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Seafarer trains for charity mountain climb onboard offshore vessel

4 August 2023

How do you train to climb Kilimanjaro when you live and work on a ship?

That was the challenge facing former submariner and current offshore supervisor Gordon Foot when he decided to tackle the 5,895m climb for international maritime charity Sailors' Society.

But, like most seafarers, Gordon relishes a challenge: 'As seafarers, we have no other option, so we use what facilities we have around us or improvise. It is not easy as the ship moves. Imagine if you went to a gym club and the building moved the whole time you were exercising.'

A former weapons engineering manager of the UK Royal Navy who served a 19-year career in nuclear submarines on special operations, Gordon is fitting his training around his present role as a senior client representative supervising offshore operations on major offshore wind farms, oil and gas and environmental projects.

'My onboard training regime consists of 4km daily on a treadmill before my 12-hour shift and then some leg work on the ship's stairs afterwards.'

To find out more visit the Sailors' Society Kilimanjaro climb page. 


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