At more than 35,000 miles the Clipper 09-10 Race will be one of the longest ocean races ever
It will be a mixture of long, tactical ocean races where endurance is tested to the limit
For the crews pitting themselves against all the elements have to throw at them, it will be a mixture of long, tactical ocean races where endurance is tested to the limit and short, technical sprints. Weather will range from virtually flat calm to raging seas and storm force winds, enough to test the mettle of even the bravest of crew members.
Setting off from the Humber in the north east of England on 13 September 2009, the route will take the fleet of ten identical 68-foot racing yachts on a breathtaking, ten-month odyssey around the globe.
From Europe across the Atlantic Ocean to South America, on to Africa, Australasia, Singapore, China, across the planet's largest expanse of water, the Pacific Ocean, to the USA, through the Panama Canal, one of man's great engineering triumphs, through the Caribbean to the east coast of the North American continent and back across the Atlantic Ocean to Europe.
The internationally sponsored yachts will finally cross their outward track to complete the circumnavigation shortly before the triumphant and emotional return to the Humber in July 2010.