After several failed attempts Governor George Fergusson is finally getting his opportunity to sail in an ocean race to Bermuda.

The Governor is among the crew of Spirit of Bermuda which is the sole local entry in the 645 mile Marion to Bermuda Race — and he is very much looking forward to the big occasion.

“I’ve tried to get on either a Newport or Marion crew since I arrived in Bermuda and there’s always been something that has come up that has made it impossible, so I am really pleased to have got at least to this stage, and it looks as though it’s going to happen,” Fergusson said.

“This is my first ocean race and to be on the Spirit is really special. I don’t think we will be getting the Spirit up on the foil, but she’s pretty fast in the right conditions.”

Yesterday the Governor and his fellow crewmates took part in various orientation and sea drills aboard the triple-masted sloop that is making her second appearance in the biennial race that gets under way tomorrow.

“I am on ‘A’ watch,” the governor said, “so I know which time I will be getting up in the morning, and it will be really good fun.”

Fergusson’s passion for sailing stretches back to his childhood.

“I sailed when I was eight in New Zealand in the P Class which is the equivalent to an Optimist dinghy,” he said. “I sailed a lot in that.”

Spirit of Bermuda has created a big buzz since her arrival in Marion.

“She’s a great ambassador for Bermuda and also the whole concept of the Bermuda Sloop Foundation’s sail training programme,” Fergusson said.

“I have been talking to people here about the programme and they find it very intriguing and are impressed. It’s a very, very important role and the more we can integrate that into wider programmes the better.

“Spirit has a very important part to play in Bermuda — as well as getting me back to Bermuda.”

Meanwhile, the organisers of the race believe they have achieved their main for this year’s event.

After a significant decline in entries in the previous event in 2013 because of the economic downturn, the organising committee took steps to get numbers back up in the fleet.

“Two years ago, because there was only 34 boats that arrived in Bermuda, everybody set a plan in motion to increase those numbers and get us back up to realistic numbers,” Ed Faries, the commodore of race co-founders Royal Hamilton Amateur Dinghy Club, said.

A total of 46 boats make up this year’s Marion to Bermuda Race fleet.

“We are up by 30 per cent over two years ago and it is very, very exciting to see the race building,” Faries added. “It’s almost 50 boats this year.

“Everyone is very excited and we are expecting some good weather going across and a good time in Bermuda. This is going to be a great event.”

Organising the event has been no easy task.

“It’s a huge campaign on behalf of the committee who have been working very, very hard,” Faries said. “It’s incalculable how many hours go into organising this race.

“The three clubs [Beverly Yacht Club, Blue Water Sailing Club and the RHADC] founded this race back in 1977 and it’s very important for us to keep this thing going, so everything they do here is very important to Bermuda and the dinghy club.

“I believe the race is in good hands going forward. We have a great committee here in Marion and in Bermuda so there are some very exciting times ahead — especially with the America’s Cup coming.”