In April 2009 he celebrated the 40th anniversary of his return to Falmouth in Suhaili, 312 days after setting sail on a voyage no one else had ever accomplished. In 2007 he completed his second solo circumnavigation as a competitor in the VELUX 5 OCEANS race. Sir Robin is the founder and Chairman of the Clipper Round the World Yacht Race and is an inspirational figurehead to those who undertake this challenge of a lifetime.
“Twenty years from now, you will be more disappointed by the things that you didn’t do than by the ones you did do. So throw off the bowlines. Sail away from the safe harbour. Catch the trade winds in your sails. Explore. Dream. Discover.”

Not my words, but those of Mark Twain and how accurate they are. What will you be doing twenty years from now, I wonder. Still commuting? Retired? Stuck in a career you don’t enjoy? Thinking to yourself that we only get one go at this life and regretting that you didn’t paint your moment in brighter colours?

It’s interesting that Twain uses nautical metaphors in his wise observation. A circumnavigation is the ultimate challenge in sailing and therefore beyond the comprehension of many. It truly is about sailing away from the safe harbour. But it starts as a dream for the doers in life and quickly becomes an obsession. The fact that you are reading this suggests that you are one of those doers and I hope you will grasp the opportunity that the Clipper Round the World Yacht Race delivers.

Part of this challenge is that it is not easy – but then if it was, it wouldn’t present the truly tough times, nor provide the resultant great satisfaction. More than 2,000 people have now sailed with Clipper since 1996 and it has proved an enormous success, not just for Clipper but also for all those who have dared to ‘throw off the bowlines’ and achieved a life endorsing goal. Many started with no knowledge of sailing but they finish as experienced and accomplished sailors. And while learning the skills that make a good sailor, they have seen the planet at its most raw and got to enjoy some of the more exciting and exotic parts of the world, in the company of others with a similar outlook on life.

There is a uniting attitude amongst all our crew, no matter if they are a head of a multi-national organisation with a staff of thousands, a self employed plasterer, a nurse, a farmer, a student or a grandmother. The DNA that connects them is the desire to live life to the full, to break away from the nanny state with its health and safety petty rules, to be challenged and to feel truly rewarded – perhaps for the first time in their lives.

Clipper has one very simple philosophy. We want people to finish the race by saying, “That’s the best thing I have done with my life.” I hope they will add, “So far”, because then I KNOW we have truly widened their horizons.

Mull over Mark Twain’s observation over the next few days and weeks and see if it resonates with you. The trade winds he talks about are waiting to fill your sails. I urge you to take this opportunity to be propelled along by them and experience the great rewards that the Clipper Race brings.