NEWS
AGX - Mission Accomplished
Wed, 30 Jul 2008 09:05:30 +0000

The final Broadly Boats Special in the Alpha Global Expedition series is now available as a free download from: tinyurl.com/59vkxp The book “Over The Top” by Adrian Flanagan will be launched by Orion in October 2008. bb.firetrench.com ftnews.firetrench.com agx.firetrench.com nighthawk.firetrench.com ftd.firetrench.com

The Tall Ships’ Races 2008 got off to a flying start
Thu, 24 Jul 2008 10:56:11 +0000

HMS Mersey will be following the fleet. Above, earlier this year when HMS Mersey welcomed first vertical (bi-polar) cirumnavigator Adrian Flanagan back to British waters after his transit of the Russian Northern Sea Route The Tall Ships’ Races 2008 got off to a flying start yesterday as the race got under way just off the northern [...]

Alpha Global meets Exercise Midnight Sun
Sat, 05 Jul 2008 16:36:54 +0000

pictured left to right: Mark Giles, Andy Whitmore, Adrian, Paul Molyneux and Warren Beresford On Wednesday Adrian & Louise met with four members of the Territorial Army who are taking part in Exercise Midnight Sun which is the Royal Signals TA expedition to Greenland, one of the planets last great unspoilt wildernesses, in August 2008. The [...]

FAVOURITE PICTURES
Sat, 31 May 2008 14:18:40 +0000

We’ve finally made it home after 2 weeks on the Hamble. And what an incredibly memorable 2 weeks they have been. Of the many hundreds of pictures taken on the 21st May, these are two we particularly like. The family portrait is taken by our good friend Tina Hadley, the other by Sara Coombes [...]

AGX - PHOTOS
Mon, 26 May 2008 12:01:06 +0000

Below are a selection of family photos taken over the past couple of days - please feel free to use them. For publication purposes, a photo credit will suffice (Louise Flanagan) Reading The Times at breakfast on Thursday morning!

AGX - PHOTOS
Mon, 26 May 2008 11:55:02 +0000

Below are a selection of family photos taken over the past couple of days - please feel free to use them. For publication purposes, a photo credit will suffice (Louise Flanagan)    

THE DREAM CAME TRUE
Mon, 26 May 2008 11:35:57 +0000

  The smile that said it all - (photo - Louise Flanagan) The Alpha Global Expedition ended at 11.00am on Wednesday 21st May when Barrabas crossed the start / finish line between Calshot Spit and Hillhead in the Solent. Adrian Flanagan became the first single-handed sailor to achieve a ‘vertical’ circumnavigation of the earth. Below, in [...]

Thanks for a wonderful welcome home
Wed, 21 May 2008 15:13:37 +0000

Adrian and Louise wanted to take this opportunity to thank everyone who have helped to make this voyage of circumnavigation possible, to those who sent messages of support as Adrian prepared to sail away, to those who wrote and emailed during the trip, to all of those who came to make the conclusion such [...]

AGX Homecoming
Wed, 21 May 2008 10:08:15 +0000

Anyone wishing to rendezvous with Adrian at sea made their way to the EAST BRAMBLE MARK (50 47.2 N, 1 13.7 E) between 9:30am and 10:00am today. Spectators Spectators were able to watch Adrian as he proceeded up the River Hamble between 10:00am and 11:00am. Viewing from either the Hamble or Warsash side of the [...]

Full Day Ahead
Wed, 21 May 2008 08:30:57 +0000

Today will be a very full day for Adrian Flanagan as he ends a unique voyage - an outstanding achievement. Perhaps the final course chosen was a gentle build up to today. Originally, Adrian considered leaving Norway and heading South and West around the Shetlands and the Scottish islands, along the West coast of Ireland and [...]


Over The Top
News Archive

5 September 2006
Port of Nome, Alaska (still!)
The politics continue

I intended to make my decision last Friday about whether to continue passage this year or instead to postpone the Arctic phase until next summer. A late development has meant deferring that decision until the end of this week.

A friend and senior figure in the UK business community with high level contacts among the Russian Administration and who has been liaising with Russian authorities on behalf of the Alpha Global Expedition, has prised a narrow opening though which I might yet slip in my quest to achieve the first single-handed vertical circumnavigation.

Senior personnel at the Russian Embassy in Washington DC suggest that if the Russian Ministry of Transport were to agree to act as my 'sponsor', then appropriate permissions from the Ministry of Foreign Affairs (MFA) and the Federal Security Bureau (FSB) could be quickly generated and the Embassy itself able to issue the visa immediately on receipt of these permissions.

Northern Sea Route Administration falls within the remit of the Ministry of Transport and could thus either agree to sponsor me or seek approval from higher authority within the ministry to do so.

I have therefore asked my liaison in Moscow to put this to Nikolai Monko who heads Northern Sea Route Administration. This can be done Tuesday 5th September.

If the Ministry of Transport agrees to my request, I could have my passport and visa returned by the end of the week. Then, I would have to travel to Provideniya on Siberia's eastern coast, some 200 miles distance for a mandatory boat inspection. If the inspection were carried out promptly, I could be away on Tuesday 12th.

Ice melt and recede patterns are very similar to last year. In 2005, the ice continued to move off until 22nd September and held stable for a further 10 days before patches of new ice began to form close inshore. To get past Proliv Vil'kitskogo, some 1,000 miles from Provideniya, I would need between 10 to 14 days. If ice edge positions remain consistent, I could be on station at Proliv Vil'kitskogo at or close to the time of extreme minimum ice.

There is still a chance to get through this year, providing the ice remains stable. I can only talk to the Russian authorities. It is now for them to decide.