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Picture Gallery, please respect copyright
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Clipper
'98/99 Round the World Yacht Race
Who in their right mind would give up the security of a job and land for the risks of
ocean racing?
I did! (Whether I am sane is a different matter!)
Here you can browse through stories and pictures to appreciate the
experience.
Some what, why, who and when questions?
 | What was Clipper '98/99 Round the World Yacht Race? |
Seven 60' ocean yachts racing round the globe from Plymouth in the U.K. The
race started 17. October 1998 and finished 35,000 nautical miles later on 18.
August 1999. The yachts had a professional skipper with the rest of the crew
mostly amateur sailors like myself. Maximum capacity onboard was 15 people
living in cramped quarters with no luxuries! I was on Taeping, yacht #1, the
other yachts were: Ariel #2; Thermopylae #3; Mermerus #4; Serica #5; Antiope #6;
and, Chrysolite #7. The boats have been re-christened, Taeping was called
Plymouth for the third Round the World Yacht Race. Their official web-site is
clipper-ventures.com.
| Why sail in the Clipper Round the World Yacht Race? |
If you love adventure, competition, challenge and nature you have my answer.
In the vein of previous Norwegian explorers like the Vikings and Thor Heyerdahl,
there is a strong desire to explore and test the unknown. A dose of the
competitive spirit is needed as it is truly a race of global proportions.
Challenges come in many shapes. Physical and emotional stamina is tested to the
limit and for some beyond. Sailing with a spinnaker at night in a light gale
through thousands of unlit fishing boats in the Straits of Taiwan is one challenge,
mending critical equipment with no spares another. Magic moments were many,
desperate moments few, both have had a profound impact on who I am. This
is not a pleasure cruise, it is a life-time adventure.
| Who took part on Taeping? |
| Leg |
Crew Members |
| Circumnavigators |
Nicholas ("Nick") Fleming, Skipper, England
Patrice Baten, Belgium
Haakon Bjørum, Norway
John ("Bunge") Burnett, England
Helen Froggatt, England, on Chrysolite to Hong Kong
Stephen ("Steve") Hughes, Scotland
Tim Richmond, Scotland, injured, evacuated to Johnston Island, off Hawaii |
| 1 - 3: Plymouth, U.K. to Hong Kong |
Clifford ("Cliff") Allen, England |
| 1 - 2, 6: Plymouth to Honolulu and Salvador, Brasil to
Plymouth |
Charlotte Winser, England |
| 1: Plymouth, U.K. to Nassau, Bahamas and Horta, Azores to
Plymouth |
John Graham, Scotland
Steve Robinson, England |
| 1A: Plymouth, U.K. to Madeira, Portugal |
Yomi Ayeni, BBC photographer
Nigel Barden, BBC journalist |
| 1: Plymouth, U.K. to Nassau, Bahamas |
Gareth Venning, England, leg 6 on Serica! |
| 2 - 4: Nassau to Victoria, Seychelles |
James Tree, England |
| 2: Nassau to Honolulu, Hawaii, U.S.A. |
Kevin Doolan, England
Tom Harvey, England
Bozer Yigit, Turkey
Monica Yunnie, England |
| 3: Honolulu to Hong Kong |
Mary Fitzakerly, England Paul Stapleforth, England, doctor from Serica
joined Taeping to attend to Tim
Richmond's injury.
Anthony ("Tony") Wilson, England |
| 4 - 5: Hong Kong to Salvador, Brasil |
Victoria ("Vicky") Hibbert, England |
| 4: Hong Kong to Victoria, Seychelles |
Diarmuid ("Mud") Foley, Ireland
Mark Ridgwell, England
Alan Vaughan, England
Ralph Ward, England |
| 5: Victoria to Salvador, Brasil |
Fiona Jones, England
Stephen Wright, England
Catherine ("Kate") Woolner, England
Graeme Yell, England |
| 5A-B: Victoria to Cape Town, South Africa |
Masahito ("Yama") Yamamoto, Japan |
| 6. Salvador to Plymouth |
Tim Robinson, England
Greg Thomas, England |
| Our itinerary? |
| From |
To |
Departure (Race start, GMT) |
Arrival (Taeping finish, GMT) |
Distance (log, nautical miles) |
| Plymouth, U.K. |
Funchal, Madeira |
17/10/98, 11:00:00 |
27/10/98, 16:05:04 |
1,335 |
| Funchal |
San Salvador, Bahamas |
31/10/98, 10:30:00 |
23/11/98, 17:53:10 |
3.472 |
| San Salvador |
Nassau, Bahamas |
24/11/98, 15:00 |
25/11/98, 18:00 |
196, motorsail, not racing |
| Nassau |
Havana, Cuba |
28/11/98. 16:25 |
1/12/98, 01:03 |
453 |
| Havana |
Colon, Panama |
5/12/98, 10:00 |
13/12/98, 08:57 & 10:06!! |
950 |
| Colon |
Balboa, Panama |
15/12/98, 20:30 |
16/12/98, 11:00 |
45 |
| Balboa |
Puerto Ayora, Galapagos |
17/12/98, 16:35 |
25/12/98, 09:30 |
1,049 |
| Puerto Ayora |
Honolulu, U.S.A. |
29/12/98, 03:30 race 19:05 |
20/1/99, 17:06:15 |
3,675 |
| Honolulu |
Johnston Atoll, U.S.A. |
1/2/99, 04:00 |
Stop race 5/2/99, 14:30 Arrive 7/2/99, 23:45 |
1,220 |
| Johnston Atoll |
Yokohama, Japan |
Depart 9/2/99, 19:25 Commence race 11/2/99,
04:13 |
Stop race 1/3/99, 07:30 Arrive 2/3/99, 05:00 |
3,315 |
| Yokohama |
Shanghai, China |
2/3/99, 18:00 |
11/3/99, 06:30 |
1,173 |
| Shanghai |
Hong Kong |
15/3/99, 03:10 |
20/3/99, 18:44 |
970 |
| Hong Kong |
Singapore |
Depart 1/4/99, 03:30 Commence race 1/4/99,
07:05 |
Stop race 9/4/99, 17:00 Arrive 12/4/99, 21:00 |
1,785 |
| Singapore |
Merak, Indonesia |
18/4/99, 08:50 |
21/4/99, 14:00 |
507, motorsail, not racing |
| Merak |
Victoria, Seychelles |
Depart 22/4/99, 10:00 Commence race 23/4/99,
08:35 |
Stop race 10/5/99, 03:30 Arrive 10/5/99,
05:00 |
3,066 |
| Victoria |
Durban, South Africa |
Depart 18/5/99, 06:55 Commence race 18/5/99,
10:00 |
1/6/99, 14:00 |
2,231 |
| Durban |
Cape Town, South Africa |
Depart 7/6/99, 08:00 Commence race 7/6/99,
11:00 |
13/6/99, 08:20:15 |
817 |
| Cape Town |
Salvador, Brasil |
Depart 19/6/99, 08:00 Commence race 19/6/99,
09:40 |
11/7/99, 08:25:10 |
3,489 |
| Salvador |
Horta, Azores |
17/7/99, 14:10 |
5/8/99, 14:27 |
3,117 |
| Horta |
Plymouth, U.K. |
Depart 11/8/99, 13:45 Commence race 13/8/99,
10:17 |
18/8/99, 07:55 |
1,179 |
| Sum |
|
|
|
34,047 |
The actual distance travelled is in excess of the log because of favourable
prevailing ocean currents, the actual distance covered was between 35,000 and 37,000
nautical miles.
| Overall, Taeping finished fifth of seven boats. The winner by a
large margin was Ariel. Taeping's performance was adversely affected
by the accident to Tim Richmond off Johnston Atoll, but the team showed
improving form as the race progressed. |
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