A smiling Hilary Lister slipped the lines in Dover this week, and started her historic journey to sail solo around the British isles. Historic? Surely many have done this before? The difference is Hilary is a quadriplegic. 
'Hilary sailing - the 'sip and puff' method'
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At 36, she suffers from a rare disorder known as reflex sympathetic dystrophy. This 'genetic blip' means she has no movement in her arms or legs. The only thing she can move is her head so she can do things such as answering the telephone, dialling numbers, changing television channels and - sailing.
She has broken records, won awards and become a figurehead for disabled people because she is a fearsome sailor. In 2005 she became the first quadriplegic to sail single-handedly across the Channel. Two years later she repeated the feat sailing round the Isle of Wight. Now, it's the British Isles.
Hilary plans on sailing her Artemis 20 sailboat around the isles in legs, stopping each night in ports along the way. 'We'll be going clockwise around. We're up against wind and tides, for the whole of the south coast, but at least when we get to the North Sea we should get swept back home - which is a good thing.' said Hilary of her planned route.
Hilary Lister told reporters she was feeling confident as she set sail on Monday afternoon under bright sunny skies. 'We've broken everything that can be broken and everything that could have gone wrong has gone wrong, so we've got to be OK now,' said Hilary, who lost a mast last week in training.
Having set sail from Dover in the afternoon, Hilary Lister arrived safely in Eastbourne Marina near midnight last night; tired but happy to have successfully completed the first leg of her journey. The challenge for this journey will be to stay focused and determined both physically and mentally, as Hilary is scheduled to be sailing up to 16 hours a day for the next three months or so, before arriving back home in Dover. 
Tony Leppard, project director for Hilary's Round Britain Dream, is pleased that she has finally got underway despite the challenges. Tony told reporters 'It's been a long slog over the last three months to get the final preparations together. It's something she's wanted to do for a long time now and she's really excited.'
Tuesday Hilary departed Eastbourne at around 12:30 pm local time, and set sail for Brighton, where she hopes to arrive at around 6pm.
She has a lot of good will travelling with her. In Hilary's words: 'We all have that same choice don't we? You can live your dreams, or you can put up with the cards you've been dealt - I know which I choose every time.'
by BW Media 
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Alexandra Headland, QLD
