Yacht safe in San Francisco after toughest test

The amateur sailors docked in San Francisco on Sunday after taking a battering during 34 long days at sea, when they crossed 6,000 miles of the Pacific Ocean en route from Qingdao in China.

Violent storms wrought havoc in the clipper fleet, the Hull & Humber crew losing their skipper Piers Dudin, 31, to a broken leg when he was thrown against the guard wires by a large wave.

Command of the vessel was given to stand-in skipper Brendan Hall, who transferred from Spirit of Australia.

Mr Hall will in turn be replaced by 38-year-old Justin Taylor from Brighton, who is due to arrive in San Francisco on Thursday.

Hull & Humber was one of four boats that formed a protective flotilla to escort the stricken California into port, after she lost her mast when she was rolled through 120 degrees.

TV production editor Della Parsons, 43, from Hull, who is on Hull & Humber, said: "It was very tough, undoubtedly the toughest leg of the race. I was expecting some fairly wild conditions, but nothing like what we actually experienced on this leg.

With everything that we've faced; losing a skipper, boats dismasted and knocked down, people washed off deck and only held on by their lifelines, it serves to prove that this really is the challenge of a lifetime."

She added: "The sense of achievement to be here in San Francisco is huge. As we sailed under the Golden Gate Bridge this evening, it got more and more beautiful the closer it came.

"It really was an epic feeling and you really had the sense that you had come through one of life's greatest challenges."

Mr Hall said he was impressed by the way the crew had responded to the weather and the loss of their skipper.

"The crew have handled everything this race has thrown at them incredibly well," he said. "Not only did they lose their skipper but they have also taken on some of the toughest sailing conditions any sailor could hope to see. I feel privileged to have been able to help them at their time of need."

Standings after Race Seven leave Hull & Humber in fifth place among the 10-strong fleet with 37 points, 23 points behind leaders Spirit of Australia.

Mr Dudin is said to be recovering well in the UK after being taken off the yacht by the Japanese coastguard, and hopes to rejoin the vessel in New York.