From passive to passion: experiencing the Volvo Ocean Race
For as long as I can remember I have never really had a desire or interest in boats, especially yachts. They served one purpose for me really; sunset booze cruises. Other than that, it made no difference to me whether or not I ever stepped foot on a sailing boat again. Until now that is.
My job has so many perks it’s hard to keep track of them all. They usually involve fast cars, fancy hotels and gourmet food. But this weekend saw a perk that never ever entered my mind. I was invited to attend the Volvo Ocean Race at the V&A Waterfront in Cape Town. Not only was I to learn all about the Race, but I was also invited to partake in the Pro-Am race held on Sunday. What an honour. One that I would only realise when stepping on to the boat.
But let me begin with a brief summary of what this race actually entails. And I have to emphasise that no sporting event has ever commanded such instant respect from me as this race did. I was captivated from the very moment I arrived at the Waterfront. Here is why:
The Volvo Ocean Race is the world’s longest professional sporting event and leading offshore sailing event. The race began way back in 1973. It was rebranded in 2001 to the Volvo Ocean Race. Since those beginning days, the race has become faster, the crews more professional and of course technology has evolved tremendously. But what makes this race so captivating is that is still a very human challenge and a battle with nature. For about 9 months the sailors are forced to battle gale force winds, freezing or soaring temperatures and waves the size of buildings.
In 12 years, the race has seen five people lose their lives, which shows just how real and dangerous this sporting event can be.
For the first time ever, the teams are sailing a newly designed boat called the Volvo Ocean 65. This means that all boats are built identically and cannot be modified in any way by the teams. The crew consists of eight sailors and one on-board multimedia reporter who is not allowed to sail. The women’s team, yes there is an all-female team this year (the first in over a decade) can have 11 crew members plus the reporter.
Back to the race! Can you imagine living in the tiniest of spaces with eight (or 11) other people for a period of up to 25 days? You are sleep deprived, have restricted comminucation with the outside world, cannot shower (you get four wetwipes a day…this floored me. I would say this is the only reason I would never do the race..ya right, the ONLY reason ha ha), you only have one pair of clothes, everything is damp, ALL of the time, and you could potentially drown at any given time. Oh and don’t forget this is actually a competition, so you need to be in a competitive state at all times. I am exhausted merely writing this paragraph!
So this year there are seven teams competing and at this point Team Abu Dhabi Ocean Racing is in the lead. They sailed from Alicante to Cape Town for this first leg and leave on Wednesday for the second leg which sees them sailing to Abu Dhabi. There are 9 legs and the race ends in Volvo’s hometown of Gothenburg. The race is 71 745 km, that is almost twice the circumference of the Earth. Insane right? Just a little side info which is nice to know, Cape Town (along with Auckland) are the ports with the longest involvement in the 41 years of the race. Cape Town has featured 10 times as a stopover!
Did you know facts that are flipping fascinating!
- By rules, a minimum of two crew members will act as the onboard medics and they need to be able to amongst other things, apply a temporary dental filling. Huh? Who would think that this would be of the utmost importance when at sea, but then again, toothache can be a real killer.
- Without countings guests and journalists, there about 1 000 staff involved in the race.
- Sailors consume about 5 000 calories per day but still manage to lose up to 11 kg on a leg. (Hmmm weight loss programme here I come).
- There are no luxury food items (another reason I couldn’t do the race). Sailors live on freeze-dried food which can be as elaborate as lamb in mint sauce. I am sure it doesn’t taste like the real thing though.
- The maximum wave height recorded in the 2011-12 edition was 16.3 meters during the first leg to Cape Town. (Ok the reasons for me not doing the race are racking up)
- The minimum sea temperature recorded during this same race was 5,3 degrees Celsius. The maximum was 32,1 degrees Celsius. Toasty!
- The first all-female team to compete were Maiden, skippered by Tracy Edwards, back in 1989-90. Hashtag Girl Power!
How can you not be blown away by this race? These are only a smidgen of facts. If I had to put them all in this story it would be an information overload of note. Learning all about the race has been one of the most fascinating things I have ever done. Taking part in the Pro-am race, well now that was a life changing event altogether.
I was one of only a handful of people who were asked to be a part of this once-in-a-lifetime opportunity. It involved six of the team’s sailors on each yacht. I was on Team Brunel. Once on board we were a part of the crew and had to race for about 40 minutes. It was terrifying and exhilarating all at the same time. I held on for dear life (you might have guessed by now that I have not been sailing before).
There is something that happens to you when you discover a passion you never knew about. I never ever thought I would be interested in a sailing race. But the thrill I got when talking to the sailors (this thrill may have been for other reasons too), when onboard, when watching the film clips, listening to the professionals talk, or merely walking around the event was out of this world. I enjoyed every single moment of being a part of this event and I can only imagine what the actual competitors must feel like – noting that there is no prize money or anything. When I first heard that there was no prize I thought of the sailors as being nuts, but now, after my weekend involved in all things Volvo Ocean Race, I can honestly say that winning or even just competiting in this race would be honour enough for me! (Not that I would ever enter! Are you nuts?)
For more info visit www.volvooceanrace.com
Photo credits:
Sander van der Borch
Ainhoa Sanchez
Matt Knighton
Rick Tomlinson