A daredevil dad has set sail from Canada in a one metre boat - in bid to cross the Atlantic in the smallest ever vessel.<br /><br />Andrew Bedwell, 49, said he was “quite chilled” about his 1,900-mile solo trip to the British Isles before he left St John's, Newfoundland, at 1.30pm local time yesterday (Sat).<br /><br />The mariner has spent three years hand-building his incredible fibreglass micro-yacht - aptly named Big C - which measures 3.5m tall and has a top speed of 2.5mph.<br /><br />And he’ll survive vitamin-based drinks and food bags made of beef jerky, raisins, and fat during his perilous passage, which have been moulded into the walls of his cabin.<br /><br />Video captured Andrew being towed out of the port, on the island's West coast, before his team released his lines so he could begin his journey at 2.28pm.<br /><br />He expects to be battered by at least five storms during his roughly three-month trip - comparing it to being “stuck in a wheelie bin, on a rollercoaster for 90 days”.<br /><br />Andrew said: “I’m quite chilled. I feel good, and it’s time to go. <br /><br />“Everything has pulled together exceptionally well, there’s nothing that I am apprehensive of on the vessel at all. Absolutely everything has gone to plan.<br /><br />“I personally think I’ve gone over and above what I need to do for the whole trip.<br /><br />“But you never know you could hit an iceberg. The Titanic was considered unsinkable but it hit one, and there are a lot of icebergs out there."<br /><br />The dad-of-one said he wasn’t concerned about spending months alone at sea in his tiny vessel but said he would miss his ten-year-old daughter, Poppy.<br /><br />He added: “I think the biggest thing I’ll miss will be a cuddle from my daughter. <br /><br />"But I wanted a big challenge before I’m 50 - and I'm taking on a huge challenge in a tiny vessel.”<br /><br />Andrew, who delivers yachts around the world and works as a sailmaker, has spent most of his adult life embarking on hair-raising nautical adventures.<br /><br />He previously sailed non-stop around Britain and has taken his small 6.5m carbon racing yacht across the Atlantic and up to the arctic circle.<br /><br />Andrew came up with his idea after reading a book by current record holder Hugo Vihlen, who made the dangerous crossing in a 1.6m (5ft 4inch) boat 30 years ago.<br /><br />He then spent years hand-building and self-financing his one-metre-long sailing boat, which he fabricated in the garage of his home, in Scarisbrick, Lancs.<br /><br />Andrew will now find out if his tough fibreglass tub, which has undergone rigorous testing, will stand up to the worst weather the Atlantic can throw at him.<br /><br />He said: “When you get into a storm, you’re then just battening it down and just hoping for the best.<br /><br />"You’ve got vessels who are also in the storms, and they’re not always looking out for you. That’s probably my biggest apprehension.<br /><br />“Ships still go down, but we’ve done as much as we can do to make it as bulletproof as possible.”<br /><br />Andrew will spend most of his time at sea sitting down inside his cockpit - only being able to stand up and exercise when the weather
