A SOUTHAMPTON yachtswoman had to endure horrific conditions as her boat was forced to sail on its side during her world record bid.

Dee Caffari's attempt to sail around the world the wrong way nearly came to a disastrous end just 8,000 miles short of the finish line when her yacht Aviva began to sail on its side through the water of the Southern Ocean.

The 33-year-old former teacher from Sholing, who is now on the final leg of her 26,000 mile voyage, reported in her daily diary how the yacht suddenly lost speed and ended up with more deck in the water than the hull.

"The reason the boat speed had dropped was because the speed transducer located in the bottom of the hull wasn't in contact with the water very often.

The top guard wire that is thigh height if I stand next to it was in the water and we were slowly going sideways. I had more deck in the water than I had hull!

"I eased the mainsail in the hope that we would return upright a little. It helped but I desperately needed to get the staysail furled away."

After some manic moments of winching she finally managed this despite being drenched by the water.