francis chichester gypsy moth circles the world

'My God,' Sheila and I said to each other, 'She's a rocker!'.'

Then, two or three tiny ripples from a ferry steamer made folds in the glassy surface, and Gipsy Moth IV rocked fore and aft.

Chichester came in second in his race, but by that time victory had become a secondary consideration to testing himself and his tactics with a view to a round-the-world attempt.Īfter more than two years of the usual trials and tribulations that seem endemic to any boatbuilding saga, Gipsy Moth IV slid down the ways and began showing the problems of which Chichester would complain: 'There, the hull floated high. In 1964 prior to a trans-Atlantic race in which he came second, Chichester had asked that preliminary sketches for what was to become Gypsy Moth IV be prepared by Illingworth and Primrose, and space was booked at Souter's boatyard in Cowes for construction. An adventurer by nauture, Chichester had survived amongst other things crashing his plane into Katsuura harbour in 1931, before changing tack and entering ocean racing, making a trans-Atlantic record attempt in Gypsy Moth III during 1962. Sir Francis Chichester is a great British eccentric and one of whom any in these isles may be rightly and justifiably proud.

Francis chichester gypsy moth circles the world