Witney sailor Nigel Lidster has been putting himself through weeks of arduous training in preparation for a transatlantic yacht race.

Mr Lidster, 39, has been rising at 5.30am for a run and swim, climbing up a 100ft mast and studying ocean meteorology before breakfast.

He will be a crew volunteer, sailing with 15 other people on a 72ft yacht during Sir Chay Blyth's Challenge Transant 2002 race.

The first race takes place in August, from Southampton to Boston. The fleet will then race back in September.

Jon Jeffreys, who has been training Mr Lidster, said: "We've started to get tough with volunteers. We need to make absolutely sure they're physically and mentally prepared. "Night watch rotations, where Nigel sleeps in shift patterns of four hours, man overboard drills and rigging are all part of the training."

Mr Lidster said: "The training has been very good, with lots of team building and practical exercises. The challenge has been a really good experience as we could see how much we had learned."