“Disability is a state of mind, not a state of body” someone once said to me, and Hilary Lister is a great example of that.
Lister is quadriplegic, due to a degenerative disease which gradually limits the use of her body as she gets older. Now 36, she has embarked on a personal dream of sailing around Britain.
Lister set out from the port of Dover, in southeast England, on the 16th June, 2008. She anticipates that the journey, travelling clockwise around Lands End, out to the east coast of Ireland, and through the great Caledonian Canal of Scotland before heading south back to Dover, will take 3-4 months, weather-dependent.
Solo Journey
Incredibly, Lister is sailing solo, accompanied by a safety boat which tows her into port at the end of each leg, then returns her to the exact GPS position she left at the beginning of the next day.
Without the use of her arms, she is sailing the boat using a ‘sip and puff’ system of sucking and blowing through straws to control the sails and tiller. This is a system already proven after she successfully sailed solo across the English Channel to France in 2005 and around the Isle of Wight in 2007.
Lister only discovered sailing in 2003, so she has progressed with the sport in giant leaps. She kindly shared some insights into her love of sailing in mid-action during her Around Britain dream.
I wondered how Lister had progressed so quickly into sailing around Britain solo.
"I only sailed myself for the first time in 2005," she says. "Before that I was just a passenger. I’m still very much a beginner, but I learn a huge amount every time I go out, both from making my own mistakes and learning from my team.”
Why Does Lister Love Sailing?
“The freedom. Once you’re cast off, everything gets left behind, including my disability," she says. "I think all sea-lovers are attracted to the same thing – there is just something about being on the water that gives you a freedom you don’t get anywhere else.”
How Has Accessible Sailing Been?
“I’ve been incredibly lucky. I attended the Boat Show in 2005, and met some great people, which led to my first sponsor - Pindar - who have been incredibly supportive ever since," she replies. "That led onto meeting the company Artemis, who gave me my current boat and paid for all the adaptations.
Although it is still early in her journey around Britain (Lister was in Lymington on the south coast of England when I spoke to her), what have the highs and lows of the trip been so far?
“The high points have definitely been the night sailing, and the more challenging weather conditions I’ve been exposed to," she says. "The low points are being stuck in one place, like now, due to weather and boat problems. But the team is keeping each other going – I feel like, in the team, I have a slightly nutty, but very lovely family that I’m extremely proud to be part of.”
Advice from Lister:
“Try and live your dreams," she says. "Aspire to things that other people might feel are beyond you, but which you feel are somehow achievable.”
I wanted to ask Lister if she ever runs out of breath, but the ocean waves were already calling.
You can read all about Hilary’s journey and progress, and her efforts to raise money for her charity ‘Hilary’s Dream Trust’, at www.hilarylister.com.
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