The end of a magnificent journey

And so we sailed into The Albert Dock on Saturday 5th July 2008 at the end of our great voyage to a fabulous welcome from some 60,000 people at the Liverpool waterfront.

Sailing into the Mersey was simply spectacular and brought a huge lump to the throat as we saw so many former crew members, family and friends together with many, many people who had come along to witness the spectacular sight.

Some of the crew now join an elite and rare group of people who have sailed all the way around the World - 35,000 miles. There are more people who have climbed Everest than there are circumnavigators. We are proud of our Round the Worlders : John Braithwaite, Ralph Grant, Claire Maloney, Chris Parkinson and Bernard Tissier and they should be really proud of their magnificent achievement.

For skipper Simon Bradley this is the second time he has circumnavigated the globe; Simon was a crew member on the Times 2000 Clipper race and it was that that gave him the bug to become a professional sailor.

The JAMAICA crew was lauded by both the Clipper Management team but, more importantly, the skippers and crew members of the other 9 Clippers, as the most inclusive team, the team which most noticeably embraced this magnificent journey. That is a true acolade and to get such recognition from our adversaries & colleagues is a credit to us all.

But team JAMAICA has not just been about the 40 people who have sailed her around the World. It is about the JAMAICA family. The support we have received has been second to none, whether it be from those people who have been fortunate to come and visit us in our stopovers, or whether it be those good folk back home who have constantly been there to encourage us along the way.

The end of an era it may be but it will not be the end of the journey; there have been too many great friends made over the course of the past year. It is too early to sum up one's experiences over this time. This is a time for reflection, a time to enjoy and savour the moment.

www.jamaicaclipper.com will remain on line for the foreseeable future as many of the RTW crew members have asked to be able to scroll back through the race reports to relive the memory.

Indeed we hope as many people as possible will send their own reflections on the JAMAICA experience, both crew and non crew, so we can publish them.

It has been a privilege to be part of the JAMAICA family.

JAMAICA Clipper claims 1st prize...

On a wet and windy Saturday, not dissimiliar to the conditions the fleet left in last September the friends and family and former crew-mates of JAMAICA Clipper welcomed the team back to Liverpool Jon, Gus, Karen and Nick Jacob's family cheered the boats into the docks from the top of the Cunard building (many thanks to Karen for letting us up there)


At an impressive prize giving ceremony in St George's Hall, Liverpool, JAMAICA Clipper were awarded first prize in the Media competition for leg 7. The crew congratulated Nick Jacobs with his stirling efforts on the Camcorder. Well done Nick.

Further information was provided by Anna Wardley on the photos and film DVDs which will be available from Clipper and Nauticalia shops over the coming months.

The prize giving ceremony saw speeches from the Mayor of Liverpool and dignotories from Hull & Humber who will host the start and finish of the 09/10 Race.

JAMAICA Clipper were welcomed on stage by Sir Robin and were cheered by the other crews.

In reverse order Glasgow, Hull & Humber and New York recieved there 3rd, 2nd and 1st prizes respectively, all thanking the efforts of their crews.

As always the JAMAICA team then celebrated in style at Bar HA HA with a fantastic buffet organised by JB, Karen and Nick. Many thanks from the crew and friends and family who were there.

Jon G

LEAVING CORK

Catching up on the missed postings as the boats left Cork in such a hurry here are some fantastic photos taken by Karen Jacobs and Mick Moran.

Kindest,

Jon G

Team JAMAICA Clipper prepare for crossing to Liverpool

JAMAICA crosses the startline

Looking back on another 35,000 miles04

July 2008 As the sixth Clipper Round the World Yacht Race comes to a close, we can reflect on the last ten months and the effect that 35,000 miles of racing has had on the 400 people’s lives who participated as crew in the race. Firstly they will have become competent sailors, and for those who had never sailed before they joined the Clipper Training programme a year or more ago,this means they have learned a new sport. But they have not done this in the sheltered waters of the Solent; they have done it through all the oceans ofthe world, in calms and in storms. But that is not all they take back to the land at the end of their voyage.They have learned that teamwork is not something preached in a weekend seminar, it is an essential part of survival at sea, and when they put their effort into their team it is not only safer it is enjoyable. They will also show the noticeable increase in self confidence which comes from taking on something really difficult and succeeding. Perhaps nowhere has this been more obvious than with the ONE HULL Tag Team, the young people, not drawn from privileged backgrounds, who took the Wilberforce Petition against modern day slavery around the world. It is pleasing to report that all of these young people have had a life changing experience,and have all now taken up jobs or further education. The crews all now face a similar challenge. Adjusting to life ashore again and the need to get back to work. Whatever they do however, they know that they have achieved something very special with their lives and something wehope will extend their horizons. At Clipper, well some people like the Race Team will go for a well deserved holiday. Others will take over the boats and race them around the Solent fora few months whilst the back room team will start to progress the re-fit,pulling together the list of tasks that keep the boats clean, safe, and effective. Already crew training is already well underway for Clipper09-10, so as we say farewell and good luck to the Clipper 07-08 crews, weare hailing the new ones for Clipper 09-10.

Liverpool Race Finish Programme Clipper 07 /08 Saturday 5th July 08
2 – 8 am Race 14 (Cork to Liverpool) finishes at the bar (entrance to the riverMersey) 10.30am Liverpool 08 Dash starts at Crosby buoy (presentational race up the river Mersey)
Also, race commentary & entertainment begins at the Albert Dock 11.30-12 pm

Liverpool 08 Dash finish off Duke’s mast 12.15pm

Clipper 07/08 Fleet parade past Duke’s mast 12.45pmClipper 07/08 Fleet enter canning half tide lock 2pm

Race 14 (Cork to Liverpool) prize giving in the Canning half tide 3.15pmClipper 07-08 overall prize giving at the Albert Dock 4.30pm

Shuttle buses from the Albert Dock to the crew reception (ticket holdersonly) at St Georges Hall, William Brown Street, Liverpool L1 1J 5-8pm
Crew reception St Georges Hall (tickets holders only)

9pm Jamaica Crew buffet at Ha Ha Restaurant, Albert Dock (only if you have prebooked)

Close battle underway for final podium positions

04 July 2008 After just over twenty four hours of racing up the Irish Sea from Cork to Liverpool only 14 miles separate the entire fleet, as they battle for thefinal three podium positions in the biennial 35,000-mile Clipper Round theWorld Yacht Race. New York and Uniquely Singapore are leading the fleet, butwith three boats just one mile behind, there is no room for complacency. Amongst the pack chasing the two leading boats is Liverpool 08. The Liverpool team, skippered by Ben Galloway, is fighting for a victory intotheir home port ten months after they set sail from the Mersey in Septemberlast year. The fleet are currently experiencing fast reaching conditions in a Force 3from the south west as they make their way towards Liverpool. The boats are going a lot faster than expected averaging approximately nine knots sincethey started Race 14 from Cork at midday yesterday, but they are sailing an‘elastic course’ that can be adapted according to the conditions. The tenteams will race around a number of pre-determined marks in Liverpool Baybefore the overall winner of the race is decided. The first boats will crossthe finish line at the Bar Buoy at the mouth of the Mersey from 0100 GMT onSaturday. Race Director Joff Bailey said: “The racing is incredibly close out therewith only three miles separating the top six boats. It is going to be atight finish and all the teams are battling to be the first across the linein this crucial final race. Nobody is willing to concede an inch and itlooks like it is going to go right to the line.” Nova Scotia has been deducted two points from their overall tally forreceiving a replacement main sail in Sydney after damaging their own. TheRace Committee penalised the Nova Scotia team after they received a fleetspare mail sail before departing from Nova Scotia for the final Atlanticcrossing. Earlier today, Radio 4’s You & Yours consumer affairs programme broadcast asailing special featuring the build-up to the finale of the Clipper 07-08Round the World Yacht Race.
Interviewees included Clipper Race Founder Sir Robin Knox-Johnston and Liverpool 08 crew member Lisa Pover andwesternaustralia2011.com crew member John Kimber live from the yachts as they raced up the Irish Sea towards Liverpool on Friday. Listen again is available at www.bbc.co.uk/radio4/youandyours.

Update from the boat

Ireland to the left of me, Anglesey to the right, here I am stuck in the middle with you. Well it's midday on our penultimate day. The sun has got his hat on and the seas are calm. Having left Cork yesterday at midday the fleet has made excellent progress. The very light winds which had been forecast before the race have not transpired and although they have currently dropped to 10 knots we're pushing along quite nicely. So much so that we are way ahead of time. In theory we could be a few hours away from Liverpool but as the arrangements have been made for the big arrival tomorrow we anticipate there will be a number of new gates put into our routing which will mean we have to zig zag further North for another 12 hours or so before mustering somewhere off the coast to await the Mersey Dash fun race tomorrow morning at 9.30. Yesterday was glorious weather with decent winds allowing all clippers to fly their spinnakers. It was actually the battle of the mid weight and, as you know, we were not invited to that challenge. Flying our heavy weight we saw the whole fleet sail past us. However we have managed to stick as close to the fleet as possible and are currently in joint 7th place which is a reasonable place to be. We are fighting head to head with Durban who, ironically, shared our last party in Cork and 6 miles behind the front of the fleet. The calm before the storm ..... We understand there are very heavy winds forecast for later today which should make the sea state decidedly choppy. With this progress it would have been lovely if we could have turned right and popped into Holyhead for an evening to shelter from the ravages of the storm but it would appear that we shall be left to Bob up and down at the entrance to the Mersey overnight. With the weather as beautiful as it is now it is almost impossible to imagine a storm is on its way yet as we all know the Irish Sea can be very unpredictable. Indeed we have just been joined by 2 dolphins - what a beautiful welcome that it. We are all looking forward to seeing all of you good folks who are able to come to Liverpool tomorrow.

Nick Jacobs

FINAL RACE STARTS

And so to the final race.

This morning we mustered on the good ship JAMAICA at 08:00 in preparation for the final race of the Clipper 07/08 Round the World Yacht Race. We slipped just after 09:00 and sailed to Cobh in a formation sail where we waved off by friends, family and locals. The huge P&O cruise liner The Grand Princess was there to bid is farewell and will be in Liverpool when we arrive. At this morning's crew briefing skipper Simon Bradley confirmed the winds would be light at the start of the race but high winds and perhaps squalls are likely to be "welcoming" us as we sail into the Mersey on Saturday. There is a massive low pressure system coming through which may make our final day highly challenging. At the start of this race at 12:00 we had an International race arbitrator ensuring any protests were adjudicated within an hour of race start so no decisions will be outstanding as we sail into Liverpool. As far as we could tell there appeared to be no incidents as the fleet crossed the line past Weaver's point heading into the Atlantic. After some excellent team work, great helming by JB, excellent tactics from Katie, we crossed the line in a magnificent 4th place before heading out to a way point 4 miles from shore. We left the waypoint to port and gybed JAMAICA to sail back to our original start point having gained a place to 3rd, although with Qingdao constantly nipping at our heels. We crossed the second way point in 5th having just been pipped around the mark by Qingdao and Western Australia, before turning East towards the Irish Sea. This close quarters racing is very exciting and there's a long way yet before race end in Liverpool. So I had better get back to racing.

Believe!

Nick Jacobs posted by JG

The Royal Cork Yacht Club

Greetings from The Royal Cork Yacht Club in Cork, the oldest yacht club in the World and our hosts for the penultimate stopover before race end in Liverpool ..... and what fantastic hosts they have been.

We arrived on Saturday, two days early, following an excellent crossing of the Atlantic. Since then we have been working on the boat and enjoying the legendary hospitality of the Irish. It has been wonderful to see so many crew members, family and friends come to Crosshaven.

Yesterday evening we gathered together to present skipper Simon Bradley with two framed pictures as a thank you from all crew members.

The first was an original painting which has been painted by crew member Mick Moran's cousin Laura Miller. As you can see it is a beautiful painting of our very own JAMAICA clipper. It is clearly unique and Simon was delighted to receive it.

The second is a photographic montage which Jon Gibbard has prepared showing JAMAICA as well as two photographs of Simon: the first is the one and only time anyone has seen him do any work on board - here he is taking a bit of rope for a walk - the second is on the occasion of his 51st birthday.

Later in the evening team JAMAICA won the dancing competition (of course!) to the sounds of a reggae band which was sponsored by the Jamaican Tourist Board. Liz Fox & Torrance Lewis from the JTB in London have come over to join in with the celebrations as well as taking part in a Coporate Sail today. They will also be attending our crew party this evening.

And so to the final race in the Clipper Round the World Yacht race 07/08. The race started in Liverpool on 16th September 2007 and will conclude this coming Saturday, 5th July 2008 after 35,000 miles.

It is perhaps fitting that team JAMAICA was the only team to have an eve of race party last September and we are keeping up that tradition this evening before race start tomorrow morning at 8am. However, we are making sure we will all be on top form; although our team drink of choice is rum and coke we will not be mixing our drinks this evening ...... so Simon has banned the coke.

The forecast for the race is light winds blowing from the South - perfect weather for that gad damned spinnaker (don't mention the "S" word!). But rest assured we have a plan :

Crew member Dan Garnett has donated a pair of his boxer shorts which we have hoisted from the forestay. Early time trials suggest we will certainly finish in the top 10 on Saturday.

We look forward to seeing as many of you as possible in Liverpool.