Islanders to go Round the World in yacht race
TWO islanders are taking part in an 11-month yacht race around the world.
Anne Hough and Nigel Gale will cover more than 40,000 nautical miles in a race against 10 other 70ft ocean-racing yachts.
The Clipper Round the World Yacht Race is described as one of the biggest endurance challenges of the natural world, in which over 700 people take part.
‘I did an Atlantic crossing three years ago and really enjoyed it so it encouraged me to take the next step,’ said Mr Gale, 57, who has over 30 years’ sailing experience.
‘Although I’ll definitely miss my wife and daughters, I’m looking forward to being out in the middle of the ocean and seeing what the elements throw at us.’
Mrs Hough has enjoyed sailing since moving to Guernsey 10 years ago and endured the seventh leg of the previous Clipper Round the World race.
‘I really loved it and thought I would definitely like to do the whole thing,’ she said.
‘One of my favourite things about sailing is that you just live in the moment, you’re not always planning or worrying about other things, it’s just living in the now.’
There will be an average of 22 crew members on each of the 11 yachts at any one time, with each member taking on a specialised role on board.
Both islanders will be on board the same yacht, called Punta del Este, with skipper Jeronimo Santos Gonzalez, who is the first Spaniard to lead a team in the 23-year history of the race.
The teams will meet in London on 1 September to sail up the Thames river and officially start racing the following day.
Once leaving London the crews will head to South America, South Africa, west Australia, east Australia, China, west coast America, then east coast America before heading back for a final sprint up the Thames.
‘The idea of the race is that you don’t have to have any sailing experience, you have four weeks of training and then you’re off,’ Mrs Hough said.
‘They try to make the boats as equal as possible in terms of experience and ability so the race is fair.’
Mr Gale added: ‘There’s also strict rules about internet access, media contact and phone calls.
‘Our SIM cards get taken out of our phones so there’s no way we can look up anything that might give us an advantage.’
Stop-offs after each leg are for around 10 days, although the crew will still be working during that time to prepare the boat for the next leg.
‘With sailing, the harder you push the harder you break, it’s about finding a balance that works,’ Mr Gale said.
n To find out more about the challenge visit www.clipperroundtheworld.com.
