AN intrepid South Lakeland sailor has embarked on an epic global voyage in an ocean race that has already claimed the life of one competitor.

Martin Clough, of Witherslack, is currently skippering the UNICEF boat in the 40,000 nautical mile Clipper Round The World race.

Despite standing-in on short notice for the previous skipper, Paul Atwood, who fell ill, 'Cloughy' managed to steer his team into the lead until a terrible storm caused UNICEF to drop down to fourth place.

The Clipper Round The World sees complete amateur sailors board one of 12, 70-foot ocean racing yachts and try to circumnavigate the globe as quickly as possible.

It is described as being 'an unparalleled challenge where taxi drivers rub shoulders with chief executives, vicars mix with housewives, students work alongside bankers and engineers team-up with rugby players.'

Mr Clough, 58, who managed to call his family in Witherslack last night while en route to America from China, said: "I was in the process of running a training course for Clipper in November, when I was asked to stand in for a skipper going on sick leave and take over the team for leg four, the coast to coast Australia leg.

"Subsequent to that I was invited back to complete the race as skipper of UNICEF after the original skipper felt unable to continue following his earlier illness.

"The invite was enthusiastically received and taken up - so here I am mid-Pacific."

The skipper is pleased with how his crew is performing, but bemoans the fact that his lead was snatched away by the elements.

"This race so far is going well for UNICEF. At the start of the storm a few days ago we had a nightmare with a sail dragging overboard and another we struggled to get down.

"This cost us the lead.

"Unicef handles rough weather very well. It has a resilient team of crew which braced up well in the face of 60/70 knot winds gusting 80 and 90."

The challenging race was made even more difficult by the tragic death of one member of the 'Clipper family', Sarah Young, who was washed overboard.

According to Mr Clough, everyone on board UNICEF has been 'coming to terms with the sad tragedy that befell their friend', who was on board the IchorCoal vessel. She was buried at sea on Sunday (April 3).

At the time of writing, UNICEF sits in third place and is gaining quickly on the ClipperTelemed team in second.

The race is scheduled to finish in London on July 30.