Please help British Blind Sailing hit the start line on time

Five years ago this Spring I started learning to sail a boat, and subsequently competed in four National Blind Sailing Championships. As many of my friends will know, taking the helm of a dinghy or keelboat gave me a sense of independence and freedom, which can sometimes seem so rare as a visually impaired person.

I'm currently taking a rest from the water, but as I type British Blind Sailing, who support the development and nurturing of teams to compete on the world stage, is gearing up for the biggest event in four years, the IFDS World Blind Sailing Championships, which are being held in Japan at the end of May. It is virtually impossible, owing to the idiosyncrasies of classification and scoring systems, for visually impaired sailors to compete in the Paralympics, therefore the World Championships are effectively our Olympics - an opportunity to compete for Queen and country, and to promote blind sailing to a much wider audience.

Sharon Grennon has been picked to helm the B1 boat in the Great Britain fleet. Having crewed for Sharon in the past I can certainly vouch for her instinctive feel for the wind and the movement of the boat, and her incredible skill in piloting it around the racing course., and she must stand an excellent chance of top placing in Japan. Like her team mates across the three classifications Sharon has dedicated a huge amount of time and effort to compete for Great Britain, participating in training and development events, and raising money to try and ensure that everyone is on the start line on day one.

The costs of competing on the other side of the world are however very considerable, and with just a month left to go a shortfall in funds may mean that some of the sailors chosen to compete for Great Britain, including the sighted tacticians and crew without whom nobody can sail, will be left at home. After long cold days on the water throughout the winter, an hours in the classroom preparing strategies and tactics - and with all the talk of Paralympic legacies - it seems so very unfair that they may be beaten at the final racing mark.

The GB team will not be beaten without a fight however, and the members are doing what they can to ensure that everyone hits the start line on time. With mere weeks to go, minds to be psyched up and bags to be packed, they are making a last-ditch effort to raise the funds needed to get everyone on the plane, and allow them to compete for their country.

On the 7th May, rather than putting in some final practise for racing against the World Sharon will be dusting off her trusty (though somewhat ancient) tandem to cycle sixty miles from Greenwich to Brighton. Even for an athlete like Sharon this is no mean feat,and demonstrates her commitment to helping all of her team mates to take part. Sponsoring Sharon for her ride will help to ensure that the sighted members of the team, who have dedicated so much of their time to getting everyone ready, and who play a vital role in navigating around the racing course, can all travel to Japan. Without them Great Britain will not be represented,and years of work will have been in vain.

I know that times are challenging at the moment, and that spare cash is hard to come by. But if we all contribute what we can - whether in pounds sterling or spreading the word, we can help them reach the line.

You can sponsor Sharon for her ride at http://www.justgiving.com/sharonbiketobrighton .

Your re-tweets, likes or follows will also be hugelyg appreciated.

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