverse of a Kellog's cereal packet nowadays....

I didn't watch the programme as Desperate Housewives were on the other side. Normally I would have taped it but our VCR is on the blink. I phoned my mum to ask her to tape it but they had a power cut!! I am sure it will be repeated at some later date.

I appreciate what Voice is saying as there are some sports that don't exactly thrill me. I don't get the deal with cricket, to me it is just a bunch of over-grown men playing rounders nor do I get it with grown men crying into their pints over David Beckham missing a penalty!!

I can't understand why people are so vicious towards Ellen McArthur, I have read some of the website and as Censor pointed out there are a few references being made to her being a dyke, asking her to take her girlfriend next time so they can provide a lesbo act! I was not aware of her sexuality and it doesn't bother me, but then I read in The Scotsman yesterday that Ellen and her boyfriend are planning to build a home on the Isle of Skye. I hope Ellen can rise above these impecibles who very clearly lack any brain cells, who seem to think just because you have short hair and jet off around the world, you must so obviously be a lesiban!! How they came to that conclusion, I don't know. Yes, I appreciate there are people who may not be interested or bothered about what she has done but to post such remarks on her website is pretty sick.

CONGRATULATIONS ELLEN! :thumbsup:

It is an exceptional achievement and not her first. I would love to sail around the world but I will never be prepared to sacrifice everything and live in a hut on £10 a week just so as I can get the experience and training I need to get good enough to attempt such a challenge. Ellen has sacrificed much to sail on the world stage (she wasn't a silver spoon kid whose mummy and daddy paid for everything) and so deserves nuff respect as far as I'm concerned. :cool2:

I can't understand why people are so vicious towards Ellen McArthur, I have read some of the website and as Censor pointed out there are a few references being made to her being a dyke, asking her to take her girlfriend next time so they can provide a lesbo act! I was not aware of her sexuality and it doesn't bother me, but then I read in The Scotsman yesterday that Ellen and her boyfriend are planning to build a home on the Isle of Skye. I hope Ellen can rise above these impecibles who very clearly lack any brain cells, who seem to think just because you have short hair and jet off around the world, you must so obviously be a lesiban!! How they came to that conclusion, I don't know. Yes, I appreciate there are people who may not be interested or bothered about what she has done but to post such remarks on her website is pretty sick.

I can't understand this either Bella, what has she ever done to them. As I have said she doesn't interest me in the least but I do admire her for making her dreams a reality and I wish her well. There is really no need for these comments and I don't understand why people are making them.

Slightly off-topic but here is an email received by B & Q customer services:

Dear Sir/Madam
My congratulations to you on getting a yacht to leave the UK on 28th

November 2004, sail 27,354 miles around the world and arrive back 72 days

later.


Could you please let me know when the kitchen I ordered 96 days ago will be

arriving from your warehouse 13 miles away?


Yours Sincerley

John Roberts :laugh: :laugh:

Lol, excellent :D

Slightly off-topic but here is an email received by B & Q customer services:

Dear Sir/Madam
My congratulations to you on getting a yacht to leave the UK on 28th

November 2004, sail 27,354 miles around the world and arrive back 72 days

later.


Could you please let me know when the kitchen I ordered 96 days ago will be

arriving from your warehouse 13 miles away?


Yours Sincerley

John Roberts :laugh: :laugh:
God I wish I was that witty and quick - that is brilliant!! :laugh: :laugh:

Im a bit late to the news of Ellen but I have just read all the thread and taken aback by some of the comments. Is there a negative to this achievement? I really admire people who have dreams and visions and yes, in the midst of them you might get a bit obsessed. Certainly holding to a dream in adversity require passion, obsession, industry, stamina, withstanding many weathers of all sorts......and like many adventurers before Ellen, I salute them. She must be singing inside. Belated congratulations.

Like you Tonee, I was a bit surprised at the negativity towards Ellen MacArthur. I can understand maybe not being interested but not to accept what she has done as a wonderful acheivement leaves me feeling kind of sad.

Look back at history, there have been some wonderful characters, Scott of the Antartic, Sir Edmund Hilary, Sir Ranulph Fiennes, Christopher Columbus,Amy Johnston, Louis Bleriot, Chey Blythe and even our very own Michael Palin, plus many, many others. They have conquered their dreams, ok Michael Palin had a full camera crew with him, but it was wonderful what he had done.

Imagine if none of these people felt the desire to acheive what they desired. What would our history books be like? These people have given inspiration to others to acheive the impossible and to acheive their goals. I am not saying that mothers, fathers, siblings etc do not provide inspirations for individuals but the people that I have named (and others) have no doubt helped ordinary people to do that little bit more.