Page 28 - link magazine

28 The Link Magazine • January 2002
Spirit of Swindon's journey end
Kryten Systems Ltd
Specialists in Atlantic rowers taken to the extremes of endurance
Web Design
Norman Butler from Westlea and his rowing partner Phil Scantlebury from Poole in their boat Spirit of
some of the services we offer Swindon should have arrived in Barbados between Christmas and New Year, completing a long, hard
Domain name registration 3,000 mile journey.
• Website design and redesign
• Website hosting on our own servers in According to Linda Butler, with meant that a passing schooner
Telehouse
Search engine registration/promotion 400 miles to go as The Link went to spotted the Spirit and dropped off
and reports on current rankings press before Christmas, both men some food. Welcome as it was, Nor-
Friendly. personal service from a local were at the end of their tether with man ate some out of date salami
company that knows how to help your frustration and despair and were which turned his stomach and
business make an impression on the
Internet, struggling to maintain the momen- made rowing very difficult. They
e tum to get to the finishing line. have to use a bed pan for a toilet to
For a FREE quotation and advice
Call Clare on She and baby daughter Melissa keep low in the boat and Norman
01793 729815 flew out to the Caribbean to wel- said he had to row for a day sitting
come Norman and Phil with both on it," said Linda.
[email protected] their mothers. The first half of the row was
www.krytensystems.com
At the end of November Nor- mostly on calm seas but Norman
man and Phil and the Spirit of told Linda that the conditions in
Swindon were nearly sunk by a December were very rough, with
ship that had dropped off food. the Spirit of Swindon surfing down
uklinks4 Norman had originally planned Just before departure, Norman, forty foot waves. "They have had
to concentrate to make sure the
and packed supplies for 90 days,
Linda and new born Melissa.
but decided to leave twenty days Norman will have to catch up on boat goes up the wave and down
There are some worth of supplies at home because videos to see how she has grown the other side at the right angle to
of the weight. try and avoid being soaked more
great resources Because their journey was tak- In mid-December Linda was tel- than they have to.
on the Internet. ing much longer than expected, ephoned by Dover coastguard af- "It's been very hard work at a
food stocks were starting to run ter the French coastguard had re- time when they are physically and
low. A passing freighter hoisted ceived a message from a ship which mentally exhausted. They have
But do you know food over the side but did not give could not locate the Spirit after a been plodding on and are desper-
where they are? the rowers enough time to pull radio message asking for food. ate to finish.
away before moving off. Linda had talked to Norman by "Hopefully they will arrive in
In a choppy sea and with pro- then and was able to assure the Port St Charles by the New Year.
We do! pellers churning, the Spirit was coastguard they were alright. We'll all be glad to see each other
sucked along the side towards dis- However an 'all-ships message again."
www.uklinks4.com aster, but somehow they managed
to push away in time. No joy for elected Mayor idea
KINGFISHER + Martha Parry wrote of the need for an elected Mayor in Swindon in
the December Link. Here she reflects on an unsatisfactory decision.
While I argued last month that
much of coun-
Swindon's consultation on a di-
regulated and
rectly elected mayor was incon- cil activity is
WINDOWS • DOORS • CONSERVATORIES clusive, and should be put to vot- funded by cen-
ers in a referendum, the Govern- tral govern-
ment office receiving Swindon's ment, it really
THE CLEAR CHOICE report on the process has passed it is an agent of
as meeting the guidelines. national gov-
Swindon Council has done noth- ernment and
FOR QUALITY, ing wrong; it is the guidelines is- party politics, no matter which
sued by the Government which party is 'in.'
are inadequate. • Martha has won a Community
VALUE AND SECURITY Reading the press about how Innovators Millennium Award to
the council is run, I am struck by research a business plan to open a
the use of words like 'authority,' town centre American style diner
Full Range of PVC-U and Aluminium Products
'control' and 'ruling group.' which would be run by young peo-
In the context of local govern- ple. All profits would be put back
ment, and considering how so into community projects
Arts in line for big cuts
Higher council taxes from April have been agreed by Swindon
Council to maintain and improve education and social services.
A 9.5 per cent rise - about £70 a • closing Cre8 Studios and Swin-
year - is to be implemented. But don Dance;
after a poor grant settlement from • closing the public art service and
central government the council still cutting grants to activities such as
faces a deficit and a range of serv- the Festival of Literature;
ice cutbacks and price rises are • not introducing new payments
proposed. These include: to foster carers and closing a resi-
• closing 10 small libraries to con- dential home for the elderly;
centrate on 7 centres of excellence; • reducing subsidies to Enterprise
• closing the Children's Univer- Works
sity scheme; • increasing car park charges.
• reducing grants to voluntary Finaldecisionsonbudgetreduc-
groups; tions will be made in April.