Pete Goss, MBE (born 22 December 1961) is a British

yacht A yacht () is a sail- or marine propulsion, motor-propelled watercraft made for pleasure, cruising, or racing. There is no standard definition, though the term generally applies to vessels with a cabin intended for overnight use. To be termed a ...

sman who has sailed more than . A former Royal Marine, he is famous for his pioneering project Team Philips. He was invested in the

Legion d'Honneur The National Order of the Legion of Honour ( ), formerly the Imperial Order of the Legion of Honour (), is the highest and most prestigious French national order of merit, both military and civil. Currently consisting of five classes, it was ...

for saving fellow sailor

Raphaël Dinelli Raphaël Dinelli (born in Floirac, Gironde) is a French professional offshore sailor. He took part in the 1996-1997 Vendee Globe where he was rescued by Pete Goss after his boat sank in the Indian Ocean and he was in a liferaft dropped by an A ...

in the 1996

Vendée Globe --> The Vendée Globe is a single-handed (solo) non-stop, unassisted round the world yacht race. The race was founded by Philippe Jeantot in 1989, and since 1992 has taken place every four years. It is named after the Département of Vendé ...

solo around the world yacht race. During a severe storm in the

Southern Ocean The Southern Ocean, also known as the Antarctic Ocean, comprises the southernmost waters of the world ocean, generally taken to be south of 60th parallel south, 60° S latitude and encircling Antarctica. With a size of , it is the seco ...

, he turned his boat around and spent two days sailing into hurricane-force winds, finally finding Dinelli in a life-raft that had been dropped by an Australian Air Force plane shortly before the yacht had sunk. Dinelli is said to have come aboard clutching a bottle of champagne. He trained the original set of amateur crews for the British Steel Challenge, and competed in the race on board '' Hoffbräu Lager'', coming 3rd overall. Goss lives in

Torpoint Torpoint () is a town and civil parish on the Rame Peninsula in southeast Cornwall, England, United Kingdom. It is situated opposite the city of Plymouth across the Hamoaze which is the tidal estuary of the River Tamar. Torpoint had a populatio ...

Cornwall Cornwall (; or ) is a Ceremonial counties of England, ceremonial county in South West England. It is also one of the Celtic nations and the homeland of the Cornish people. The county is bordered by the Atlantic Ocean to the north and west, ...

, and has three children: Alex, Livvy and Eliot. In June 2008, Goss launched a replica of a 19th-century wooden

lugger A lugger is a sailing vessel defined by its rig, using the lug sail on all of its one or more masts. Luggers were widely used as working craft, particularly off the coasts of France, England, Ireland and Scotland. Luggers varied extensively ...

called ''

Spirit of Mystery ''Spirit of Mystery'' is a replica of the Mount's Bay lugger ''Mystery'' which made a voyage to Australia in 1854/55. In 1854 a discussion in the Star Inn in Newlyn led seven fishermen to set sail in the hope of finding their fortunes. 116 da ...

''. Four months later, he began a voyage from Cornwall to

Australia Australia, officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country comprising mainland Australia, the mainland of the Australia (continent), Australian continent, the island of Tasmania and list of islands of Australia, numerous smaller isl ...

on the boat, which has no modern electrical or navigation systems.

Creative works

* ''Close to the Wind'' (1999)

References

External links

* Living people English male sailors (sport) ISAF World Sailor of the Year (male) British recipients of the Legion of Honour Royal Marines ranks Members of the Order of the British Empire People educated at Plymouth College People from Torpoint IMOCA 50 class sailors Vendée Globe finishers 1996 Vendee Globe sailors British Vendee Globe sailors 1961 births {{England-yachtracing-bio-stub