Sailing is arguably one of the most physically demanding sports out there.

The sheer amount of power and energy that goes into pointing a boat in the right direction is phenomenal.

The winching, hoisting of sails and halliards makes most seafarers extraordinary athletes.

Take Dame Ellen MacArthur, for example. She circumnavigated the world with barely a night’s sleep on a tiny boat for more than two and a half months.

That would obviously lead most to conclude that only the fittest and the strongest are able to sail and people with disabilities may not be able to cope with the rigours of it.

Well, that is just a myth according to the chairman of Lymington Royal Yachting Association (RYA) Sailability, Aly Gunn.

RYA Sailability defies the odds and introduces more than 40,000 young people and adults with physical, mental and sensory disabilities per year to the water.

Anyone, whether they’re wheelchair bound, suffering from a mental illness or have difficulties seeing or hearing, are able to take to the water in boats in the water around Lymington and off into the Solent.

Gunn, who recently sailed solo around the Isle of Wight, is a case in point herself.

In 2001 she was forced to stop working as a nurse and give up horse riding – her favourite pastime – as a genetic eye condition meant her eyesight was becoming ever weaker, whilst a back injury hampered her movement.

She looked for a new hobby and, surprisingly, found sailing.

Gunn has not looked back since, and now works as a regional events organiser for the south as well as in her capacity as chairman at Lymington.

“A lot of people think sailing is too expensive and inaccessible,” she said. “They think, because they’re disabled, it’s logistically impossible.

“But it’s just a myth. We constantly surprise people that they can sail, even people with disabilities.

“It’s wonderfully uplifting and a brilliant escape from the frustrations that disabled people face on land.

“Once in the boat, they are as capable as anyone else.

“We’ve had people come to us that have suffered life changing illness.

“They come to us and their confidence and self-esteem is transformed.”

To join the Sailability programme costs an annual fee of £30, allowing access to various forms of vessel, including powerboats and an array of sailing craft.

It doesn’t matter if you’re a complete rookie or familiar to the ins and outs, the Sailability programme is equipped to provide for all types of disability and ability.

Visit: rya.org.uk/programmes/ryasailability/Pages/RYASailability.aspx for more details.