The day we meet our fellow adventurers, skipper and which boat we are to be on. My intention was to drive down just for the day but during Part B there was talk of a crew dinner and clothing was to be issued on Friday. So it ended up as a couple of nights away.
Two of my fellow trainees on Parts A and B had found hotels, one was paying £43.50 b&b and the other was just short of £100 per night!
I left it late to book and did some surfing to find hotels and B&Bs. Some deals to be had (how do you type sarcastically?!) – like one of the chains offering 2 nights at £122 but plus breakfast at £14.95 per day! I even found one with breakfast at £20 per day!
I managed to gat a single room B&B in ‘The Royal Maritime Club’ which Graham had told me about at £43.50 per day. Only a couple of hundred yards from the Action Stations Museum as well, where the next days events were being held.
Drove down on the Friday with the idea to pick up my clothing then cross the water on the ferry rather than drive all the way round from Gosport to Portsmouth.
Got to the Clipper warehouse and it has a look of organised chaos! There was Rob Carter and a couple of others handing out the kit to a managable queue and then we had the fun of trying it all on! It was a bit breezy and every item of clothing was in a plastic bag with tissue paper in it. All good fun! Sign off our issue of kit and walk away with Henri Lloyd sponsored, Clipper logoed ocean racing foulies, two jackets and a polo shirt.
10 minute walk to the ferry, across the water then to find the Hotel. Turns out to be okay. A typical hotel that was clean and functional. Couldn’t ask for anything more really. And it had a bar!
Graham and a friend of his, who is also doing the race, are both staying here. So after something to eat I give him a ring, as thay are already out at a bar, to meet up and of course he doesn’t hear it.
Now you would think that with the best part of 300 people out drinking along the water front in Portsmouth, somebody, somewhere would be easy to find. I think this will be okay, have a walk about, see some Clipper jackets or shirts or, even better, see somebody I recognize from my training days. Didn’t see anybody, not one!
Made my way back to the Hotel and had a couple of beers and then Graham came in just after midnight for a night-cap and the bar had closed! Strange for a Hotel to close the bar early.
Down to breakfast and there is another Clipper guy (another Graham) staying here. We are all abit obvious in our shirts!
We all made our way down to the Museum and it was like bees to a honey pot – Clipper jackets coming from every direction!
First person I saw who I knew was Dirk, my 1st mate from Part A, as a steward directing us to have our photos taken. Two photographers and X marks the spot and look straight into the lense with a big Clipper smile!
Inside and pick a name badge up, upstairs for a coffee and now I do see some familiar faces. Great to see them all but not a lot of time for a catch up. Ushered into the auditorium – something like 350 people here this year!
We had a few introductory speeches from Clipper personnel, from the Civic Office of Hull, a sponsor or two, (what was it?…. £225 for a dram? of a very special bottle of Benromach! Nice!! There was only one dram poured and it didn’t leave the stage. None for us then!) and a few others. Then Sir Robin came on stage and said his bit – it’s hard to think it has only been 40 years since anybody has managed to sail the world non stop, and there is the man on stage who did it! It is all very inspiring stuff!!
The 10 skippers then got introduced to us with the boats name they are to skipper. Followed by each skipper stepping foward to be given an envelope with his crews names inside. A tense atmosphere built up very quickly.
I catch a few names I know as they are read out and displayed on the screen behind but it doesn’t mean anything yet. 9 skippers, 9 boats and 402 crew names read out. 1 boat to go, so who is left must be on it! California here I come! I can live with that.
Skipper Pete Rollason steps forward for the crew of California. There I am, my names not got lost. We have a crew of 43 with an age range of 19 to 63 giving an average age of 42. 27 men and 16 women. 10 round the worlders and I am not the oldest of them! Nearly though! The ‘other’ Graham staying at my Hotel is on this boat as well.
This part of the proceedings finished at 12.30. Spot on timing by Clipper. Time for a breath of fresh air except as soon as we are all outside then the smokers get going!!
Back inside at 13.00 to meet our crew. Too many names to remember at the moment! Pete puts us in the picture of what he wants and expects and of course we do have our Part C training to do as some proper practice. There is some general chat about boat finance and social secretary and team songs and ‘T’ shirts and so it goes on for a few hours.
Time to get down to the water front where Clipper have moored 4 boats for various photo shoots and for the Chinese Civic delegation to name their sponsored boat ‘Qingdao’.
The Clipper girls did a fantastic job to get us all in the right place at the right time (and to behave!) for the group photos.
After the big group photos we break up into crews for our crew photo.
We are 14 people short in our photo to show our full crew. It’s just not possible to get everyone here.
After the photos are done we are finished and it’s beer o’clock. Just a couple of minutes away into Tiger Tiger and there are three crews booked in! The tills are going to be ringing tonight!
Beer in hand and out onto the first floor balcony and we managed another team photo.
We sat for our meal and as each course finished we rotated so to sit with different fellow crew members and a great night meeting new friends.
Tiger Tiger has a large first floor bar and night club but it all got a bit too much for some of us!
Eventually I found Graham and his friend and we headed back to our hotel at the end of what turned out to be a tiring day. And the bar was open so we got our night-cap tonight!
Homeward bound on Sunday morning and just a few tourist photos to show for it. A great day and things are getting very close now to the start! Well done Clipper.