he stories coming off the Volvo Ocean Race
boats in the current edition of the race are
not quite like anything we’ve seen before.
With more video cameras on board
than ever, there is no glossing over the
tough days. On Leg 2 we saw footage of a deflated David
Witt, skipper of Sun Hung Kai Scallywag, rubbing his
face in despair as he works out how to share the news
of another bad news position report. We watched Pascal
Bidégorry, navigator on Dongfeng Race Team, come on
deck and tell his crew: “We’re ed, completely ed,”
after a navigation error that cost them the race lead.
But the latest warts-and-all coverage doesn’t just show
raw emotion. It means shore teams can see their rivals’
set-ups just by clicking on the website. And with less
filtering than ever before, sometimes what we see makes
for uncomfortable viewing. No longer does the phrase
‘what happens on the boat stays on the boat’ apply.
As part of the changes implemented by the recently
replaced CEO Mark Turner, onboard reporters (OBRs)
are no longer employed by race teams. Instead they
are part of the Volvo Ocean Race media staff, placedT
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