Surfing the Webb
On Monday’s we like to surf the www-dots to see what kind of sailing news percolated over the weekend. The web brought us to Webb. Well, sort of.
Webb Chiles is reportedly struggling through light winds off the west coast of Central America. We say reportedly because his last blog post was nearly two weeks ago from the Balboa Yacht Club in Panama. “I’m actually not gone until tomorrow morning, but shortly after posting this, taking my last fresh water shower for the indefinite future, and filling a one gallon plastic container with water, I will ride the launch out to Gannet and leave the land and Internet behind.”
But we heard it from a little bird that Webb has been slogging through some serious wind holes on the final leg of his circumnavigation. We wish him smooth sailing into San Diego.
Teaching Leadership through Sailing? Of Course
“Leadership lessons pop up in all aspects of life, but skippering a sailing yacht offers a glimpse of the deep end. With weather, wind and waves to contend with, a crew to cajole and keep safe, navigation to be worked out, and an expensive boat to maintain, strong leadership is a must.”
So read a story last week from CNN, which quoted the philosophies of several notable skippers, including Carolijn Brouwer, Ian Walker and Tracy Edwards.
The piece was broken into subsections that could have been a motivational speech on a corporate retreat, including: unlocking potential, deciding between a democracy or dictatorship, instilling confidence, being humble and transparent, and taking responsibility.
So the next time your boss says that the team needs to better gel, be sure to email them the link to this story with the subject line: You Need to Take Us Sailing.
The Ocean Race
Last week, The Ocean Race came out of the digital murk to reveal its new brand identity.
“Formerly known as the Whitbread Round the World Race (1973 to 1997) and the Volvo Ocean Race (2001 to 2018), The Ocean Race is the premier, fully-crewed, offshore race in the world, and a pinnacle event in the sport of sailing,” an The Ocean Race press release said. “Although now under new ownership, The Ocean Race retains Volvo as a premier race partner.”
The first Iteration of the newly branded The Ocean Race will start in 2021 from Alicante, Spain. This year, there will be not one but two classes of ultra-fast boats racing: “The high-tech, foiling IMOCA 60s and the one-design VO65 fleet that provided the closest race in the history of the event in the last edition.”
Analog Wisdom in a Digital World
We came across an old version of, like, a Kindle or an iPad, or something. The battery seemed low, but we were able to glean a quote from a thoroughly analog source that we want to impart on you, Latitude Nation, in the hopes that you start the week keeping a weather eye to the water.
“There is nothing like lying flat on your back on deck, alone except for the helmsman aft at the wheel, silence except for the lapping sea against the side of the ship. At that time you can be equal to Ulysses and brother to him.” — Errol Flynn (Captain Blood himself)