Sir Robin Knox-Johnston has been asked by the Royal Western Yacht Club to start the Two Handed Round Britain Race from Plymouth on Sunday 7th June.

The starting line will be marked by some of the Clipper Round the World Race yachts. After the start Sir Robin will follow the race in two of the Clippers which are bound for Greenland. While in Greenland he will be picking up Sir Chris Bonington and taking him to the highest mountain that they can find. The betting is on if Sir Robin will, or will not, be persuaded, to follow his old friend up a mountain. He claims he made this mistake once before and does not intend making it again. What he needs is a good bribe. Any ideas please forward them to HQ@clipper-ventures.com The Greenland trips are divided into four 17 day legs and progress will be reported on www.clipper-ventures.com

Crew selection and training is presently underway for Clipper 98, the longest race around the world and the only one to visit China. The eight 60 ft yachts, with crews who pay for their berths, will set out from Plymouth on 17 October. There is still time to sign up for either one of the six legs or the complete 34,000 mile circumnavigation, but you better hurry! Full details are at www.clipper-racing.com