Watch the story.....

As well as focussing on my own story I think it's important to focus on those around me and the wonderful people that make up the rest of the Crew aboard my boat.

VIcky is from Qing Dao, China.  She was aboard my very boat last year and completed Leg 8 of the journey.  Here is her story......

*Thanks to Clipper - head over to their site to see more crew stories and see where this video was originally hosted. 

While away.....

So while Gail is away searching out the Gorillas, coated in what I can only assume is a thick layer of Deet and probably far too enthusiastic for someone that has just trekked through the jungle with a heavy back pack and sore feet - I wanted to drop you an update.

As Gail mentioned there is LOTS more to come with further challenges, events and activities to raise funds for The Dogs Trust and Prospect House Hospice so do keep your eyes peeled - there are even some amazing prizes up for grabs,  Anyway, I'm getting distracted by all the excitement.  Onwards to a quick flash update on how we are doing.....

Qing Dao are currently in third, just after passing Hobart in Tasmania, not too far from some of my family in fact.  (Wave guys!)  There are some pictures below of the finish in Western Australia  lots of celebrations and some beautiful scenery.   There was also a tribute to Nelson Mandela with Clippers Sapinda Rainbow project which has taken eight young South Africans from across the country, to develop young community leaders of the future and raise international awareness and funds for Mandela's Childrens Hospital. 

Anyway, enjoy and we will see you soon!

*Thanks to Clipper for the images. 

The BIG plan.....is revealed!

Bwindi Impenetrable Rain Forst here I come!  

Armed with my vortex boots and gaiters to fend off the leeches, feet and Jungle lotion to ward off the mosquitoes and some impressive muscles bult up over the past few months training - I'm off to Uganda to see Silver Back Gorillas.

I know, this isn't sailing.  It is part of the BIG PLAN - to raise £10,000 for Dogs Trust and Prospect Hospice.

I shall be sending photos and blogs back from the trek, with all the joy and sadness that comes from seeing such beautiful, wonderful animals who are so close to extinction.  It is frightening.

I hope that during my short visit I may learn more and maybe, there is hope.

Watch this space for more updates on whats to come including my return, inevitably lots of photos, Leg 7 of the Clipper race, our Bath to Slough bike ride and many other events and antics to keep me busy and keep you donating!  Every little helps so please, if you can spare anything the dogs and those in the hospice would greatly appreciate it.

Qingdao City congratulate Team Qingdao...

The City of Qingdao has sent a message of congratulations to their team today, currently battling the 'Roaring Forties' in the Southern Ocean.

Not only are they leading Race 4 and have today picked up three extra points by reaching the scoring gate first, but this also puts them in serious contention to challenge for a podium position in the overall rankings.

“The fearless and fighting attitude of the yacht demonstrates the enterprising spirit of Qingdao people and presents to the world its strong will to build a better maritime city. It’s believed that the international recognition and reputation of the Sailing City of Qingdao, as the way to promote maritime culture and blue economy, is surely to be enhanced by the Qingdaoyacht sailing round the globe in the Clipper Race.

“We expect the Qingdao yacht to further its glory, and we are looking forward to welcoming it home next year!”

A little about QingDao...

Perhaps you would like a little background information about Qing Dao...the city of and, my boat!  For those that are interested, here it goes...

Qing Dao, historically known as Tsingtao, is a major city in eastern Shandong province, Eastern China with a population of over 8.715 million.  Lying across the Shandong Peninsula, looking out to the Yellow Sea, Qingdao is a major seaport, naval base, and industrial centre.

Internationally, Qingdao is perhaps best known for its Tsingtao Brewery, founded by a German-British join venturein 1903, it produces Tsingtao Beer.  

Language

The local accent (青岛话, pinyin qingdao hua) distinguishes the residents of the city from those of the surrounding Shandong province. Due to the efforts by the city government to promote standard Mandarin, most educated people can speak Mandarin and some English in addition to their native dialect, business and traffic signs in English are becoming more common.

Cuisine

Seafood is a typical delicacy of the coastal city, divided into two categories: "Great Seafood" including sea cucumbers, abalones, shark's fin, prawns, crabs, conch, and some big fish, and "Little Seafood" comprising squid, shrimps, octopus, oysters, razor clams, clams, periwinkles, yellow croakers, etc.The distinctive cuisine of the area is Lu Cai, the Shandong regional style.

Olympic Games

Along with Beijing's hosting of the 2008 Summer Olympics, Qingdao was the host city for the Olympic Sailing competitions which took place along the shoreline by the city. These events were hosted at the Qingdao International Sailing Centre and held in Fushan Bay, near the city's central business district.

Chinese Dragons

Chinese Dragons are legendary Mythological creatures. In Yin Yang terminology, a dragon is Yang to the Fenghuang's  (Chinese Phoenix) Yin.

Dragons symbolise potent and auspicious powers, particularly control over water, rainfall, hurricane and floods ( this could be useful! )

The dragon is also a symbol of power, strength and good luck. (Sounds good!!)

In Chinese daily language, excellent and outstanding people are compared to the dragon. ( that's us!!!)

DRAGON KING ( Longwang) Divine Rulers of the 4 Seas, weather and water.

There are 4 major Dragon Kings, representing each of the 4 seas. The East Sea ( East China Sea), The South Sea (South China Sea), The West Sea (Indian Ocean) and The North Sea. Because of this association they are seen as "in charge" of water related weather phenomenon.

The Gold 4 clawed dragon, as depicted on our boat, was typically for use by Imperial Nobility. It was a capital offence for anybody other than the Emperor to use the Gold 5 Clawed Dragon, using it was considered treason, punishable by execution of the offenders entire clan, crew.  (Phew.....!!!)

The worship of The Dragon Kings as rulers of water and weather continues in many areas and is deeply ingrained in Chinese cultural traditions such as Chinese New Year Celebrations.

Fair Winds and Calm Waters to you all.  Gx

My last big adventure, training is over......

As with all well laid plans and expectations, and after the euphoria of week 1 training,  came the sheer agony of week 2

There I was in the middle of my second week of training and feeling wretched I  felt rough, the sort of rough a couple of bottles of cheap wine brings on. I was not amused, I was sea sick. Funny thing, I wasn't sick; stupid thing,  I didn't recognise I was sea sick. Dr Charlie was my knight in shining armour, stick this under your gum he says with a bedside manner to die for, you're sea sick; 24 hrs and lots of tablets later I am functioning again.

I soon learn that my week 2 skipper, Juan, doesn't take prisoners! And by the way,  he goes barefoot, no really, he runs and jumps around the boat barefoot. I have to admit to a bit of a snigger when after a few days at sea I saw his toes wrapped in blue tape, little accident I say, too late, I realise my foot is now well and truly in my mouth, a mistake i think, to mention the 'toes'. This will definitely not have improved my popularity ranking which by this time is already about as low as the ship's cat! I am puzzled by a thought, not normally being of an  envious nature that  deep down I lust after the freedom of barefoot sailing but with my poor, high heel damaged size 39's, not a chance!

Anyway, back to sailing.  here we are in the Solent, just off Portsmouth, UK, preparing for a  'Le Mans' start, against another Clipper training boat. We are heading towards the line, adrenalin up, sails up and up goes the shout MOB, Man Overboard! I jump into the harness, my blood is up, the fore sails hit the deck, the crew are leaping around the boat which is looping back to the poor unfortunate 'Bob', a key member of the crew.

All thoughts of racing have gone we are a finely tuned rescue team. Our skipper Juan is at the helm, our pointer has Bob in her sights, the mate has me attached to the port side Yankie halyard and I am being hoisted up and over the side.  the boat is racing to Bob, I am confident I am going to rescue my shipmate who weighs in at 140lbs and is bright orange. Absolute failure, Bob freezes to death before we manage drown him in our rescue attempt. I am not the heroine i imagined i would be. I am wet, cold and miserable, life as usual hasn't gone to plan. Probably a good idea to keep the sailing boots on!!

PS: We won the race and lost Bob, collateral damage I think they call it; I wonder if I will end up 'collateral damage'? With very fond memories of a great crew, skipper and mate. Special thanks to Dawn and Susan, the 3 of us made up the coven and Richard the honoury member.

Forever the optimist, well it can't get any worse, can it?

My last week of training and I meet my skipper Gareth. This is the 'real deal', I am sailing with my Round the World shipmates Our crew is made up of around 20 people, of all ages from 19 to 70, from diverse backgrounds, students to professionals to retires and everything in between.

As you may have gathered by now I fit into the upper age bracket and as such  some investment into my body was in order. I have never got to grips with the gym, couldn't get my head around all those machines and weight training has always been a  mystery! My reason for bringing this to your attention is because I am now totally addicted to the gym, weight training, my bike and pilates. My body is now a fine tuned machine, an old machine I have to admit, but a machine to be reckoned with; a machine to take on the oceans, the wind and the waves.

And so back training. I am full of anticipation, what could possibly go wrong this time? What went wrong was my confidence, I know I hear you all shout, not you Gail surely not you!! 'Fraid so!

It dawns on me, a bit like being hit by a thunderbolt, this is bloody difficult I might not be able to do it. I might not be able to take the pain, the sleep deprivation, the food, the sickness and worst of all I can't read the instruments without my glasses. all of a sudden I can feel every year I have lived in my aching bones, and my long 'partially' sighted eyes.

Ocean racing is hard, gruelling, sleep deprived, mentally exhausting and I simply Love It!!

Crew Diaries....Being on board.

It's harder than I thought being on dry land and watching fellow crew members fight the sea!  I'm desperate to be out there with them.  The Clipper website however provides a great recourse and ability to stay in touch with whats going on and just so you could get a  little feel of what it's like to be out there, I've shared part of a crew diary.  Special thanks to 
Justin Besley.  He here is.....

THE LIBERATION OF ISOLATION

A day or two ago we surged past the settlement of Edinburgh, which as everyone knows is on the remote island of Tristan da Cuhna, in the South Atlantic. Population 300 or more, it is 1500 miles from the nearest land. 

The inhabitants were given a taste of the world beyond after being evacuated to Calshott in Hampshire in 1961 when the volcano that is home for them, erupted. Yet after having had the opportunity to remain in England, they chose to return to their lives on the island. Remote and cut off from the outside world.  

What do they do for news in Tristan? Do events beyond their ocean coast line really matter to them? Are they concerned about the consumption of porridge at the English breakfast table? According to our pilot, the mail boat calls twice a year.  Presumably that brings enough “news” for them. Their lives are uncomplicated by a constant flow of information about events in worlds other than their own world.

For the crews racing towards Cape Town and beyond there is an overriding singularity of purpose. To reach Cape Town safely and ahead of our rivals.

Crew members have focused for months, some for years on the preparation for this objective. Some have used the opportunity to put their affairs in some sort of order before abandoning friends and family to pursue this goal. As we race through the oceans we can put aside thoughts for events occurring  in the outside world. After all there is nothing that we can do to influence such events. There is no action that we can take that may otherwise have been demanded . So why do we need news of them?  In our watery world the only relevant news is, what position we hold in the fleet and what strategy the other yachts are pursuing. Such news comes daily  at “Happy Hour”, which is around boat noon each day. It is unsullied with the irrelevant.

For some of us this clarity is quite liberating.

South Africa arrival...

They did it....they arrived safely and all in tact!  You may have seen my tweets but I was very excited about My boats arrival in South Africa.  After a hard race and despite being the last to arrive they were welcomed in with enthusiasm and I could not have been more proud.  

Here is a snippet from the official Clipper news article for those that would like to know more.  Go team, go!!

'Skipper Gareth Glover remained philosophical. He said: We thought we would try something different rather than stay with the rest of the pack. I’m sure if we had stayed with the other teams we would have definitely finished in the top five and maybe even a podium position. It’s not all about chasing the boats though, we wanted to try a different tactic like we did in Leg 1 which paid off for us where we won a podium position. It’s just a shame it didn’t work out for us on this occasion. 

"The crew were fantastic, even when we had really light winds and they could have felt disheartened or frustrated they didn’t. Now it’s just a case of taking a little bit of time to rest and enjoy Cape Town before we prepare for Race 4 to Albany, Western Australia and take on the power of the Southern Ocean."

The crew managed to complete much of their maintenance and deep clean tasks over the last couple of days to maximise personal time in Cape Town. Qingdao agreed to an offer from race officials to accept twelfth place and one point to enable them to motor in to make best speed.'

Keeping fit....

So, with everything comes the need to train.

Back on dry land and itching to get back out to sea and join the rest of the Qingdao crew, all I can do to contain my energy is keep up my training while in the UK.

Having noticed a huge difference in my level of fitness, my body and my muscles after landing in St Katherine's Docks I am keen to make sure I return to the boat as fit and healthy as possible.  (Even the wine has taken a side seat!)

I'm trying my best to cycle, visit the gym and hit the weights....plus I've got proof!  Enjoy!

Gx

Race 2: France to Rio de Jeniro...done!

With race Two complete and Qing Dao coming in a fantastic fourth place, and only 19 seconds between first and second!! Apparently everyone has been enjoying a celebratory BBQ, with chef Lawrence Lingard (on board my boat) having a cook off with a Brazilian chef! 

I thought it was time to share some images with you.  These are direct from Clipper so thanks guys and head over to their site to see some more.

Go teams go!  Well done to everyone.  It's a hard sail out there.

Why my charities?

Hmmm... Why I chose Dogs Trust?

1. I love doggies
2. They do great work with young people
3. Doggies are often the innocent party and suffer great abuse
4. They never put a healthy dog down
5. I am a long time supporter, my Spaniel Cherry was from fostered from them
6. They are progressive, working in Europe with strays etc currently they are offering free 'chipping' to help owners that will not be able to afford the new regulations. It all has to be paid for!
7. I thought about other 'good causes' but in the end I really love dogs and think so many suffer unnecessarily and I just want to help

And I love the beanie hat with the ears!!!

Bonding....

Bonding, I soon realised is a big part of sailing; its difficult to say how or when it happens it just does.  The jokes start and your 'all' is bared to the world, literally.  As you attempt to un/dress (with some dignity and fail), the boat is flying / crashing through the waves and you realise all is lost.  "Lost at sea" now has a whole new meaning!

My Waterloo came while on Anchor watch.  Jim and Owen had been on watch for the hour before me and came to wake me for my watch.  It was 1am and I was not at my best, Jim mumbled something to me as I entered the gallery.  "Sorry" I said, he repeated the mumble, "Sorry" I said again, getting very irriated as I tried to manoeuvre into my foulies and life jacket.  He mumbled again, it was then that I realised all semblance of poilte company was gone and before I knoew it the words "F... OFF" tumbled out!!!  They were rolling in the aisles, laughing their heads off and chanting "we did it, we broke her down...."

This was the moment when I knew my hear, my journey had started; I was part of the RTW race team!

At last and sadly, week 1 of training is over.  I am exhausted and exhilarated.  Russ is on the Quayside to meet me holding a brown envelope.  "What's this, divorce papers" I ask?  No, happily a day at the local spa; what a star he is.  Thank you Russ. X 

To Vicky Ellis, Thank you, Fair Winds and Calm Waters' see you in San Fransisco.

Training - Week One.....

Now, where did I leave you?  In St Katherine's Dock I think?

The journey was tough, 3 weeks of sea training, one week of theory and a bundle of notes and knots to learn.

Can you tie a Bowline, a Sheet Knot or a Rolling Hitch, me neither!

My first week of training was with Skipper Vicky, the one female skipper to take part in the Clipper Roung the World (RTW) race, but I am getting ahead of myself, we didn't know that then.

One week in the worst living conditions I have ever experienced.  The smell, the foods and the heads (toilets to you and me).  I must tell you about the heads; there are 2 of them, no door just a zip down curtain, no seat (apparently its dangerous for the boys!) and yes we all sit down to wee.  With standing room only, you soon learn how to be a contortionist.  My sailing friend Lesley said to me the other day, "I don't know why you dont just have a bucket hung over the stern."  she has a point.  It would help with the below deck aroma!

October 2012, we motored out of our berth, we raised the sails of the 68ft Yorkshire (she had taken part in the last 3 RTW races) and off we went sailing down the Solent.  Day 1 and we were sailing, unbelievable!

Vicky drilled us into the Clipper way, I was luck I didn't know anything else and I followed her every word.  Truth be told I was pretty scared.  We ate, slept and sailed.  We journeyed to The Needles, to The Edison Lighthouse and back, we anchored in Poole Bay, we laughed, we cried and we bonded.  

Yellow t-shirts, Dogs and Bourbon biscuits...

Dressed in yellow and a little excited, yesterday my position as PR / Photographer / social media / communications expert (cough) officially started, as myself and my partner headed to St Katherine's dock to welcome the Clipper teams into port.

The atmosphere was great, the dock was teaming with folk drinking coffee in between cheers of congratulations, and much to my delight, we even had some volunteers from Dogs Trust UK who bought down a couple of dogs to welcome Gail in.  

After all of the boats had arrived, we'd done a few press shots and pointed some old ladies in the direction of the nearest Dogs Trust home, we got to look around the clipper yacht.  I have to say, its huge!  I'm sure it's not once you have 15 people in there and personally  it's definitely not somewhere i want to be for longer than a few hours but it's an impressive piece of kit, just a shame about the lack of beds!  (Maybe the 14 packets of Bourbon biscuits would make up for that after ten days at sea.....i think not!)

For further images please visit the gallery page!

The beginning and my journey to madness...

Here I am 61 years, 2 children, 3 careers and 3 husbands in the bag and a heading off on an ocean racing yacht with people I didn't know until a few moths ago and a skipper of uncertain mental stability!  (Sorry Gareth but you must be mad to take us on!)

A poster in a railway station in Berkshire, UK, that was all it took; I was hooked.  But hooked on what?  I have never sailed before, I don't like swimming, especially in the sea, I'm not competitive, well actually yes i am but I've always been in denial, its an age / female thing!

So, as they say, this is how it went down.  I applied to the email address on the poster and within days an application form and this wonderful brochure arrived.  I saw 'Me' on that boat, on that ocean, racing.  Around the world......

From there it was simple wasn't it?  I just had to tell my husband (Russ) "Sorry darling, I'm leaving you and going racing around the world."  Hmmmmm, not to mention children and parents. 

Anyway, I received and invitation to Gosport, home of the Clipper Fleet, for an interview.  There was no escape now' I had to tell Russ what I had done.  Deep breath, spill it out and wait for the explosion, after all we had only been married for 2 years and this is probably not what he was expecting of his new wife.  Se Russ' version to see how that went.

Here I sit some months later, in Russ' office while he is off playing golf, writing this for you.  I have completed my training, which can only be described as gruelling.  I have fitted out MY boat, Qingdao.  Well, okay so I had help from my fabulous crew mates and skipper, Gareth.  I then had the honour of sailing her from Gosport via France to St Katherine's dock, London for her naming ceremony and the departure of the Fleet on September 1st.

Check back here to see how it all went and how it all goes!!