Race 12 - Day 13
Crew Diary - NEW YORK, USA TO DERRY-LONDONDERRY, NORTHERN IRELAND
03 July
Written by Jaz Fleming
I don't write many blogs. The last one was on Leg 1 (September of last year) so in the essence of symmetry I feel I should write another one now as we continue on Leg 8 and near completing our circumnavigation.
Have I enjoyed the last year? Well to be honest I don't know if enjoy is the right word. At times it's just endurance as I'm sure that those who've made it this far will agree. But as time passes and my memories of the difficult times fade, I probably will reflect on the journey and say yes, I enjoyed it.
If someone asked me to choose a highlight of the last year I suppose from a sailing point of view I think the Sydney to Hobart race would certainly be up there. But most of my highlights are not sailing related. The things I'll remember the most fondly will be the marine life we've seen along the way, the shooting stars and spectacular skies at night, the phosphorescence in the water. All gems of nature that we've been so lucky to see.
I've also really enjoyed the stopovers. It makes me wonder if I would have had the same pleasure by flying to the cities we've visited around the world? I think not. There is a real sense of achievement when you arrive at a destination after weeks of hard work sailing across an ocean. Sure it's not all hard work, there are times when boredom is the enemy. The pressures of living in a confined space with up to 20 other people for weeks on end can be trying to say the least. Having said that there have been a lot of laughs and good times along the way.
One particular memory I have is arriving in Rio one morning and having the crew of the eight other boats (already in port) standing on their decks and clapping us in. There were three cheers as well, it was all very emotional.
The lasting memory from our journey will be the camaraderie. We started the race as a bunch of strangers but as time went on we built a bond that we'll share for the rest of our lives. As people come and go on each leg you create new friends and learn the story of their lives and what has brought them to this point.
That's the beauty of the Clipper Race. You meet people from all different walks of life and from all different corners of the World and you become friends. I've even met some wonderful people from my home town of Perth in Western Australia that I wouldn't otherwise have met.
Yes Clipper as an organisation has its faults, however they have allowed me (a complete novice) to sail around the world and become a member of a select group of people who call themselves circumnavigators. For this I can't thank them enough. On this note, thanks should also go to Frank Dixie and his team at PSP Logistics for sponsoring our boat. I am sure he would have liked a more competitive boat but we hope he can be proud of the way we conducted ourselves and represented his company during the course of this race.
Max is probably not the most competitive of skippers on the race but he has guided us around the world safely and we've had a lot of good times along the way. I think everyone of our crew would call Max a friend at the end of our journey.
We will finish the race in 12th place (that's last) which is not a position that anyone wants. I never had any illusions that we would win the race but I would have liked to have made it into the top three once during the race and maybe finished mid-table overall but at the end of the day it is what it is. We've had a very happy boat throughout the race and if I was given the choice between this and a more successful but less harmonious boat I would certainly choose the former. Sure with the money this trip has cost me I could have bought my own boat but I know I would never have crossed an ocean and certainly never sailed around the world.
There has also been tragedy during the course of this race. Andy and Sarah set off from London last August just like the rest of us but unfortunately neither will return. Their deaths have cast a shadow over this year's race and reminded us all of just how dangerous crossing an ocean can be.
People will measure the success of their lives in many ways. For some it will be financial, others might be career related but for me it will be the friends I've made and the laughs we've shared along the way that I will remember the most. The sailing is just something that went on in the background. It wasn't until I started sailing around the world that I realize how much I enjoyed land.
Jaz Fleming - New Zealander
55, Circumnavigator (well almost)