Charged with documenting the race from the perpectives of the crew on board, the role of Media Crew Member is often percieved as a glamorous “dream job”.

 But throw into the mix a gruelling work schedule alongside tasks including cleaning the bilges, bailing water from the boat and cooking all meals, and suddenly it’s not all fun and games if you’re a Volvo Ocean Race MCM.

While the Volvo Open 70s are in transit from the safe haven port, we caught up with Amory Ross, MCM on PUMA Ocean Racing powered by BERG, about the challenges of life on board Mar Mostro.

volvooceanrace.com: You came into this race quite late. Has it met your expectations so far?

Amory Ross: I didn’t come into this race with any expectations per se but I think it’s been a lot of what I was looking for in a sense of getting out there, finding something new and different. It’s been a really special opportunity. The material the MCMs are given is really impossible to access from any other perspective. We’re certainly hitting on all strides there. We have certainly been one for surprises so far – no shortage of new, off the topic adventures with islands and all kinds of stuff going on. It’s been exciting and the expectations have been a little left behind in terms of new adventures, and something to really sink the teeth into.

 VOR: The dismasting on the first leg must have been incredibly difficult to cover as an MCM. Tell us a bit about how you dealt with that.

AR: When it happened I think we were all more surprised than anything else. The nice thing about my situation is that there are 11 guys on the boat and each has a job to do. The sailors understand I am there for moments like that, and they have all been really gracious and welcoming with questions, and forthcoming with honest answers. Thinking about it now, it was tough. It seems like it was just yesterday. With the suddenness of it all, I immediately started recording the footage but not necessarily the reactions, just making sure from a technical standpoint everything was there because those are the moments you don’t get again. You get one try and that’s that. That very quickly shifted to trying to talk to some of the sailors. I’d be lying if I said it was easy, and there were some less than pleased reactions, but that’s my job. I look back at it now and I’m happy I had the gusto to say something because we all look back on it now in a very different light and everyone understands that in the heat of the moment it’s very frustrating for all.

 

VOR: What are the challenges of being an MCM?

AR: There’s no question that the public’s perception of the job is probably a little glamorous while from the inside it’s anything but. If I had to pick three of the more challenging components they would be:

1. Mentally being ok not helping out. That’s a big one for me. I come from a sailing background and it’s not necessarily that I want to improve the boat’s performance or anything but it’s tough. When times are down and people are struggling a bit I just want to help, I just want to grab something and offer two more hands to the equation. The nice thing is I direct that energy to the food, to the bailing, and just try to stay positive. For me that’s my contribution to the performance of the boat.

2. The scheduling we have is another one. The first leg we had was easy as it was pretty much north-south so there wasn’t much change in daylight hours or time zones. This last leg I had a really hard time with my schedule. I have a schedule for Volvo Ocean Race which runs on UTC, I have our boat time which was Cape Town time, and then I have the changing daylight so people are asking what time food’s coming up, if they are eating dinner when it’s really light or breakfast when it’s really dark. It messes with everyone’s cycle. Trying to regulate my own time and make sure meals are cooked on time, the content’s off the boat on time, making sure I get sleep – it’s a lot to handle.

3. Lastly it’s really hard to find time to rest. My time to work is when it’s sunny and so I find myself up all day, and then at night I’m editing. Sometimes it’s so loud and there’s so much going on. Whether you’re tacking or gybing or stacking your stuff, you really don’t have much rest. I always tend to end these legs pretty darn exhausted. The upside is that we get the opportunity to capture something really special. I will find myself in a bit of a swear-fest hating life, and two hours later I’ll take a picture or get something on video that makes all of it worthwhile. It’s amazing how quickly you forget.

 

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CAMPER skipper Chris Nicholson (AUS) nursed his boat through heinous sea conditions overnight and into Table Bay to clinch second place at 10:48:04 UTC (12:48 local time) in Cape Town on Sunday after 21 days, 21 hours, 48 minutes and 4 seconds (21:21:48:04) at sea.

CAMPER with Emirates Team New Zealand, throttled back overnight in winds gusting  35 knots and mountainous seas, but once daylight broke, they were up to speed and screamed across the finish to take 25 points to add to their four points earned for a third-place finish in the Iberdrola In-Port Race in Alicante on October 29.

They are now in second place overall on the Volvo Ocean Race leaderboard with 29 points – two behind Team Telefónica (Iker Martínez/ESP) who finished first on Saturday evening. Groupama sailing team are expected to finish on Tuesday, with third place set to take them up to third overall with 22 points. Abu Dhabi Ocean Racing (6 points), PUMA Ocean Racing powered by BERG (5) and Team Sanya (3) were all forced to retire from Leg 1.

On stepping ashore, skipper Chris Nicholson/AUS spoke of the decision to stay on the African coast early in the leg:

“Everyone was trying to get to the coast and we were getting there nicely, but it was the wrong call.  It’s been 20 days playing catch-up from that decision. We weren’t able to make up that deficit.  We would have loved to have been head to head with Telefónica and PUMA.

He added that it was a tough leg: “The conditions were pretty rough as you can see with all damage from the boats. We handled it well, we’re here in second and so that’s a good result.”

Co-skipper Stu Bannatyne (NZL) said: “It’s very nice to be in Cape Town finally. It felt like a very long leg. We got a podium result so we are very happy. Last night we backed off once Telefónica had finished, with winds between 35 and 40 knots. We nursed it in last night as there was no point pushing at that point.”

The highlight for CAMPER was their run of 554.16 nautical miles in the 24-hour period up to 1755 UTC on November 24. That will almost certainly make them the winner of the IWC Speed Record Challenge for Leg 1. The overall fastest time, over all nine legs of the race, will land the 11 members of the winning crew with an IWC Portuguese Yacht Club Chronograph Edition ‘Volvo Ocean Race 2011-12’.

CAMPER’s fortunes on this opening leg were mixed. After leading the six-boat fleet in a slick start and out through the Straits of Gibraltar, they paid a high price for a tactical dilemma early on day three as the fleet headed out into the Atlantic.

Initially the team chose the inshore option keeping close to Groupama 4 (Franck Cammas/FRA), both boats following the African coastline. On day four, Nicholson decided to sacrifice miles gained towards the mark and headed the red and white boat offshore to join PUMA’s Mar Mostro (Ken Read/USA) and eventual leg winner, Telefónica (Iker Martínez/ESP).

It was an expensive decision, and one from which the team never really recovered and, by 2200 UTC on day five, CAMPER were 105 nautical miles behind in last place. No one likes not being in the lead and on board, the crew of CAMPER had been left with a bitter taste after sacrificing so many miles. 

The losses continued to grow as the team struggled to get out to the west. The lowest point was early on day seven, when they logged 334 nm behind the leader, but from 2200 UTC that night, their fortunes changed. That night the team clawed back 56 miles.  The boat was finally back on track and taking the course the crew had wanted. The gains continued and CAMPER were back in contention as the expensive westerly option started to pay dividends.

On day nine, CAMPER had moved up to third place and rounded the island of Fernando de Noronha on day 13, November 17, 126 nm behind PUMA’s Mar Mostro. On the fateful day that PUMA’s Mostro dismasted, day 17, November 21, CAMPER had closed the gap to within 110 nm. 

The crew had their feet firmly on the pedal and were pushing the boat to her limits and by day 18, the pressure had taken its toll. Bowman Mike Pammenter from South Africa was washed down the deck, his fall broken by his face smashing against the shrouds. It was a stern reminder of just how dangerous and on the edge this race can be.  His face stitched up and minus a front tooth, Pammenter was soon back on deck and CAMPER continued at breakneck speed towards Cape Town. She was now hot on the heels of leg leader Telefónica and in touch, just 94 nm behind.

“Now we need to think about our new rival CAMPER,” wrote the crew of Telefónica. But luck ran out for CAMPER who arrived at the exciting cold front, the super-quick conveyor belt to Cape Town, a little too late to gain the full benefit and Telefónica were gone.  CAMPER eventually finished Leg 1 over 200 nm and 16 hours behind.
  DTL DTLC BS DTF
1   TELE Finished: 021d 05h 14m 25s
2   CAMP Finished: 021d 21h 48m 04s
3   GPMA 0.00  534.0 21.8 521.4
-   ADOR Retired from Leg 1
-   PUMA Retired from Leg 1
-   SNYA Retired from Leg 1 
 

 

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With the cold front shifting very quickly across 40° South, the pace has really gone up a notch, to the extent that all the teams have sailed in excess of 500 miles in 24 hours with ease. On a more manageable sea, the north-westerly wind is kicking out over twenty knots of breeze, though Groupama 4 will be the first to slow down once the zones of high pressure settle into position behind the front.

“After a fairly hard first week of racing, things have been pretty routine with the tradewind system we’ve been in since Fernando de Noronha. It is frustrating not to be sailing neck and neck with the others so we can gauge Groupama 4′s potential. However, taking options is part and parcel of racing: sometimes you win, sometimes you lose… Right now things are beginning to get more difficult with the return of the cold and the constant dampness. We haven’t had to put in a lot of manoeuvres, which means that we aren’t too tired. We’ve got the time to trial the different sail configurations, and really get a feel for the boat: Groupama 4 is an excellent boat and we should be able to enjoy some very good legs. I also think that we’ve made a good sail choice: we know that on certain points of sail with eased sheets in the breeze, the boat is powerful and really very quick”, said Charles Caudrelier at the noon radio link-up this Thursday.

A very fast stretch…

In any case, Groupama 4 is in perfect condition after virtually three weeks of racing, thanks to some outstanding preparation on the part of the shore team. As such the crew can exploit her potential without restrictions. Evidence of this lies in the high average speeds racked up over the past few hours with surfing at over 25 knots and a total of 516 miles covered in 24 hours. Naturally, during this same period, the leader Telefonica has racked up 533.8 miles and Camper 540.6 miles, but these two crews are benefiting from some better sailing conditions due to being further South and further East, within the front. These boats will also continue to pull off such performances over the next 24-36 hours as, contrary to Groupama 4, they’ll be able to remain hooked onto the western edge of a system dishing out a dozen or so knots of south-westerly wind for longer. This wind should enable them to reach Cape Town without too much difficulty this weekend, whilst Franck Cammas and his men will have to deal with a weak system stretching out for over 800 miles from the finish. Indeed, from tonight, Groupama 4 will stall considerably in breezes of less than ten knots along an area which is bordering the so-called roaring forties!

“The ranking for this first leg is unlikely to change now. Indeed given the grib files, we’re likely to finish the leg with quite a deficit as the strong winds will abandon us over the coming hours. That means that our deficit is set to increase. I don’t think Camper will be able to make up ground on Telefonica either, unless the latter suffers damage. For the past 24 hours we’ve had between 20 and 25 knots of breeze at 130° to the wind, with the temperature dropping and lots of humidity in the air… We’re adding more fleece layers now, but there’s not too much spray as we’re sailing downwind. The atmosphere is rather greyish, with a few albatrosses about. In principle we’re soon going to see our progress slowed because we’ll get swallowed up by the high pressure. We’ll probably have to choose between dipping South again to hook onto a new depression, or threading our way to the finish in light winds: ultimately Franck is considering taking a route halfway between the two so as to preserve the gear as we should finish third in any case”, explained Groupama 4′s so-called `performer’, Charles Caudrelier, whose role includes studying the boat’s performance.

Surgical operation

Waking up with a start from a deep sleep, Erwan Israël injured the area above his eye by smacking up against a reinforced area of the deck above his bunk. It wasn’t serious but, after consultation with the official doctor for the Volvo Ocean Race, it was decided that a couple of stitches were the best solution. However, in 25 knots of breeze, big seas, high speed, the dead of night and no in situ experience, `doctor’ Charles Caudrelier, ably assisted by Jean-Luc Nélias and Martin Strömberg, was a bit tense…

“I was a bit anxious about it because I really didn’t want to hurt him. However, Erwan is a brave patient! Fortunately the boat wasn’t rocking about too much at that stage and I did have my training on pigs to back me up… Making the first move is the hardest thing, but once I’d started, the operation went smoothly without hurting him. It seems to have worked well as Erwan’s in good shape with a fabulous eyebrow arch! Added to that, it hasn’t become infected. Obviously it did remind me of the Vendée Globe when Bertrand de Broc had to sew up his own tongue…”

Position of the competitors in the Volvo Ocean Race in the first leg from Alicante – Cape Town at 1400 UTC on 24/11/2011

1. Telefonica – 1,019.3 miles from the finish
2. Camper – 101.8 miles astern
3. Groupama – 339.1 astern of the leader
Puma – retirement
Abu Dhabi – retirement
Team Sanya – retirement

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PUMA Ocean Racing powered by BERG reported that they had suffered a broken mast on the first leg of the Volvo Ocean Race 2011-12, which began 17 days ago from Alicante, Spain. The crew are unhurt.

The rig onboard PUMA’s Mar Mostro failed at around 1500 UTC in the southern Atlantic Ocean, about 2,150 nautical miles from Cape Town, South Africa.

Skipper Ken read reported: “We were sailing on a port tack, beam reaching in 22-23 knots of breeze, heading east northeast with eight to 10 foot waves when the mast failed. There were no warning signs.

“There was no panic onboard, and all crew are safe and well.”

“Thanks to amazing seamanship, the three pieces of the mast and all of the sails were recovered. We haven’t suspended racing at this point and are weighing are options.

“At this point we are not using our engine, but are taking some time to clear our heads and evaluate next steps. Our plans may include heading to the island of Tristan da Cunha – about 700 nautical miles from us, nearly on the way to Cape Town.

“This is the saddest and most disappointed 11 people on earth. We were in a comfortable second position, traveling south to get into the final front and head across the southern Atlantic towards Cape Town.

“We were planning to be there in five days. At this stage, my goal is to make sure we get this crew back safely and we will look at options as to how to get back in this race.”

The Brazilian search and rescue organisation have been informed and are on standby to assist if necessary.

Volvo Ocean Race control is in constant contact with the team to establish the full extent of the damage and ensure the crew are given full support to enable them to deal with the situation.

The causes of the dismasting are not known at this stage. However, the rig is of a different origin and manufacture to that of Abu Dhabi Ocean Racing’s Azzam which suffered a failure earlier during Leg 1.

PUMA Ocean Racing’s shore team are working on a recovery plan to ensure the yacht can rejoin the race as soon as practically possible and will work closely with Volvo Ocean Race to determine the cause of the dismasting.

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China revealed its first entry in the Volvo Ocean Race today and announced that Mike Sanderson, one of the world’s leading sailors and past winner of the race, would lead Team Sanya.
“This is a fantastic opportunity to race under the flag of such a great country and culture.”

Despite its huge technical and financial resources, the most populous nation on the planet has never won a round-the-globe sailing competition but intends to make the breakthrough, with the recruitment of New Zealander Mike Sanderson as skipper.

Sanderson, 40, is a two-time winner of the Volvo Ocean Race and will chase a hat trick of triumphs with a crew that mixes experienced sailors with relatively raw Chinese members.

Team Sanya is the seventh world-class contender to join this year’s race, with Sanderson going head-to-head with some of sailing’s biggest names.

“This is a fantastic opportunity to race under the flag of such a great country and culture,” said Sanderson today at the Team Sanya launch in central Beijing.

“We are building up a strong team and are ready to take on this exciting challenge. Our approach will be one of compelling intent, working fast and smart, representing this great country and team with ambition, dynamism and colourful energy.”

China, as is the case in many sports, has incredible potential within sailing and a win in the Volvo Ocean Race would be a huge boost to its ambitions.

Li Quanhai, Vice Chairman of the China Yacht Association said: “China is a sports power and has abundant marine resources. Our involvement in top sailing events, such as the Olympic Regatta and the Volvo Ocean Race, greatly improves the development of China’s water sports.

Knut Frostad, CEO of Volvo Ocean Race said: “We are very excited about the news of Team Sanya and the return of Mike Sanderson, a veteran and true ambassador of the Volvo Ocean Race.

“This will be the seventh entry for the next edition and will not only bring a competitive yacht to our first class field but also will allow China to build on its already large sailing following.

“Team Sanya will allow the Chinese sailing fans to connect with the Volvo Ocean Race again and will be an amazing platform to engage with new audiences and attract potential tourists to Sanya and China itself.”

For the Deputy Mayor of Sanya, Wu Yanjun, the city known as the “Hawaii of the Orient” would directly benefit from this opportunity. “Hosting world class events like the Volvo Ocean Race will directly improve our sailing and yachting related facilities.”

The stopover will be in Luhuitou Bay, Sanya, where construction is expected to finish in August 2011. When completed, the facility will be a world-class marina.

China was previously represented in the 2008-2009 edition by Green Dragon, a jointly backed venture with Ireland and there will again be an Irish flavour to the Team Sanya challenger with Discover Ireland, promoting Irish tourism, renewing its commitment as a secondary sponsor.

Helly Hansen will be the Official Clothing Partner to the team and the Sanya-based Blue Ocean Protection Association will conduct onboard environmental-protection initiatives while spreading the philosophy of protecting the oceans everywhere throughout the race.

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Whether or not you’re superstitious, a christening remains a compulsory and symbolic moment in the life of a boat. At 1400 GMT this Saturday 11 June, the traditional bottle of champagne was smashed across the bow of Groupama 4, the new monohull aboard which Franck Cammas and his international crew will take part in the next Volvo Ocean Race. The history of this crewed round the world with stopovers has been marked by a great French sailor: Eric Tabarly. It is his right arm, the sailor and offshore race organiser Gérard Petipas, who was selected to be patron to the first Volvo Open 70 built in France.

 
The public was out in force for this historic moment in sailing: the christening of the monohull Groupama sailing team, crewed by the first French team to participate in the Volvo Ocean Race since 1993, with Éric Tabarly. Over 3,000 spectators packed around the Keroman submarine base in Lorient to discover those faces who will carry Groupama’s colours around the world for eight months across ten countries.
Jean Azéma, CEO of Groupama: “We’re now switching from the technical to the human face of the project. The big crowds testify to the attachment the local people have for the Groupama project and the Volvo Ocean Race. Various colleagues from Groupama have come here today from right across France and Europe to provide their support for Franck Cammas and his team”.

Open to the public, the christening village played host to a wealth of visitors and entertained the children throughout the day. At 1500 hours local time, all eyes were on the pontoons where the sixty members of Groupama sailing team formed a guard of honour for the crew of Groupama 4. The ‘son et lumières’ show and the releasing of balloons delighted the public, with everyone seemingly holding their breath as the specially rigged up champagne bottle was hurled against the bow. Franck Cammas: “I’m not superstitious but I was relieved when the bottle broke first time. I’m happy to have been able to share this christening ceremony with all my team as well as my sponsor, Groupama, for what will soon be 14 years”.

Memories of the great French sailor Éric Tabarly were all around the port of Lorient this Saturday. Pen Duick VI, which participated in the first edition of the Whitbread (predecessor to the Volvo Ocean Race) was on the water next to the new monohull Groupama. Gérard Petipas*, a loyal friend of Éric Tabarly and an acclaimed sailor on the various Pen Duick craft, was chosen by Franck Cammas to be patron to Groupama 4. The christening was synonymous with handing on the torch, as Gérard Petipas explains: “I’m honoured and touched to have been chosen by Franck to be the patron to Groupama 4. 38 years ago, Éric and I christened another boat, Pen Duick VI, the first French boat to race the Whitbread. I find in Franck the same qualities that I appreciated in Éric: Franck is a great skipper and a leader of men. He has designed this boat and has battled to do it. The fact that he’s been with Groupama for 13 years is prodigious. He has succeeded in putting together a fabulous team. He is a remarkable man.”

Franck Cammas: “For the past 18 years, the race hasn’t seen a French crew. Éric Tabarly took part in the Whitbread five times without ever winning it. With Groupama sailing team, we’re taking back the torch. It was a link I held very dear and I wanted to be present to see.”

The town of Lorient, a stopover in the Volvo Ocean Race in June 2012, benefited from Groupama 4′s christening to launch its volunteer recruitment campaign. Lorient and its surrounding area are actively preparing to play host, nearly a year to the day, to the six boats competing in the crewed round the world with stopovers. To achieve this, it is counting on the motivation and enthusiasm of 700 volunteers from all over France.

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Today, Saturday 14 May, Groupama 4, the first Volvo 70 built in France, was launched at 1400 GMT, opposite Groupama Sailing Team’s base in Lorient. Groupama’s representatives, the sailors, the members of the shore team and an enthusiastic crowd attended this important stage of the project led by skipper Franck Cammas.

 
      Lined faces betrayed the fatigue amassed over recent days. After nearly 50,000 man hours, the monohull Groupama 4 is now ready to traverse the globe’s seas.
Australian Ben Wright, head of the shore team with five Volvo Open 70 build projects already under his belt, seems particularly satisfied with the work achieved by the team. “It’s a big day… in a long series of big days! We still have a few miles to cover with Groupama Sailing Team. However, at least now we’re done with the sketches: the boat is here in front of us. We’re tired but that’s par for the course after all these man hours. We’ve worked hard but we’re not stopping here! It’s only just begun in fact!”

      The sense of pleasure is palpable and the event brings everyone together. After all the difficulties that have to be surmounted during a project of this scale, Groupama 4 is now floating in the port of Lorient. As such Franck Cammas and his men have taken another step in the history of the Groupama Sailing Team: “In the construction of a yacht, the further you push the thought processes, the better you understand things, but the more difficult it becomes to make choices. You’re always keen to go into things deeply but there’s a deadline where you have to stop thinking and concentrate on making ideas a reality. Today, a new side to the work begins in the form of sail trials. And for the all those involved in the project, now is the moment of truth”.

In sailing, the competition begins well before the warning signals for the race start. It’s in the minds of the men behind the boat’s design, in the gestures of the boat builders and all those taking part in the project, that a victory is built.
When you decide to take part in a project of this size, you’re never sheltered from obstacles. Franck Cammas: “You encounter difficulties everyday. When you have to make choices, you’re bound to have to overcome obstacles. As was the case during construction of the first three Groupama boats, we encountered problems here too: it was inevitable that there were differences to the original schedule… There were a few timings which weren’t adhered to, some adhesion processes which had to be redone and parts that had to be rebuilt… That’s another reason why I’m proud of the work my team has done. Thank you to them, thanks to Juan Koujoumdjian, our architect, and thanks to Groupama, without whom we wouldn’t be here!”

      Jean-Luc Baucherel, President of Groupama, travelled to Lorient with around fifty representatives from Groupama Loire Bretagne: “It’s an important day for Groupama as our first monohull has been launched. Five years of new adventures lay in store. We’ll be able to weigh up our performance against the best Anglo-Saxon crews during the next two editions of the Volvo Ocean Race. This is a whole new concept for Groupama but we are in no doubt about the abilities of Franck Cammas and his crew to be up there with the frontrunners. We’re taking over from a great sailor called Eric Tabarly and we hope we can be worthy of him and carry France’s colours high. We were familiar with the multihull and, today, we’re ready for a new series of competitions aboard a monohull. It is with great enthusiasm and pride that we are competing in this new competition”.

Although the phase in the yard is over for the members of the shore crew, sail trials are set to begin on Tuesday 17 May for the sailing crew. The next major stages which will punctuate the life of Groupama Sailing Team between now and the start of the Volvo Ocean Race will be the christening of Groupama 4 on 11 June in Lorient, then the Fastnet Race in the UK on 14 August. In the latter, Franck Cammas and his crew will, for the very first time, be able to see how Groupama 4 fairs in relation to her future rivals.

 

Technical specifications for Groupama 4:

LOA: 21.50m
Beam: 5.70m
Water draught: 4.50m
Displacement: 14 tonnes
Keel: swing
Material: carbon honeycomb sandwich
Upwind sails: 315m²
Downwind sails: 675m²
Architect: Juan Kouyoumdjian
A communications project to support the group’s internationalisation
For more than 13 years, Groupama has chosen sailing sponsorship as a lever to support its strategy for growth in the service of its clients. One of the France’s leading insurance firms and the 15th largest insurer in Europe, the Group boasts a turnover of 17.6 thousand million Euros (2010). Groupama is accelerating its international development and aims to become one of the top 10 European insurers.
Established in 14 countries, the Group comprises 39,000 employees, including 11,000 overseas, where it achieves 30% of its turnover. The commitment to a more international sporting project through until 2015 has to support the construction of a European insurance group and a bank which is a creator, a humanist and something that lasts.
www.groupama.com
The Volvo Ocean Race
A crewed round the world race with stopovers, the Volvo Ocean Race, formerly known as the Whitbread, will set out from Alicante (Spain) on 5 November 2011 for its eleventh edition. Spanning 9 months and 10 stopovers, the participating crews will cover over 39,270 miles over 4 oceans. The race will conclude in Galway (Ireland) on 7 July 2012 after making a stopover in Lorient, France, Groupama Sailing Team’s base, from 16 June to 1 July 2012. Groupama 4 is the first French boat to compete in the event since 1993.
www.volvooceanrace.com

 

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