Team Forces is excited to be supporting 33-year-old former British soldier Craig Wood on his world first maritime expedition to become the world’s first triple amputee to sail solo, non-stop and unsupported 7,000 nautical miles across the Pacific Ocean, a third of the way around the world! To give some idea of the scale of his 7,000 nautical mile journey, it’s equivalent to: 129,645 football pitches end to end; over 10 times the length of UK; or, twice the length of the Great Wall of China!
Despite experiencing a number of technical issues with his boat, Craig has now sailed over 6,000 nautical miles and is feeling positive about reaching the Japan in about 15 days! Craig will now be landing in the port of Hiroshima rather than Osaka as it’s better set up to enable Craig to make repairs to one of his engines which is still not functioning.
Through his record-breaking trip, Craig is aiming to raise £50k for two charities that supported his recovery: Blesma and Turn to Starboard. To support Craig record breaking Pacific voyage, visit givestar
To track Craig’s daily progress, visit | Craig Wood
CRAIG WOOD’S STORY
Having gone through basic training as a rifleman in the British Army, Craig, who hails from Doncaster, was posted to Afghanistan shortly after his 18th birthday. It was just three months into his first tour when his life was to change forever. Craig lost both legs and his left hand in an IED (improvised explosive device) bomb blast on July 30th, 2009. He also suffered two collapsed lungs, lost 27 pints of blood and his face was ravaged by shrapnel.
It took eight months for Craig to learn to walk again and four-and-a-half years of rehabilitation work at the dedicated Headley Court facility in Surrey to improve his quality of life. His recovery was long, slow and painful – with over 20 operations over four years. It was a mental and physical battle.
Fifteen years on, Craig lives on his boat, Sirius II, with his wife, Renata, and their two young children for much of the year. It’s a nomadic lifestyle true to the character he has become and one which the whole family embraces.
‘A huge thank you to my sponsors for helping me to take on this massive challenge.’
CRAIG WOOD
