Reporter Gabrille Nash blogs about the toughest race in the sailing calendar, the Vendee Globe

THE START OF THE VENDEE GLOBE 2008, 9th November 13:02

 Thousands of people turned out to bid farewell to the 30 skippers embarking on the 2008 Vendee Globe. There were plenty of tearful dockside departures as family and friends said goodbye for the possibility of three months separation.

I spoke to Alex Thomson’s incredibly proud parents before he left. They told me by Christmas both their sons would be in the Southern Ocean as Alex’s brother was already out on a similarly mad-cap sailing adventure.

Dee left the dock first, followed in four minute intervals by the other skippers as they paraded through Port Olona to thousands and thousands of people who had lined the streets to cheer on the sailors.

The start wasn’t an easy one, with conditions slowly getting breezier and the swell increasing to five metres. Mike Golding was given a penalty for crossing the line early putting him towards the back of the fleet.

But Dee Caffari on board Aviva had a great start, maintaining a strong position amongst the leading group of Frenchmen. We stayed with them for some way, but as they made further progress into the Bay of Biscay we left them. Later the fleet faced headwinds of 20-30 knots and 4-6 metre seas and not surprisingly more drama would unfold. 

THE FIRST 48 HOURS - a case of history repeating itself

The start of the Vendee is never easy and this year has proved no different. Currently nine boats have had to turn back and two of those have abandoned the race.

The fleet had a rough beginning hitting a storm head on, conditions have now settled for them as they made their way down the Portuguese coast. Dee Caffari commented that the first 48 hours had been physically and emotionally very tough.

She said she was concerned on how the weather had affected the boat, “There was a lot of shipping around and the seas were horrendous. All that crashing into the waves wouldn’t have done Aviva any good at all but she was really good and I haven’t found any damage as yet.”

The skippers who’ve made it this far now can finally relax (well, relatively) and take some time out to eat and sleep. Mike Golding (Ecover) remains at the top of the British contingent and is only 41 miles from the leader. He’s 11th overall closely followed by Dee Caffari (Aviva), Sam Davies (Roxy) and Brian Thompson (Pindar).

Unfortunately for Alex Thomson (Hugo Boss) a crack on the port side meant Hugo Boss started to take in water (Alex described as a mini-fountain), probably the result of residual problems after a fishing boat crashed into the boat a few weeks ago. 

He arrived back in Les Sables d’Olonne early Wednesday morning, fortunately safe and sound. He now has until Wednesday 19th November, 13:02 to make repairs to the boat and restart the race. Thomson is confident but it’s still unknown as to whether the damage is repairable. He however remains confident because in 2000 Mike Golding had to return to the start after his boat de-masted, Golding then restarted, overtook much of the fleet and ended up in a well-placed position.

The number of boats that have turned back is not surprising. On average only half the competitors finish this, the toughest of all solo sailing challenges.

For more on the Vendee Glode including special interviews with the sailors click here.

What a wonderful day!

I haven’t stopped smiling since I arrived at Southsea Common to prepare for the race, and I think I’ll be smiling for some time yet.

As you know I’d never taken part in an event like the Great South before, and I must say the sense of occasion and celebration far surpassed my expectations.Last week I’d been given some advise from the very best – when I’d been lucky enough to meet Paula Radcliffe. She’d advised me to stick to my pace, and I did just that.

Sticking with my trusty ten-minute miles, I made my way out of Southsea, towards the historic dockyards. What a wonderful route – with so much to see, bands playing and crowds cheering I barely thought about the challenge ahead.

At three miles I was lifted by the appearance of friends who’d come to cheer me on – “only seven miles to go Sarah”, they shouted….hmmmm, “only indeed” I thought….

The water stations were a welcome sight – although the cool breeze and rain meant I hadn’t felt too thirsty. I did enjoy taking some sips and discarding the bottle beside the road – just like I’d watched the professionals do on the television!

At six miles I still felt sprightly – and was greeted at the mile-marker by my Mum and Dad who’d travelled down from Bucks to support me. “Keep going Sarah” shouted Mum – I gave them a big smile and told them I’d see at the finish.

At 8 miles I started to feel tired…the legs felt rather heavy, and boy did that feel like a long mile! Some loud rock music propelled me forward – and as I approached the last mile, I’ll admit I felt slightly emotional. Tears were pricking as a sense of what was being achieved by myself and so many others kicked in.

With 400m to go – I upped my speed and ran all the way to the finish, arms aloft – the big grin still in place. What a great feeling – like nothing I’ve felt before.

And some food, lots of phone calls and a bath later – I’m still on a high.

I’ve raised nearly £500 for the Stroke Association – thank you to everyone who made a donation. And thanks too to everyone who helped me on my journey from a standing start three months ago!

Now I need another challenge – any ideas?!

Best wishes, and keep on running! Sarah x

Meridian presenter Sangeeta Bhabra blogs

It’s not always easy to find a good excuse to get the old barnet done but when someone says why don’t you get your hair done for charity? I couldn’t resist at £5 for a blowdry.

All the hairdressers at Finn Hair in Woodley near Reading gave up their evening on Monday the 6^th of October to raise money for Breast Cancer Research and the charity Daisy’s Dream.

The girls all dressed in pink raised £400 pounds in two hours and regular customers walked away with some great Raffle prizes.

Great hair for a Great cause.

For more information visit the Daisy’s Dream website here.

“The sun always shines at Southampton Boat Show” so says Dee Caffari, the first woman to sail single handed, non stop around the world against prevailing winds and currents – and as part of her exclusive interview with ITV Local, she reveals just how much fun one can have at the extravaganza.

Packed with stars from across the sailing world, including a number fresh from the successful British Olympic Games team, she says on her ‘Yachtpals’ blog - “How fickle the weather can be but how grateful are we for some long awaited sunshine. I had almost forgotten what the sun looked like! The agreeable weather is fantastic news for the PSP Southampton Boat Show which opened on Friday with Mike Golding bringing the victorious Olympic sailors to the show onboard ECOVER. It was a great opportunity to see some famous faces and the ten day event looks set to be a great success as it celebrates its 40th year.”

Women-guide.com agree, referencing at as one of THE events to visit in Southampton, while georgioman01 has uploaded a scintillating water-ride he experienced at the event here. Have you been yourself, and did you enjoy the day – or even take any excellent photos you could upload to our YourNews section?

Also, for anyone interested in popping along – ITV have secured a number of fascinating interviews with the aforementioned Dee Caffari, as well as Actress Kate O’Mara and 3-times Olympic gold medalist, Ben Ainslie. Pop over to the dedicated ITV boatshow page to watch them.

On Saturday Meridian reporter Kerry Swain will fall out of a plane at ten thousand feet strapped to a man she has only just met, falling five thousand feet, reaching speeds of up to 130 miles an hour before he (hopefully) opens the parachute!

Kerry says “I’m absolutely petrified but determined to go through with it as I will be raising money for a really worthwhile cause - the Rose Road Association in Southampton. The charity is a real lifeline for disabled children and their families, providing help and support they can’t get anywhere else.” 

*** About donating online ***

It’s very easy to support Kerry Swain online - just go to their page at the following web address and click “donate now”.

Web Address: http://www.justgiving.com/kerryswain

It takes a matter of minutes, is totally secure and you can leave a message with your donation too. If you pay UK tax, Justgiving will automatically reclaim 28% Gift Aid on your donation at no cost to you, so it’s even better for the charity.

The day dawned overcast last Wednesday, but inside the Dorset steam Fair excitement was high, as ITV accompanied bloggers Steve and Trin around the event to prepare a bloggers report on the steam-related goings on – as VIP guests of ITV Local Meridian.

But it was the impression on the old palette that first caught the imagination according to Trin, who noted that “They had every type of food imaginable. Everyone seemed to be eating something really nice.” And rather interestingly that everyone seemed to have a dog as well. “I filmed a lot of dogs..”

But it was not just dogs on display, and as the couple took to the expansive fair in pursuit of their film (which will be appearing very soon on the blog) they generated a whole heap of photos, which are spread liberally over their blogs. Look here, and here for just some of them.

Of course, like all of the best planned expeditions, the trip was threatened with disaster, and it was not long before an ambulance was required – Trin in her own words: “Steve insisted I needed food and sugar but almost immediately I felt faint again and yep I fainted.” Cue a swift recovery from the hardy Trin, and although the day halted there, ITV Local are pleased to report that both bloggers are now in rude health!

Of the show itself, Steve said - “the Fair is fantastic and you really do need a few days there to see everything. We missed whole swathes of it.” Happily though, they did get enough to craft a fine report – which will be appearing on the blog within the next few weeks. Do keep an eye out!

My time as Channel Assistant for ITV Local is coming up to a year now and what better way to end it than by a small step up the ladder of success (and it really has been success!) to become one half of News Editor…

Sharon’s shoes will be big ones to fill but hopefully with two of us taking the reigns we should fit in quite nicely - there will however always be a small gap for our now departed Channel Manager Casey who has moved on to show London how it’s done. I have every faith that Sharon will continue the legacy of the ’twinkle on the computer screen’ that Casey began all those years ago (well two actually) and Local will keep getting bigger and better.

I love working for regional news and I feel like the ITV Local Meridian and Thames Valley sites have an identity to them and reflect the interests and attitudes of our viewers. With more and more people wanting to partake in news stories by sending in photographs, videos or eye witness accounts I think that Local offers the perfect platform for this and this is something I definitely want to encourage and expand.

 On that note please do keep your material coming in either by uploading directly to YourNews or emailing us at meridian@itvlocal.com with details of Local events we may be interested in - we always want your input and you never know, you could end up on Meridian or Thames Valley Tonight!

Thanks for listening!

Love Heather x