A terminally ill sailor from Seaford has revealed that she cried for hours as she endured torrential rain, wind, thunder and lightning on her sailing challenge.

Jazz Turner, 26, who has Ehlers Danlos Syndrome (EDS), recently smashed her fundraising target of £30,000 in her attempt to become the first female wheelchair user to make a non-stop, unassisted solo sailing trip around the UK.

She is raising money on her ‘Project FEAR’ challenge in aid of Newhaven and Seaford Sailability at www.gofundme.com/f/project-fear.

But on Sunday, June 22, she posted to her Facebook page that she was ‘tired, wet, cold, hungry and in pain’, saying: “The last 24 hours have been ugly.”

Jazz Turner posted an update about the tough weather conditions to her Facebook page on Monday, June 23

placeholder image — Jazz Turner posted an update about the tough weather conditions to her Facebook page on Monday, June 23

Jazz said the terrible weather conditions meant she had to constantly steer by hand and had only been able to get a few minutes of sleep.

She said: “I always want to present as this tough, strong, brave person. Sometimes, that’s what I feel people want, but that would be a lie. Right now, I feel beaten and destroyed and just keep crying. But that’s okay. Because no matter what, I just keep pushing.”

In a video message that she only got the signal to post on Monday, June 23, Jazz spoke of her ‘sheer frustration’.

She said: “Doing this journey I feel like I wanted to prove myself, that I would prove that I was a proper offshore sailor.”

Jazz set sail from Brighton Marina on Monday, June 2. Photo: Eddie Mitchell

She said: “I’ve been really angry at myself all of today for having this wobble because in my head if I was a proper sailor I wouldn’t be having this wobble and I wouldn’t be crying. But I know that’s not true. I know everyone has wobbles and it’s just a part of life.”

She continued: “It’s about picking yourself up when you fall. Today I fell hard. I screamed at fear and screamed at the wind and was certain I was giving up, that I couldn’t do this, that I wasn’t enough. But what today has also taught me is despite all I’m still going. We’re still sailing. We haven’t made the best progress but we are moving and some days that’s all you can ask for.”

On Tuesday morning, June 24, Jazz was much more upbeat in a video that showed calmer conditions. She revealed that over the previous 24 hours she had endured wind speeds of around 25 to 28 knots, with the biggest gust she knew about registering as 34 knots.

Jazz said: “The sea state last night was quite exciting. It was like the sea was alive and it was boiling.”

She added: “It made for some quite exciting but quite battering sailing.”

In another update on Tuesday, Jazz cheerfully announced that her cockpit was drying out and she had full sail. She said she was ‘very happy enjoying (her) five minutes of sunshine’ and thanked everyone following her on her journey and for their messages of support. People can follow Jazz at www.facebook.com/jazturnersailing and at www.instagram.com/jazturnersailing.

Jazz set off from Brighton Marina on Monday, June 2, in her Albin Vega 27ft offshore racer-cruiser named ‘Fear’. Her challenge to sail around the UK is set to last between four and eight weeks.

EDS is a group of rare inherited conditions that affect connective tissues. Jazz, who got into sailing as a child, did not know she had EDS until age 19. She became a full-time wheelchair user but continued to sail in adapted dinghies and boats and competed for GBR. In December 2024, after continual hospital stays, she decided to move onto palliative care while withdrawing life-prolonging treatments. Visit www.projectfear.uk to find out more.