Thirty years ago on June 4th, 1991, our Brother Richard Inniss sailed into Falmouth, England after seven weeks at sea, thus completing a single-handed transatlantic voyage of four
thousand miles. The vessel named "Drumbeat" was a 28 foot long derelict steel sailboat which was at the time all he could afford with his budget.
Born in Trinidad, ever since he was a teenager, Richard had always been enchanted by voyages of this nature. It was however a chance meeting with a visiting Canadian yachtswoman that encouraged him to do the trip himself and not put it off much longer. So within a matter of months, he found a suitable boat and on Christmas Day 1990, he began the task of overhauling the vessel which was to get him safely across the Atlantic to England and would be his home at sea for seven weeks.
On April 17th, 1991, equipped with basic navigational tools (sextant, compass, charts, etc) and his now seaworthy boat, Richard set sail from Bridgetown, Barbados, bound for Falmouth, England.
For relaxation, he took refuge in reading books, listening to classical music, jazz, and the numerous shortwave radio stations available at the time - Voice of America, BBC, Radio Moscow, and All India Radio to name a few.
During the voyage, news came through of Rajiv Gandhi's assassination which he recalled was a cause for great personal sadness. Observing the boundless sea and majestic night sky in all their moods gave him many opportunities for reflection.
In Remembrance of our Brother:
Richard lived his life with regard for the majesty of nature - he believed that it is only by God's grace that the ventures of mankind are possible.
Rest in Eternal Peace Brother.