CLIPPER RACE BLOG 18: Caribbean Delight

Hey guys,

Ninth place is not where we are used to be and the winds just did not allow us to catch up with the front of the fleet. Our bad start ended up costing us a good finish. However, lucky for us, we got 3 bonus points from the Scoring Gate when everybody opted out of it. In addition, one of our main competitors, Qingdao which is sitting just a few points ahead of us in second place overall did not have a great race either and with our bonus points we reduced the gap. We’ll have to start looking back for PSP Logistics which after a great win are closing the gap in fourth place behind us.

Despite the ranking though, I must say the sailing was absolutely amazing with constant strong breeze and sunny days. The total Caribbean delight!

When you are used to be at the front of the pack, being at the back brings its tensions. Not uncommon according to other crews, it seems like most crews are getting a bit tired as the end of this round the world adventure is coming to end. I mean, when you take 20 strangers of all ages, professions, background, habits, and motivations and you put them together in a not so glamorous, small environment and you go through some pretty extreme conditions, disagreements are bound to happen. So far, we have always been really open about it and we’ve discussed matters and always went to our core team values to resolve them. But lately, it feels like the weight of the accumulation, tiredness the latest result has increased the pressure and the tolerance towards one another is suffering. Something that has been observed on all the boats. People have also started to think about the “WHAT’S NEXT” and for some, it is pretty scary which adds to the pressure.

I must say, this is quite a leadership challenge for me, BUT that’s exactly why I decided to do the Clipper Race: to improve my abilities to deal with difficult situations and difficult people and influence people to push towards a common performance goal.

This environment provides its challenge and learning opportunities which I am so grateful for.

In the end, no matter what position you come in, arriving in New York by the sea with the sun rising on Manhattan is a moment I will never forget. The scenery was absolutely breath-taking.