Countdown: 95 days till the race begins!
That’s the Volvo Ocean Race: an extreme sailing competition that pits “one-design” boats against each other on a round-the-world course. The difference between the eventual champions and the rest of the fleet depends on the crews alone – it’s a contest of skill and endurance, not technology or equipment.
Most of the fleet from the 2014-15 race are back: Dong Feng, MAPFRE, Vestas Wind, and (yes!!!!) Brunel. An 8th boat has yet to be named/sponsored, but I fully expect it will be Abu Dhabi with Ian Walker returning as skipper (if not, he’ll have to give up his Twitter handle!).
I will once again be rooting for Team Brunel, of course, and skipper Bouwe Bekking. He SO deserves the win!
I’ll say this now, because once Oathbringer comes out, it may have a different connotation – – to me, Bekking’s leadership style is reminiscent of Dalinar Kholin as we see him in The Way of Kings and Words of Radiance. Or maybe it’s just that I admire them both: heroes from the real-world and the cosmere.
At any rate, I encourage everyone to investigate the VOR. Pick a team to follow (cough, cough, Brunel, cough), cheer them on through social media, and learn a lot about our oceans in the process.
“See” you in Alicante in October!