An English operating room coordinator surfed into the history books Tuesday, becoming the first person to kite surf across the English Channel.
The 70-nautical-mile journey of Andy Ward, 33, nearly ended before it began when he was stranded because of lack of wind. But Ward switched his kite for a bigger one that could grab what little wind there was and then got going.
“We couldn’t leave the beach because the wind was only about seven or eight knots,” Ward told the BBC.“I was working the kite so hard for about an hour and only managed to get about three or four miles off Alderney [in the Channel Islands].” (To see a video of Ward’s trip, click here.)
Ward’s bone-chilling six-hour journey was in aid of the UK charity the Special Boat Service Association (SBSA), which supports members of the Royal Navy. Ward raised about £3,000 ($4,817).
Ward, a father of three who’s been kite surfing for three years, left the Channel Islands at 9:30 a.m. He arrived in his hometown of Poole, Dorset, in England’s southwest, just before 3:30 p.m., and grabbed a well-earned glass of champagne.
Ward told the UK’s The Sun: “It was exhilarating out there, a real adrenaline rush. I’m so pleased, just chuffed to bits.”
Perhaps even high as a kite?
Photo (not of Ward) courtesy of eloleo via Flickr.