Information as posted on Facebook today:
The Company85 Global Challenge: now there’s more than just a record at stake – it’s Britain vs America in 2013!
by Company85 Global Challenge on Tuesday, September 25, 2012 at 7:44am ·
Plus, new sponsors come on board to help the British challenge!
In an unexpected but welcome twist to the tale, Alan Priddy and the team behind the Company85 Global Challenge are delighted to announce that they’ve been challenged to a race around the world by another team from America. The challenge date has been set for November 2013 – a delay to the initial project, but one which opens many opportunities.
Alan Priddy said:
“The project has been generating interest from all over the world but the challenge came as a very welcome surprise – as we saw this summer at the Olympics, having someone to race against drives people to achieve extraordinary things! We’re looking forward to generating even more excitement about the project now there’s the added element of competition. A powerboat race around the world has never been attempted before and it’s got to be the ultimate challenge, both in endurance and operation. We’ll need to keep everything going flat out for 50 days.”
The delay will also allow the team to overcome a major setback. As many supporters of the project will already be aware, the warehouse adjoining the one where Accomplish More is being built was recently devastated by an extremely severe fire. Superficially the boat looked to have been undamaged but, for a project like this where lives could be at stake if something went wrong, it’s vital to be absolutely sure. A team of specialist engineers and boat builders were put to work to go over every inch of the boat and, unfortunately, they discovered that heat damage had caused some of the most important parts of the hull to lose as much as 50% of their integral strength. This left the team with no alternative but to start the build process over again.
Time had run out for the team to build another boat at Micklewrights’ so this has also meant finding another yard to rebuild the boat – no mean feat given the size of her. However, ABC Marine of Hayling Island has risen to the challenge and anticipates that Accomplish More will be built and on the water early in 2013, giving plenty of time for sea trials and corporate commitments before the challenge start date.
The extra time also provides an opportunity for more people to get involved. The latest sponsors to come on board are:
Iridium Communications Inc.,who will be outfitting the boat with an Iridium PilotTM terminal, providing vital voice and broadband satellite communications,
Cobweb, a leading UK cloud services provider, whose services will enable the team to transmit the latest, up-to-date news and technical information 24 hours a day,
Parker Hannifin, who are supplying fuel filters and engine water separators to ensure the team has clean fuel at all times, and
Chatham Marine, who will be providing deck shoes to the boat and shore teams - boating shoes renowned for their style, comfort and durability.
All the original sponsors and supporters remain committed to the project as well, and the team are looking forward to continuing to work with them to create the new boat. While the build process may be starting again, nothing done so far will be wasted. The boat was always designed to be completely recyclable so every piece of damaged aluminium can and will be reprocessed and re-used!
Alan Priddy said:
“Finding out about the damage was a real kick in the teeth – but the team is incredibly resilient and had already started to re-focus on the task ahead when we heard about the challenge from America. That’s really given us a boost and has created a huge buzz. We can’t wait to get the boat on the water in the spring to prove what she’s made of. We’ve been inspired by the success of Team GB this summer, and by Ben Ainslie’s pledge to bring the America’s Cup back to Britain in 2014. We feel we have the best chance of bringing the World Record back to Great Britain in 2013 – this is our chance to show that Britain really does rule the waves!”
For more information go to
www.company85globalchallenge.com.
BLACK PIG
Piglet
and as for sticking the space shuttle on the back that's just daft 
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