Volvo Ocean Race – All about today for Team SCA

by Corinna Halloran on 6 Nov 2014 Team SCA’s OBR Corinna Halloran reports on day 25 of the Volvo Ocean Race as they approach the end of Leg 1 in Cape Town.

The sailors have been doing this incredibly well: on board, it is all about today, not tomorrow, nor the next day—only thinking forward for sail changes and weather situations.

It’s a bit strange to be at day 25—surreal, to be honest. It feels like yesterday the race began, and now we’re just about to begin food rations. We were scheduled to arrive after 24 days but, just in case, two extra days of food were packed. Now, we’re gone for two extra days beyond the extra days we originally planned.

Half way through the trip, Sophie organized and prepared for possible rationing. 'We each have a hot meal per day, plenty of muesli for breakfast, plenty of energy bars, and plenty of beef jerky. So we’re not going to starve.' Nonetheless, the fresh meals on the dock will be incredibly welcomed.

Today we also hit mile 1,000. Usually this is quite a milestone, and the sailors were excited at 1,005. However, once we hit 1,000 so did the reality of what that meant: we still had a long way to go and the leaders were hitting their final 500 miles and 250 miles. Sometimes the pain of our reality really hits hard and no one feels like saying much. The usual major milestones are shrugged off and it’s back to focusing to get there as soon as possible.

Slowly the reality sinks in for us. We have two days to go and the leaders finish tomorrow—when they’re enjoying burgers we’ll be into our final freeze dried meal, with still another day and a half to go. It’s hard not to be really bummed about this!

Nonetheless, there is a twinge of excitement building in my gut—an excitement that comes when I think a little too far about the future. When I think about eating pancakes, fresh fruit, Banoffee pie, a good run, a hot shower, a long awaited hug from my Dad, and a big comfortable bed it’s hard not to feel a little excited. After twenty-five days, we’re nearly there!

Except right now it’s incredibly important to stay present and to focus on the moment. The sailors have been doing this incredibly well: on board, it is all about today, not tomorrow, nor the next day—only thinking forward for sail changes and weather situations.

Thinking too far into the future does not help the present. What helps the present is enjoying it—enjoying the wind, the Southern Ocean, and the four Albatross flying around us. Furthermore, living in the present simply allows us to be grateful to be exposed to this part of the world.

What’s been learned out here can only be learned from experience, and that includes the deepened need and want to fight for a team we all so wholeheartedly believe in: Team SCA. We’re bummed out because we know we have a fair chance on this playing field—this is not a race against men, it’s a race against other offshore sailors.

So, a big massive congratulations to our offshore competitors finishing leg 1 of the Volvo Ocean Race tomorrow, we look forward to seeing you in a couple of days. We wish we could be in Cape Town sooner to enjoy the burgers with you tomorrow night, but trust me when I say: next time, the time difference will be considerably Team SCA website