The tale of Tony Bullimore

Mark Chisnell reluctantly returns to the keyboard after a look at the papers ...

I should probably start by saying that I've never met Tony Bullimore, I've not seen the rebuilt Team Legato, I've never raced around the world, or done more than a day sail aboard any of The Race entrants, nor was I in Barcelona for the start.

All of the above will, in the eyes of some of you, disqualify me from having a valid opinion on the oh-so-public travails of Tony Bullimore over the past few days. And, frankly, I'd like to agree - having already written on the tactics and weather (the real news) in both the Vendee Globe and The Race, I'd really rather be doing something else with what's left of New Year's Day. Unfortunately, the amount of newsprint that the British papers have seen fit to devote to Mr Bullimore's sad story dictate otherwise.

To many readers of these papers - and I suspect the wider British public - Tony Bullimore is the British entrant in The Race. Tony Bullimore and his rather haphazard approach to preparation and the event's safety regulations, and the almost comical (if it weren't so sad) comings and goings of his crew.

As far as the wider world is concerned, this was the story, the face of British sailing on the first day of the new millennium, the first day of The Race. Not Rick Deppe's decision to sail on Team Adventure despite a twisted ankle. Not Neal McDonald and Ed Danby's role in putting together the highly impressive Club Med. Not Brian Thompson's long and eminent record breaking career with Fossett, and his ambitions to do a Mini Transat after PlayStation.

And certainly not Ellen MacArthur's simple heroics in the Southern Ocean. Not Ian Moore's Volvo Ocean 60 race debut aboard the winning illbruck in the Sydney Hobart. Not Jez Fanstone's debut as V.O. 60 skipper in the same race. Not Tom and Vicky Jackson's Hobart class win in the 35 year old Sunstone, after sailing her half way round the world to get to the start. Not the Rawlinson sisters overall lead in the girls double-hander class in the Volvo Youth World Championship.

No, instead of all that and more, we got Tony Bullimore.

I'm not a natural knocker of people, and anyone giving their best will get cheered on by madforsailing, we're all about the celebration and promotion of the excellence that exists in British sailing. And I have no doubt that there are fervent supporters of Bullimore, admirers of his heroic survival effort in the Southern Ocean four years ago, people who believe that his herculean efforts in getting his boat to Barcelona in the first place deserve praise.

Fair enough - and many of his problems can be blamed on the lateness with which he found his funding, and the amount of work the team have had to do in a very short time to get to the start. But having undertaken those efforts, doesn't he owe the rest of the British sailing community a certain competence, a level of organisation that makes his campaign look at least credible, if not competitive?

Perhaps you disagree - anyone who could raise the cash and find a boat could turn up to compete in The Race, and you could argue that finding the money gives you the right to do it any way you like. This accessibility is both one of the joys of sailing and one of its Achilles heels. The wider sailing community had no control over who rocked up to represent them in Barcelona. And I suspect that there are a few American sailors whose toes curl at the portrayal of Cam Lewis as a privileged, adrenaline addicted, trust fund-ite in a recent issue of Outside magazine.

But elsewhere in the sport our international representatives do have to undergo the most rigorous selection procedures. Our Olympic, Youth, Admiral's Cup and to a certain extent (through the filtering process run by Volvo) even our Volvo Ocean Race representatives have to be of the highest quality before they even get near a boat in the main event. And I believe that Tony Bullimore owes it to the labours of these people to aspire to their standards and run a decent campaign.

What is even more saddening is that by all accounts the work that's been done on the ex-ENZA/Royal and SunAlliance to make her Team Legato is of the highest quality. This is a great boat and there are some very good sailors on board her. But by their own admission, Team Legato are only going to win The Race by being the last man standing. That's why they reckoned they weren't too bothered by being a day late at the start.

So I have to ask, why bother at all? Instead of the headlong charge to start an event that they were patently never going to be ready for, why didn't someone call time out? They could so easily have spent another month or two working her up and then started a Jules Verne attempt when the conditions were right in late winter. This boat has every chance of beating Sport Elecs current record, and her efforts to do so would surely have attracted better publicity for the sponsor and the crew than the recent events in Barcelona?