Charity welcomes Mike Lambert home as he completes solo round-Britain kayak in 58 days
Posted on 29th July 2024
Sunday, 28th July 2024, 4:20pm: Mike Lambert arrives to a triumphal welcome on East Wittering beach, completing his 3,020km, 58-day solo kayak around the UK. Members of the national patient charity Aortic Dissection Awareness UK & Ireland were out in force, along with friends and family, to welcome him.
Photo: Howard Dyson (left) was one of the Aortic Dissection survivors at East Wittering beach on Sunday to welcome and congratulate Mike at the end of his challenge.
Since Mike set off on 1st June, members of the national patient charity have been avidly following his progress around the UK. Aortic Dissection survivors who were able have visited various coastal locations to meet up with their hero Mike, who is raising awareness of their THINK AORTA campaign and funds for Aortic Dissection charities and RNLI.
Bad weather and almost constant headwinds during the trip denied Mike the Guinness world record he was seeking, which stands at 40 days. The unseasonal weather affecting the UK in June made some of the long open water stretches, such as the Bristol Channel and Mike's two crossings of the Irish Sea to and from Ireland, very perilous. At one stage, he became stranded in Thurso on the north coast of Scotland for a week, while he waited for conditions to improve so he could traverse the Pentland Firth. This stretch of water between Orkney and the Scottish mainland is notorious for having some of the fastest tidal races in the world. With support and advice from the Pentland Canoe Club and good wishes from HM Lord Lieutenant for Caithness, Mike eventually found a weather window and successfully navigated the firth's treacherous waters.
"We're just delighted to have Mike back safe and sound" said Dan Burgess, Founder of Aortic Dissection Awareness UK & Ireland. "Spending almost two months at sea undertaking this challenge for charity and in memory of his dear Mum Caroline, who tragically lost her life to Aortic Dissection, is an incredible thing to do. Many of our 1,200+ members have been following Mike's live GPS tracker every day and talking about our hero in the charity's online Aortic Dissection Buddies support group. It's great to see so many of them here today to welcome him home."
Mike said: "Seeing all these people here to welcome me is, quite frankly, overwhelming" as he opened a celebratory bottle of champagne. The kayaker spent his 33rd birthday at sea during the challenge.
Mike's aunt Heather Clacey said "I’ve shed a few tears reading all of the wonderful tributes to Mike from the charity's Aortic Dissection Buddies. We are so incredibly proud of his achievements, as his mother Caroline (my sister) would be."
To date, Mike has raised almost £20,000 for the charities he is supporting: the national patient charity Aortic Dissection Awareness UK & Ireland; the Aortic Dissection Charitable Trust; and RNLI.
Gareth Owens, Chair of Trustees at the national patient charity, said: "We are very grateful to Mike for promoting our THINK AORTA campaign as he travelled around the UK, raising awareness of Aortic Dissection. This is a disease which kills more people each year than road traffic accidents. More people need to know about it, especially in the medical profession. The funds Mike has raised for the charity will go directly towards our work of supporting patients and families affected by the condition, teaching clinicians to THINK AORTA and partnering with researchers to find ways to prevent Aortic Dissection in the future. This epic round-Britain kayak challenge is a fitting tribute for Mike to pay to his Mum, Caroline, whose legacy now will be to improve the lives of many others affected by this condition."
There is still time to recognise Mike's achievement with a donation to the causes he is supporting via www.livelaughgraft.com
