NORTH Yorkshire retained firefighter Mr Neil Gray is still finding his land legs after spending six weeks circumnavigating the globe.

As part of an 18-man crew on board a yacht sponsored by his employer Serco, it was a trip he will never forget.

He is an instructor at the international fire training college at Teesside airport and had never sailed a yacht.

But when the company, which employs 30,000 people world-wide, asked for crew volunteers he wasted no time in sending in his application.

"I never thought I would see the application again," he told the D&S Times. "Then in June last year they wrote and told me I had been chosen to take one of the two employee crew vacancies for the 6,020-mile leg from Buenos Aires in Argentina round Cape Horn to New Zealand.

"I'd never done anything like this before. My only sailing experience before this was going on the Isle of Man car ferry and taking out a pedalo in Greece."

The race, which takes place every four years on behalf of Save the Children, follows the same route as race organiser Sir Chay Blyth used to secure his world title.

Sir Chay became the first person to circumnavigate the globe in reverse, sailing against prevailing winds and currents.

Twelve identical yachts, two made in China and ten built in Britain, set off on the final leg of the race from Cape Town to Southampton last Sunday.

But Mr Gray will never forget his part in the race, or the training he received before setting off.

"I was sea sick for the first 24 hours but it is surprising how quickly you get used to it," he said. "Many people taking part are not trained sailors so the pre-race training was invaluable."

Mr Gray admits to being bitten by the sailing bug and hopes to build on his experience this year.

"It's one thing to crew a yacht, but being able to sail your own dinghy single handed is something else," he added.

"I'm going to give it a go this year. Pity my wife doesn't share the passion. Nothing could be further away from her mind."

Mrs Gray's wife, Carol, and daughters Kerrie, aged 15 and Nicola, aged 14, travelled from their home in Ripon to be on the dockside to meet him in February when his adventure ended in New Zealand.

In 1996 the race raised £500,000 for Save the Children and organisers are predicting this year's event will top that amount.