​Clipper 2023-24 Race circumnavigation reaches halfway mark

Having faced some of Mother Nature’s most testing weather conditions, in some of the most remote areas of the planet, the Clipper Race has passed the halfway point of the circumnavigation. Round the world Race Crew, Skippers and First Mates have successfully sailed over 20,000nm since the edition began in Portsmouth, UK in September 2023. The sailors have crossed some of the world’s largest and most remote oceans, including the North Atlantic and the stretch of the Southern Indian Ocean known as ‘the Roaring Forties’, notorious for enormous swells and unforgiving storms, as well as battling extreme heat and windless discomfort in the tropics.

Image: Over 20,000nm so far of testing conditions

The teams are now taking on the second half of the circumnavigation, which began with a short sprint to Zhuhai in China, where the fleet is expected to arrive from 6 March.

Ahead of International Women’s Day, we spoke to the women who are circumnavigating on this race edition:

Lorraine O Hanlon, a 37 year old osteopath from Ireland, racing on Our Isles and Oceans said: “I'm kind of surprised how this feels. In one way it feels like Portsmouth was such a long time ago, like it was last year but then also it feels like it was only yesterday that we were there at Race Start. It doesn't feel real that we've gone halfway around the world. It feels good. The big one, Leg 6 is coming next."

Image: Lorraine with Max Rivers (Skipper) and Tom Newsom (AQP)

Dianne McGrath, a sustainability consultant from Queensland, Australia racing on PSP Logistics said: “I wasn't sure what it would feel like hitting the halfway mark. I think with most projects I have completed in my life, when you get halfway through it, you think, well that’s the hardest part done, but actually it's the third quarter that feels more like that halfway point. That’s the hardest thing.

“I think the way that the race is being split up, the way that the legs are finishing in really interesting ports makes each leg a chance to rest and get rejuvenated."

Image: Dianne McGrath (right)

Lottie Wade, 26, from Cheshire, who is the First Mate on board PSP Logistics adds: “It’s an incredible feeling to have got this far, and actually knowing how far we’ve come. It’s a fantastic experience and I am learning so much.”

Image: Lottie Wade

The Clipper Race is a truly life-changing experience, where crew can spend up to a month at sea on board a 70- foot ocean racing yacht in the remotest parts of the globe, living, eating and sailing in close quarters with 20 fellow crewmates from a range of backgrounds, ages and nationalities.

Talking about her time so far on the race, Katie Mulholland, a 28-year-old doctor from New Zealand racing on Our Isles and Oceans said: “I feel like the race has gone a lot faster than I thought it would. It's crazy to think in a few months it will all be over. I feel much more confident on the boat than at the start. And I'm excited for the big things in Leg 6 at the North Pacific.”

She adds: “I think taking part in the Clipper Race has made me more confident in making quick decisions and being brave enough to step out of my normal comfort zone. And now I’m thinking about what am I going to do next, what's the next adventure going to be? Whereas before, maybe I was just on the track of following my career, but now I’m more open to possibilities and being a bit more spontaneous.”

Image: Katie Mulholland

Jaci Smith, who is circumnavigating on board Ha Long Bay, Viet Nam said: “I actually got a tiny bit emotional when I realised it's halfway. So, it’s kind of like counting down around the downhill stretch. And I've just really enjoyed it and I think it’ll feel really weird at the end getting off the boat. I thought I'd be more than ready to get off the boat, but that's when I started thinking that, like, the end is nearing, but I still have a lot of excitement.”

Image: Jaci Smith

Ella Hebron, 19, AQP on Washington, DC said: “I haven't ever really thought about the fact I've sailed halfway around the world, when we're racing that's what the focus is on, and when we get to port the focus is on the next race and getting the boat ready for it.

“It feels like a huge achievement being halfway around. If someone told me five years ago this is what I would be doing, I would never have believed them. Thinking back on the first half of the race, it has been so tough; the sailing, the dynamics, the constant push for success, but that's what makes it so much fun. I'm very excited for everything that's to come in the second half.”

Image: Ella Hebron

For professional sailors Hannah Brewis and Maisie Bristow, reaching this halfway point marks the completion of a circumnavigation, as the pair have now crossed every line of longitude, having raced around the world from Asia to the UK on the last Clipper Race edition.

Washington, DC Skipper, Hannah Brewis said: “Sailing across every line of longitude and officially being able to say I've circumnavigated the globe feels like a huge achievement, although I still think it's hasn't really sunk in. Up to now the races have been firsts for me, however from Qingdao onwards I've done these races on a Clipper Race yacht, I know the beauty of sailing is that it's never the same, but having experienced these races before and aiming for familiar destination it gives that added bit of confidence.”

Image: Hannah Brewis

Looking ahead, the crew will dock into two ports in China: Zhuhai and Qingdao, before heading where few sailors venture as they cross the world’s toughest ocean: the North Pacific. As they hit the USA, it will be first stop, Seattle on the West Coast, where they can expect to face waves the size of skyscrapers and gale force winds during the passage. From Seattle the fleet will head to Washington, DC via Panama, and then race across the North Atlantic to Oban in Scotland before the homecoming race to Portsmouth and completing the 40,000nm circumnavigation.

Follow the Clipper Race teams via the Race Viewer.