Falmouth and Penryn students relive Tall Ships experience

4:50pm Friday 10th October 2008

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They endured seasickness and braved death-defying heights but all 12 students from Falmouth and Penryn have returned ship shape from their Tall Ships adventure with memories that will last a lifetime.

Only four remain at Falmouth School and Penryn College out of the dozen students that boarded the Pelican on that sunny Saturday in September and set sail for Portugal on the first leg of the Funchal 500 Tall Ships Regatta.

They returned following eight days of life changing experiences, from climbing the rigging at dizzying heights to scrubbing the decks, all the while forming close bonds with their fellow student crew.

Steff Harris, a year 11 student and Killigrew house captain at Penryn College, said: “It was the best thing I’ve done in my life. It was just breathtaking onboard and with all the experiences and meeting new people I’ve just got so much from the trip.”

She described leaving Falmouth onboard the ship, which accompanied by a huge flotilla of yachts, fishing boats an dinghies, as “really emotional,” adding: “Many of us were in tears over what a great privilege it was to be there.”

Steff was one of six students from Penryn College who joined another six from Falmouth School to be sponsored to take part in the voyage.

Fundraising was led by Sarah Newton, who persuaded businesses in the area to donate money to pay for the students’ places, with A&P Falmouth the main sponsors.

Another student from Penryn was Ross James, Gluvias house captain at the college, who was the youngest crewmember after turning 16 years old – the minimum age – on the same day he boarded the Pelican.

Both he and Steff had taken part in a GCSE sailing module at the college.

Among those from Falmouth School was year 13 student Jacob Telling, who said: “I’d never done any sailing and thought I’d like a challenge. It was a really good experience.”

He was at the centre of an “all hands of deck” moment when he raised the alarm during one night-time watch to warn that the ship was about to drift into another Tall Ship.

Jacob was joined by James Maltby, another year 13 student, who now plans to complete his yachts-master qualification with the Royal Yachting Association and raise enough funds to repeat the experience next year.

“I didn’t really want to come back to be truthful. It left me wanting more. I’m a keen sailor, but this was a whole new experience for me,” he said.