Guy attended the College from 1980 to 1985 and now farms locally. His first teacher at Princethorpe was Alex Darkes who was also on hand to hear Guy speak.

Guy has just completed the challenge of a lifetime, one of the toughest endurance events in the world. Pitting himself against the might of the Atlantic Ocean in the Atlantic Dash, a 3,200-mile rowing race from Lanzarote to Antigua. He spoke to students about his 52-day journey and the life lessons he has taken away.

Guy committed to the challenge to support his long-time friend Rod but with no nautical experience even the journey to the row was hard. After all their preparations, the Brightsides team (Guy, Rod, Anna and Pez) set off on Wednesday 3 January and rowed two hours on two hours off for 24-hours a day. Along the way they endured wild weather, encountered wildlife, including flying fish, dolphins and even a pesky marlin, were blessed with vivid sunrises and sunsets galore and stunning night skies. They also suffered from painful blisters and callouses as they all turned into toughened rowing machines. They finally reached Antigua on Sunday 25 February, cheered in by delighted family and friends.

Before their challenge the team of four rowers had agreed to four simple rules, don’t be late for a shift, give it everything, have fun and to come home as friends and Guy concluded his talk with the message that with the right team pulling together anything is possible. His final advice to his audience was that it is always good to get out of your comfort zone and that no matter how tough things are it is worth keeping going.

Huge thanks to Guy for sharing his experiences with us and congratulations to all the Brightsides team on their superhuman effort, and for together raising over £150,000 for two charities, Meningitis Now and Get A-Head.