The Epic Voyage

Vendee Globe(the Epic voyage of Miss Ellen Macarthur)
5th March 2001

Ellen Macarthur just 24 years on this Planet
And she had begun
A journey of epic proportion
And to do what no youngster had done
Eyes, she had eyes as blue as the bluest of ocean’s
A 60′ yacht
And a dream she could sail
To the ends of the earth
And resolve to enjoy it a lot

Kissed her parents goodbye
And her mentor and friend
Mark Fisher she out in the grey
With a stress ball or two
With a heart good and true
Climbed aboard her new home and away
Just the seagulls and sky
Western France waves goodbye
To the great lonely climes she now bound
Kingfisher scythed through the surf and the swell
And her heart strings pulled up on the sound

24,000 miles, a thousand miles for
Each year of her life, she would be
Fighting each squall
Using probably all
Of her strength
And her tenacity
For a goodly long spell
Young Ellen knew well
She must work with the elements and
Fight all the way through the blue and the grey
A soul bearing far from the land

For this Vendee Globe race
Goes at such a stiff pace
Heading south to the Ocean of Fear
“I am what I am, I do what I want”
As the brilliant white icebergs appear
The size of the waves
Have become sailors graves
But this lass went to battle tis clear
Cat napping through
The icebergs of blue
And getting the hell out of here

With a great sideways sail
In a bold frothing gale
Her tail up and raring to go
To fight the good fight
With all of her might
And to let all the world blooming know
Exhaustion was just overwhelming
The resolve that this young woman showed
Up the mast, down the mast , do it!
Black and blue but she just glowed

Port side a mountain of ice was on view
A berg that could un-mast and mean
Death and collapse of what seemed under wraps
Alarm bells were setting the scene
Ellen battled and won
For she now felt the sun
Warming her so easily
She opened some ginger nuts
Which she did share
With Neptune the God of the Sea
Her hands and her nails
White from mending the sails
In the constant wet
Ellen did steep
Her body was sore
:Like never before
But her sailing prowess made me weep
Till she hit some great bar
And her rudder did scar
It didn’t seem fair
That this shroud
Could close in on her
The rudder did whirr
And in more salty spray she was showered

How the storm winds did blow
And with more weight in tow
It just seemed so heavy she thought
To lift and repair but she was aware
If she didnt she might just be caught
Or possibly sink she was now on the brink
Her emotions great oceans inside
Took its toll but this lass
Would not let the crevass
Swallow her up, she denied
Defeat she was strong
On her own all along
This incredible voyage would soon be
Over, she screwed
On some more fortitude
For herself which she needed to see

She was back on full track
Attack just attack
That was the cry in her soul
Beyond all the limits she set for herself
But again things were taking their toll
A broken forstay
Was the big thing to-day
She sobbed for it didn’t seem fair
Twas a great open race
But the look on her face
Clearly showed us she’d reached deep despair

But on grit she was made
And the price that she’d paid
A new joy was coming her way
Flotilla’s of sail
Little boats on her tail
Victory too her’s Today
Champagne and smiles
A reward for the miles
The torment just how could it be
Kingfisher fought
He was such a great sport
He had carved out his name on the sea

Ellen Macarthur just 24 years on this planet
A journey of epic proportions
This lass had just done
Her eyes they were blue like the bluest
Blue found in the Oceans
A radiance shone on her face
Like the rays of the sun
She’d sailed through the heaviest seas
And was wholly reluctant
To leave the Kingfisher and walk
Up the harbour anew
She kneeled down and planted a kiss
On the side of Kingfisher
Young Ellen Macarthur achieved all she’d
Set out to do