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Icom Support SUNUS Ocean Racing Circumnavigation Record Attempt

Icom UK are proud to support the SUNUS Ocean Racing team in their efforts to break the current speed record for the fastest circumnavigation of the British Isles. This will be a journey of over 2000 miles with the team planning to only stop for refuelling, working day and night with no sleep or rest for up to 73 hours, operating at speeds of over 45 knots. To aide them in their efforts, where safety will be essential, Icom have supplied SUNUS Ocean Racing with IC-M35 VHF marine transceiver handhelds.

The team consists of 20 people from all backgrounds, from Formula 1 to international sailing and will this year be joined by TV personality Ben Fogle who has himself been involved in many expeditions, from climbing the worlds highest mountains to rowing the Atlantic. Race director Tom Montgomery-Swan (pictured above on the left next to Ian Lockyer, Icom UK’s Marketing Manager) has a long history of powerboat racing and expeditions. He became the youngest person in the world to circumnavigate Britain at 12 years old and has participated in several other circumnavigations and long-range distance events whilst also working as a consultant for other expeditions.

Tom plans to use this attempt as an awareness campaign for stillbirth, something that has been close to his heart. Tom said, “We will be using this event as a national platform to raise awareness for stillbirths, something that is not often spoken about. In the UK, there are babies stillborn 15 times a day and many suffer in silence and we want to break the mould in a small way to support families that are impacted across the country. The fantastic charities that support the families are investing millions in research and we feel like we can have an instant impact with support equipment to help families now rather than in years to come”.

Keeping the crew members safe and in contact with the team at all times is essential so the IC-M35’s, with their buoyancy, reliability and many other features, will be the perfect VHF handheld for the crew. Tom stated “The IC-M35 will be paramount for personnel safety. If a crew member ends up in the water, they have the communications to help contact support or the coastguard. Icom are the leading manufactures in maritime radio communications and I need the most reliable kit on board, so I have complete and utter trust and confidence. The Icom brand doesn’t let people down and is always reliable so it makes sense to use the Icom IC-M35’s”.

If you would like to keep up to date with the SUNUS Ocean Racing team and their record attempt, then visit their website www.sunusracing.com where you will also find information about the charities they are supporting.

Everyone at Icom wishes Tom and the SUNUS crew every success in their attempt.

Icom UK Marketing - marketing@icomuk.co.uk