In October, I was privileged and delighted to have been granted a place as a circumnavigator and race crew on the Clipper 2025-26 Round The World Yacht Race.
This is a c. 40,000 nautical mile race, with 11 yachts with ever-changing crews of c. 20 at a time, covering 8 legs broken into 13-15 races, departing from the UK in August 2025 and, hopefully, returning safely around 11 months later!
I learned of the Clipper Race some 20+ years ago. I had developed an interest in and desire to learn to sail, which I pursued with some RYA training and participation in a few amateur events and races over the years.
There is something appealing about the fluidity and grace when all is well-balanced – a sort of partnership with nature to embark on and complete a journey swiftly and safely – but there are obvious inherent risks that require constant vigilance, planning and mitigation, and of course a resilience and nerve to deal with and act appropriately when something unexpected might occur (as has happened a few times in the past)!
Having long talked about it, a uni friend and his partner participated as circumnavigators in the Clipper 2011/12 Round The World Yacht Race. He has been extremely helpful in providing guidance as I finally get to do this and I am immersing myself in the planning and preparation (he even dug up an email of recommended kit from his team from years ago!).
Over the next c. 6 months, I’ll aim to document as much of the planning, prep and training as I can, if not to entertain you then to perhaps provide a bit of a resource for any future participants.
For more background: www.clipperroundtheworld.com/
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