Two women from Lymington – Kate Sheerin and Samantha Hanley – will be amongst global adventurers set to unite at the launch of the Clipper Round the World Yacht Race

Two women from Lymington will be amongst global adventurers set to unite at the launch of the Clipper Round the World Yacht Race.

The Clipper Race involves non-professional, sometimes inexperienced, or novice sailors racing 40,000 nautical miles worldwide on a 70-foot ocean racing yacht under the guidance of a professional skipper and first mate.

This year, 59-year-old Kate Sheerin, a retired design and marketing business co-owner, and Samantha Hanley, 58, a communications manager who has worked for a global technology company for the last 30 years, will traverse some of the globe’s most challenging oceans.

Over 400 race crew from across the world gathered in Portsmouth as the teams they will race across the world with were revealed for the first time.

“It’s an amazing opportunity to share an intense challenge in a team environment with people that I don’t even know yet,” said Hanley, a Lymington Town Sailing Club member for the last three years.

“I wanted to challenge myself and to strip life back down to the basics: no internet, no day job – just me, the team and the ocean.

“I’ve had a long and successful career; I’ve raised a family, and felt like I wanted to enter a new phase of my life with something that would stretch me. Based on the training so far, it is delivering on that, pushing me to my limits physically, mentally and emotionally!”

She added: “I have an amazing husband who has been with me every step of the way and was there at the crew reveal cheering me on, but most of my non-sailing friends think I’m mad to even think of 40 days at sea without a shower, but I don’t think anyone was surprised that I was embarking on this adventure.”

Hanley is no stranger to extreme challenges. She has climbed the three highest peaks in Ecuador and hiked around the Torres Del Paine in Chile for 10 days carrying food, tents and all supplies. She also crossed the Bay of Biscay with two others on a 40-foot yacht to prepare for the Clipper Race.

Sheerin, who worked as a radiographer for almost 20 years before starting a business with her now ex-husband, said: “The race will probably be the biggest challenge of my life so far and the start of a whole new chapter.

“It’s an opportunity to test my physical and mental strength and to be a part of an incredible, global event. It also means joining an incredible team of like-minded people from across the globe and sharing the experience whilst learning how to sail an ocean-racing yacht.

“I’ve always enjoyed a challenge, and this one feels like the complete package – physical, mental, emotional. I got divorced during lockdown, and my children were both at university, and I realised I needed to rediscover who I was, and this feels like the perfect way to do that.”

She added: “My friends and family mainly think I’m mad, although they have also been very encouraging and supportive.

“I’ve always loved travel, adventure, and sport, and I spent a few years backpacking and working abroad in order to travel and pursue my hobbies, but I’ve never done anything as challenging as this.”

A professional skipper and first mate lead each team of up to 22 crew.

The race will depart from Gunwharf Quays, Portsmouth, this August. The event will celebrate two milestones: the 25th anniversary of its first departure from the city and 30 years of training people to cross oceans and sail around the world.

Follow the Clipper Round the World Yacht Race on social media for up-to-the-minute event information, or visit clipperroundtheworld.com