Holt's Heroic Achievement
Thursday January 7 2010
Solent University Alumnus Geoff Holt has become the first quadriplegic sailor to complete a solo voyage across the Atlantic today (Thursday, 7 January).
Geoff, 42, set off on his epic trek from Lanzarote to Tortola in the Virgin Islands on 10 December and arrived at Cane Garden Bay - the very place where a diving accident left him paralysed 25 years ago.
Before heading off on his voyage he said: “Going back to Cane Garden Bay will be quite emotional for me. I left that beach in an ambulance. I want to go back a yachtsman.”
Geoff is now celebrating his remarkable achievement, but it wasn't without complications. A lack of wind and mechanical problems with the boat - 'Impossible Dream' almost led to the gruelling 2,700 mile journey being cut short.
This is the fourth time Geoff has crossed the Atlantic, but his first as a disabled sailor. He had already broken records when, in 2007, he became the first quadriplegic to sail singlehanded around Britain.
On reaching his destination he said: "It's fantastic, it's absolutely wonderful to be back after 25 years to sail across the Atlantic Ocean.
“This has been years of planning. It has been my dream to sail back across the Atlantic and I have only gone and done it."
For more information and to take a closer look at Geoff’s journey visit www.geoffholt.com||