Crew Blog

277 Days Down, 17 to Go. Then it’s Into Reality.

17 June 2008

Seven foot long, four foot wide, some teddies, West Cheshire Sailing Clubs Burgees, some photos of me and Amy and a leaky chain plate right at the end. This is what has been my home for the last nine months, and I think I’ve grown quite fond of it, it’s always a mess, but isn’t that what any teenagers bedroom should be like? This is the place on the boat that is ‘your’ space the place that you go when you’re tired, feeling homesick, or just want to go watch a DVD on your own.

Life for the last nine months has consisted of a four on four off rotation from 9am-9pm and then three on three off from 9pm-9am, distinguishing between days being if you have two four’s on or two fours off two fours off being a good day, and two fours on being a bad day, although whilst you are on an ‘off’ watch there are sometimes random calls of sail change and all hands on deck, thankfully we haven’t had to many of those for the last short legs. I think that I’ve jinxed myself now though.

This race has been a massive roll of extremities. From leg two surging down 40-50 foot waves at 24 knots in a 45 knot gale, to sitting like ducks off the Canary Islands for what felt like days on end praying for 4.5 knots of wind!

From surprise arrivals in Singapore with Mum, Dad and Grandad where we hurtled down a go cart track on Sentosa Island and being bustled around shopping centres as everyone rushed off to work. To walking hand in hand down Waikiki Beach with Amy where it seemed that nobody worked, ever.

Then there are the surprises that are more subtle like some of the culinary delights that make their way out of the galley on a cold wet and windy day where all you need is comfort food, like jacket potatoes with beans and cheese, which is one of my personal favourites. When you go off watch with 2 knots of wind and it looks like it’s going to stay like that for days, but when you come back up its blowing 20 knots!

Since Hawaii I have been watch leader of Crime Watch which I will admit was a scary prospect seeing as I’m only 19 and I would in effect have to uphold what Ben wants done if he’s not on deck. But it definitely changed the whole experience for the better even though it made it harder. I think it’s definitely improved my sailing ability compared to being in the Mersey in my Laser.

Thinking constantly about how to make the boat go faster and if need be, explaining to Ben why I think we should change a sail, listening to his reasoning and if he agrees asking people who are in most cases three times my own age to go to the foredeck and perform the sail change. Looking out for their safety as they are doing it and thinking about what if something goes wrong? How are we going to sort it out? That has taught me that you do have to have a certain amount of respect for the sea and the weather as they can both change so quickly and you have to be quick to react to it.

When we arrived into Australia after three months away from home I left almost immediately after clearing into immigration to go off into Perth, just to have some of ‘Will’ time. this was the first place since La Rochelle we had been where it felt safe enough to go out without looking over your shoulder worried about being mugged. I mean Brazil was reasonably safe but Durban was completely different. It was unbelievable how weird it felt to be away from home for Christmas, to not put up the Christmas tree with Mum or go for a roast dinner at Grandad’s or to annoy Dad by waking him up at stupid o’clock in the morning on Christmas day(although he loves it really, just doesn’t like to admit it). Walking around snowmen in 30 degrees and blazing sunshine was never my idea of Christmas, even after hearing stories from my auntie who lives in Australia I could never have pictured it and it was weird! It definitely wasn’t Christmas, but it was an experience I’m glad I lived!

I don’t think I actually realise how far I have travelled. I suppose the only time I’ve noticed it was after adding my map on Facebook whilst we were in Nova Scotia, typing in all of the places that I had been, 13 locations in four different countries with one more stop and 17 days left to go!

This has definitely changed my life, only a couple of weeks after I get home I’m moving down to Gosport to work for Clipper Ventures as a Second Mate. Maybe one day I’ll skipper an event like this, this is definitely as Clipper says, the best thing I have ever done....
Yet!!!

I’d like to take this opportunity to say a big thank you to my Mum, Dad, Grandad and Nan for helping me and supporting me to do this in every sense. A big thank you to all friends especially Amy for getting up at 4 o’clock on many weekends to do car boot sales. West Cheshire sailing and Fishing Club and Wesley Motors. I’ll see you all in under 3 weeks!

Will Little 18th July - In my bunk listening to some Guns ‘n’ Roses and thinking about watching Green Mile.