Chay Blyth

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Sir Charles Blyth , CBE , BEM (born May 14, 1940 in Hawick , Roxburghshire ), known as Chay Blyth , is a Scottish sailor and oarsman . He was the first single-handed sailor to circumnavigate the world from east to west against the prevailing westerly wind without stopping in the 59- foot- long yacht British Steel in 1971 .

Life path

Chay Blyth grew up as the youngest child in a working-class family of five girls and two boys. He left school at the age of 15 to go to the local textile factory as an apprentice. At the age of 18 he enlisted in the British Army and served in a parachutist unit. He rose quickly and at the age of 21 he was the youngest supervisor to hold the military rank of platoon sergeant .

Career as a rower and sailor

In 1966, while still a member of the Army, he and Captain John Ridgway rowed across the North Atlantic in an open 20-foot-long dory called the English Rose III . After successfully completing this Atlantic crossing from Cape Cod to the Aran Islands in 92 days, Chay Blyth received the British Empire Medal (BEM).

In 1968 he took part in the Sunday Times Golden Globe Race with the 30-foot yacht Dytiscus without any sailing experience , but had to give up due to storm damage.

In 1971, Chay Blyth became internationally known for his first non-stop circumnavigation, which he carried out as a single-handed sailor against the prevailing wind direction from east to west. With the 59-foot yacht British Steel , named after the sponsor of the circumnavigation, it took him 292 days. According to his own reports, this trip brought him to the brink of physical endurance. For this outstanding sailing performance he was awarded the Order of Commander of the British Empire (CBE).

In 1973 he led a team of British parachutists as skipper with the yacht Great Britain II in the Whitbread Round the World Yacht Race to overall victory after sailing time. The rigor and consistency with which he led his military-trained team is unforgettable. Everything that was not absolutely necessary was taken off board to optimize weight, even the toothbrushes were broken through in the middle to save weight.

In 1978 Chay Blyth won the demanding race around the British Isles, the Round Britain Race , with the yacht Great Britain IV .

In 1981 he won the Two Handed Trans-Atlantic Race with his fellow sailor Robert "Rob" James with the yacht Brittany Ferries GB , where they broke the existing time record. In the same year he achieved second place in the Round Britain Race with the same yacht .

In 1984 he capsized with his fellow sailor Eric Blunn with the trimaran Beefeater II off Cape Horn during the New York - San Francisco record attempt . Both sailors spent 19 hours in the cold water before being rescued.

Blyth took over as co-skipper, together with Richard Branson at Virgin Atlantic Challenger I and the Virgin Atlantic Challenger II in 1985 and 1986 and won the Blue Riband of the Atlantic (Blue Riband of the Atlantic).

Chay Blyth organized the British Steel Challenge in 1989 and then founded Challenge Business . This event made it possible for amateurs to sail around the world in a professionally organized race.

The British Steel Challenge was followed by two BT Global Challenge races in 1996/1997 and 2000/2001. Problems on the part of the sponsors could not be solved, so that the Global Challenge race 2004/2005 took place without a main sponsor.

In 1997, Chay Blyth was awarded a knighthood and became a Knight Bachelor by Queen Elizabeth II. Fought for his contributions to the sport of sailing and now allowed to Sir Chay Blyth call.

Business career

Sir Chay Blyth founded Challenge Business to organize and run the Global Challenge Round the World regatta . The Chartered Institute of Marketing awarded him The Companion of Honor in 2000 for his contributions to professional marketing.

Sir Chay is the chairman of Inspiring Performance . He is also the chairman of the board of the First Great Western railroad company .

As chairman of Challenge Business, he became the sponsor of the British sailor Denise Caffari in her successful attempt in 2005/2006 to become the first woman to sail around the earth one-handed against the prevailing wind direction from east to west.

Honors

Fonts

  • with John Ridgway: A fighting chance. Hamlyn, 1966.
  • Chay Blyth: The Impossible Voyage, His own story of the first solo non-stop wrong way round the world sail.
  • Chay Blyth: Theirs is the glory, Great Britain II and the Round the World Race. Hodder and Stoughton, 1974, ISBN 0-340-18518-X .

Web links

Individual evidence

  1. ↑ a b c d e Sir Chay Blyth CBE BEM - Biography Retrieved on February 27, 2009 (English)
  2. ^ The Ocean Rowing Society: John Ridgway and Chay Blyth.Retrieved February 27, 2009
  3. ↑ Map: British Steel's Voyage.Retrieved February 27, 2009
  4. ↑ Reflections on the design of Brittany Ferries GB Retrieved February 27, 2009
  5. ↑ Wirtschaftswoche: Denise Caffari - 178 days of headwind. Accessed on February 28, 2009
personal data
SURNAME Blyth, Chay
ALTERNATIVE NAMES Blyth, Charles
BRIEF DESCRIPTION Scottish sailor
DATE OF BIRTH May 14, 1940
PLACE OF BIRTH Hawick (Scotland)