Anyone else looking forward to the Volvo Ocean race?

Is there any TV coverage this year?

I decided not to take part this year.

Again.

See them setting that up whilst taking lunch at Alicante marina
Mountain biking’s better mind

I like doing many sports but they are all boring to watch/follow.

Yep, I’m working on a yacht that’ll be full of ‘Brunel’ sponsors for the start. We were there for the import race last weekend too. A great vibe in the Race Village all weekend.

Ohh yes. Having spent the previous 18 months working at Volvo Penta and now at Volvo Cars its pretty hard to miss.

No Team Puma this time round though, need to pick a team to follow so go Team SCA.

Yup, following and racing on Virtual Skipper ( a virtual race bit of software that lets you race against them from your keyboard )

TBH I kinda lost faith in it when a few years ago they stopped popping into the UK, last great memory was watching “Pirates” come around Alverbank Spit having hacked down the Western Solent on her way into Gunwharf.

IIRC it was a somber mood, one of the crew had been lost overboard that year.. 😕

Also had the privilidge to sail with a girl off “Maiden” ( if anyone can remember that far back )

Yep it’s going to be cool.

Shame about no Puma team as Ken Read is very good at all the TV stuff – I am slightly biased though as he asked me out to Newport to stay with him for 6 months and do foredeck for him a very long time ago.
It was a brilliant 6 months 🙂

Have to say though that I’m probably looking forward to the Americas Cup more as a TV spectacle 😕

Have to say though that I’m probably looking forward to the Americas Cup more as a TV spectacle

I duuno, I think sailing, like a lot of sports lends itself best to a hilights package style program so the Volvo actualy makes better TV IMO. Especialy the southern ocean stages!

Indeed – this isn’t a blow by blow live experience, but as an adventure that is son xtreme and visual, it will be great in chunks…

Yes very much so. Been following all the social media. I have some friends in the ADOR team. I couldn’t make the start this weekend but hope to get to one stopover, (did Lisbon last time) perhaps even Cape Town if we can get it organised as I have holiday to take.

BTW for all interested in sailing the Route du Rhum starts in a month – solo to the Caribean from St Malo, have a friend doing that too – bonkers !

It was bloody hot yesterday in the race village and I’m being dragged back again for leg 1 start.

Think I’d rather watch it on the telly.

@piemonster – its quite cold and rainy here in the UK, I’d stay put and find a cold beverage

Done.

There’s a pool too, might go do a few dives.

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Clearly not in the race village today, but well be there for Leg 1 kick off.

I think it’s lost some of it’s original attraction for me since it’s become more of a series of short sprints from sponsor port to sponsor port.
This is all relative obviously, and it’s still a tuff test of boat and crew.
I liked the idea of the longer legs with minmal stoppages.

@mike the last race had the longest leg in Volvo Race history. Less stopovers are really bad for sponsorship and you can get huge seperations so the result is a foregone conclusion and its really dull. The re-starts and in-port racing are essential these days and big improvements.

@piemonster – nice, you where just trying to wind us up anyway !

Huge separations on long legs – not always . Anyone remember 89/90 with Rothmans and Merit(I think it was?) matching each other through nearly 30 crash gybes on the way into Freemantle and separated by seconds at the line after crossing the southern ocean. Outstanding.

A very memorable race despite Steinlager’s dominance with the Maiden crew, the Russians on Fazisi (Skip Novak’s book was an interesting read) and the tragic loss of of a sailor in the southern ocean.

Where is good to get some video highlights for the non sport channel subscribers?

Piemonster, pop by and say hello if you’re around the race village tomorrow. We’re just in front of the Abu Dhabi / Brunel tents under the shed. Nilaya.
We’re out for a sail around lunch time, but will be back in by 4. Shitloads of guest during the daytime tomorrow and Saturday, so don’t be offended if I can’t stop to chat.
Ask for Jerry

I sailed on a Volvo yacht around Rio a few years ago. What I remember are the shuddering noises and the immense power. They’re amazing machines, though not one I’d want to sail through the Southern Ocean. Later that weekend I drank my body weight in champagne with a journo from the Daily Mail, who was a top bloke. He had to fly home on the following day and on account of his hungover cold sweats he had a cavity search at three different airports.

Piemonster, pop by and say hello if you’re around the race village tomorrow. We’re just in front of the Abu Dhabi / Brunel tents under the shed.
Shitloads of guest during the daytime tomorrow and Saturday, so don’t be offended if I can’t stop to chat.
Ask for Jerry

Come and say hello. I might not talk to you. 😉

Where is good to get some video highlights for the non sport channel subscribers?

@garage excellent streaming media on even website, the weekly reports last time where excellent.

I did get a sail on the ADOR 70 last time and got to drive for a bit but to be honest I was so wasted from the night before in Cowes I don’t remember much.

An intersting image is being painted here, mostly concerning a huge amount of booze!

@TheSwedishChef – I don’t think that it could be classified as breaking news. A few plastic palm trees and some cute bar staff in shorts and I felt it necessary to drink my own body weight in rum 😐

I can see the reasoning behind changing the format to a more sponsor/media friendly format.
I just preferred it when you waved them goodbye and waited for the morse code message from the South Atlantic

Well its started, good luck to all those involved.

The live tracker on the phone app is very good, as is the whole app actually. Can see myself using up a lot of time/data checking up on their progress.

Just a handful of miles left for the leading two boats, been a very interesting battle to watch play out.

Live streaming for the finish now up and running
http://www.volvooceanrace.com/en/home.html

BTW for all interested in sailing the Route du Rhum starts in a month – solo to the Caribean from St Malo, have a friend doing that too – bonkers !

some amount of carnage in the first couple of days, hope your mate is still racing.

i enjoy following both though it probably makes me even more annoyed being stuck at a desk….