Race 12 - Day 16
Crew Diary - New York to Derry-Londonderry
12 July
Clipper 360: Life in the Clipper Bubble
After 11 unforgettable months, my journey as a Clipper Race Round the Worlder is coming to an end on the 28th of July. Much has been said about the Clipper Race Bubble – the mysterious environment created as we circumnavigate the globe on the Clipper yachts we call home.
The outer circle of the Clipper Race Bubble is Clipper Ventures itself, an organisation founded by Sir Robin Knox-Johnston and William Ward over twenty years ago. Clipper Ventures and its amazing management team encapsulate the entirety of the Clipper Bubble which empowers the 'average' person to achieve something remarkable: sailing around the world...or at least part of it.
The next layer of the Clipper Race Bubble is formed at Crew Allocation Day. This took place on the 20 May 2017 when I was assigned to sail with Team Lance. At that time I had not yet met Skipper Lance or any of the other crew on this team nor was it known that we would be racing on a yacht branded Liverpool 2018...the bright pink boat also affectionately known as the Pink Panther.
The team on each yacht creates its own unique bubble, a world where common goals and attitude (Courage is Contagious) is the catalyst for creating strong bonds of friendship and support between people of all ages and backgrounds. The team bubble is a family – occasionally dysfunctional – but a family nonetheless.
This team bubble is made up of Round the Worlders and Leggers. A new team bubble forms at the beginning of each leg as new crew replace leggers who have completed their journey. The bubble expands and contracts accordingly; bubbles merge, converge, grow and shrink.
There are also micro bubbles within the team bubble: for example there are two (or three) watches – on very cold (or hot) legs these watches may be further subdivided in order to limit the amount of time spent on deck in challenging conditions – the only constant being the watch leader whose task it is to moulds the watch bubble into a team. Additionally there are mother watch, sail repair (an incredible team!) and other micro bubbles which form naturally between smaller groups of individuals. These micro bubbles could be isolating but a successful team environment works to create a seamless interaction between them to maximize the racing performance of the yacht.
The world we live in on our boat is obviously isolated from the real world, it is a cycle of 'eat, sleep, sail, repeat' at four or six hourly intervals. We are reliant solely on each other for everything; it is not possible to overstate the significance of the bonds that bind us together in this bubble.
While on board our limited link to family and friends in the real world is via satellite email. The messages of support we receive from the Crew Supporter Bubble keep us going until the next stopover.
Never in my wildest dreams did I ever imagine I would sail around the world on a bright pink racing yacht (wearing a pink team uniform no less!). This incredible journey would not have been possible without the friendship and support of my family and friends, and of course, my fellow Clipper Race Bubblers
The biggest lesson learned from living in the Clipper Race Bubble is just how few material possessions (20Kg of kit for 11 months :) one actually requires and how important the people in our lives are by contrast. As I prepare to exit this rarefied world, it is my sincere hope that the lifelong friendships that I have forged within this Clipper Bubble will give me the courage and confidence to continue living and loving the life I have learned is possible.
Never forget – THINK PINK!
Mikey (Star) Kidwell
11 July 2018 (just)
(This blog would not have been written without coercion by and editorial contributions from my bunk-buddy Pamela Harvey...Oh(!)...and final proof reading as provided by my dearest 'old' friend Nick Sheridan.)