Cobbetts' Guy Jackson, together with a crew that includes a number of Yorkshire and Humberside men and women, will brave the elements as they take part in the prestigious and grueling 2011-2012 Clipper Round the World Yacht Race. The crews will be raising money for a number of charities.

The Welcome to Yorkshire boat, the only English entry, will be one of ten 68-foot yachts in the race, which starts at Southampton on 31 July 2011. It will be crewed by 17 amateurs at any one time, approximately 45 over the whole trip, with professional skipper Rupert Dean. Many taking part will have done little, if any, sailing before other than the training provided by Clipper.

Guy, who will sail the first three legs of the race, will log over 15,000 miles during his journey from the Solent to Geraldton Western Australia, via Madeira, Rio de Janeiro and Cape Town taking on some of the world's toughest sailing environments, including the infamous Southern Ocean.

Guy Jackson, head of the Leeds office of Cobbetts and crew member, said: "I think everyone is getting a little nervous as the race gets close but the camaraderie within the crew is incredible and we have not even set sail yet! With a heavy Yorkshire and Humberside presence in the boat, I don't have any doubt that we will be tough enough to take on such a great challenge and stand up to whatever the oceans throw at us.

"Although I have had some experience in sailing the round the Island Race a couple of times as crew and on a few family flotilla holiday trips in the Greek Islands, this is on a different scale entirely. I'm a novice really and it will be a grueling four months, but I'm sure that it will be well worth the effort thanks to the generosity of colleagues, friends, family and clients in donating to our supported charities."

Gary Verity, chief executive of Welcome to Yorkshire, said: “Yorkshire is a world class destination and deserves to be seen on a global stage. The Clipper Race is the perfect event to showcase Yorkshire in key global markets, this is the third edition running that Yorkshire has competed in the Clipper Race, we are building on the success of those endeavours and hope to make this race our most successful to date.”

To follow Guy’s adventures on the high seas and to make a donation to one of the named charities, please visit: www.guysbigtrip.com/blog