The second round of selections for young people wanting to complete the ASPIRE360 Round Britain Challenge will be taking part in a special day at the Mount Batten Watersports and Activity Centre today in Plymouth.

The 15, 14-18 year olds have been shortlisted from the initial applications and will and will compete once again to take part in the trip which departs on Sunday 2nd April 2017 from Plymouth’s Sutton Harbour and sail 1735 nautical miles around the coast of Britain.

Friday’s activity will involve two different water-based activities designed to test the young people’s teamwork, enthusiasm and character. Based on their participation 10 young people will be invited to attend a round of final interviews on board Helen Mary R and from those interviews the chosen team will be announced.

Aspire360 is being organised by Plymouth based Morvargh Sailing Project and is open to young people from across the UK. It will begin and end in Sutton Harbour, and is expected to take 5 weeks to complete.

The crew of young people who will have very little or no sailing experience will be supported by a team of eight adults. They will turn right out of Plymouth Sound and sail in a clockwise direction on Morvargh Sailing Project’s 57 Tall Ship Helen Mary R.

The selection day also marks the week that Morvargh Sailing and their tall ship Helen Mary R has been lifted from the water to undertake the renewal of rigging and other repairs that all of the past three years’ of fundraising has worked towards. The commercial coding (the licence to operate at sea) will be performed in just a few weeks.

Captain Matthew Barraud said of the sailing challenge; “The young people will swap the comforts of home for single bunks, a moving deck and having to learn how to cook, clean and look after each other as they get used to their new home. At 57 feet, and weighing 30tons, our Tall Ship, Helen Mary R is as long as five cars and weighs the equivalent of two double decker busses! The largest sail, which the young people will have to manually hoist, is 60ft tall and 40ft wide.

It will be a challenge which will see them battle strong winds, freezing temperatures and rough seas at times throughout the trip; as well as marvelling at our beautiful coastline under sun-drenched skies. It will be a feat of pure physical, mental, emotional and academic endurance, but one which will leave the young people changed forever. They will make strong bonds with their crew mates, increase their own understanding of themselves and their boundaries and most importantly have the confidence that they can try and excel at anything!”