|
Four identical yachts battling for first place in a
race around the planet - that's what we call a race!
There was no question of the team with the most money to throw at it
getting there first - this race was between evenly matched vessels and
equipment - a win was down to the seamanship of the crew that gets
there first but, win, lose or come in-between, these crews are having
the time of their lives - that is what racing should be about and
all too rarely is, these days.
What is more, every single person participating in the race has had to
put money up to participate - this has weeded out potential hangers-on,
for a start, and when you've paid to go on any kind of journey, you tend
to want to get the best out of the experience - these crews aren't
bitching and moaning about what isn't being done for them, they're in
there squeezing the most enjoyment possible out of the experience of a
lifetime.
In this section dedicated to the Millennium Round The World Race, we
bring you: Meeting
The Fleet: The editors spent a few hours looking the boats
over and chatting with various crew members when the fleet stopped off
in Trinidad, West Indies, in December 1999. (Three pages) The
Spirit of Minerva Newsletters: The skipper and crew of 'Spirit of Minerva'
tell us what; where; when; who and why.. High
Spirits: We get to ask the kind of questions we really
want
to know the answers to...but get the answers we deserve... We
had hoped to catch up with the fleet at Horta on the island of Faial, in
the Azores, a small group of islands in the middle of the
Atlantic, but we were delayed by several weeks. We were delighted,
on arriving there, to find this splendid dock painting left behind by
the Spirit crews.
To see the full-sized photograph, click on the thumbnail
version.
It is tradition, unbroken excepting by the foolhardy, that one must
create a dock painting to influence the winds to blow favourably for the
continuation of ones' journey. There are thousands lining the walls and
jetties of the marina. We took nearly 300 photographs and will be
sprinkling them on the pages of MarineZine over the next few issues. If
you are planning to participate in a special event and would like
to keep in touch with MarineZine as you progress, we'd love to hear from
you. |
