Waterford men brave the waves

Waterford men brave the waves brave waves for charity.

Favourable wind conditions, the summer sun and the inviting blue sea is calling Waterford man, Michael Murphy and Cork based, Darren Nicholson to set sail on one of the most prestigious sailing events for amateur competitors in the world – The TransQuadra. The two Irish sailors will compete in this adrenalin rushing two part race across the Atlantic Ocean for ALONE.
The TransQuadra Race, which has 100 boat entrants with only one from outside France, will set sail on July 10th. The first stage of the race will commence at St Nazaire on the Brittany coast to Madeira.  It is estimated that it will take 10 days to travel, clocking up 1,200 miles. The second stage, starting 6 months later in January 2012, is 2,400 miles and will take about 20 days to complete. In previous years, the TransQuadra has proved to be a real test of Man, Boat and Equipment.

Both Michael and Darren have never embarked on an adventure of this scale before though they have previously competed in Round Ireland and Fastnest races which are 704 miles and 600 miles respectively. They are excited about this challenge and are encouraging well wishers to donate to their chosen charity – ALONE – on mycharity.ie (http://www.mycharity.ie/event/mike_murphys_event/).

CEO of ALONE, Séan Moynihan commented; “We are very excited about this race, and we hope Michael and Darren will enjoy competing in it. Michael and Darren’s involvement in the race will hopefully generate a greater awareness of the services that we provide for older persons at risk and in turn will really help us to get our message into the community.”

The two sailors chose ALONE as their charity in commemoration of Michael’s mother who worked with a similar organisation in Cork for 25 years. Established in 1977, ALONE provides a vital befriending service to older people, but also crucially provides affordable permanent and temporary housing for older people in need.  The charity provides a high quality and supportive housing service to facilitate and promote independent living.  ALONE has over 120 volunteers who offer a befriending service to older people in communities.  ALONE does not receive any ongoing state funding, it is through the donations from members of the public that the organisation can carry out its essential activities.  The organisation is based in Willie Bermingham Place, a housing project in Kilmainham, Dublin named after the founder of the organisation.

ALONE can be contacted on (01) 679 1032 for those who have concerns about their own wellbeing, or the wellbeing of a vulnerable older person in the community.