Vendée Globe

Advances in technology of course mean that skippers now have the option of taking vast libraries of music, films, podcasts, personal inspirational messages from friends and family, images and audio books at the cost of just a few grammes of weight.

Even Mr Spartan – Mich Desj on Foncia – will have a choice of tunes for life below decks in his white world (Barry White, Nights in White Satin, Whitesnake, White Riot, I’m dreaming of a White Christmas, The White Stripes…..??) but he notes sagely that he will not be looking to catch up on any recent films and will not be taking any DVD’s or films in any format.

Dee Caffari has built an impressive music collection which has grown since her epic 2006 ‘wrong way’ 178 days circumnavigation and it is an important part of her time aboard her Owen Clarke designed AVIVA. Her music ‘consultant’ is her young nephew who has helped for the last three years, since he was 14. Robbie Williams was her constant companion over 178 day solo voyage. Currently her favourite track is Nickelback’s ‘Rock Star’ but she quietly likes a bit of S Club 7 ‘Reach for the Sky’ on sunny days in the Tropics.

Indeed Dee's music library's written track listing extends to 30 pages of A4 paper, no fewer than 2137 songs which take up 7.76GB – or enough for nearly six days of listening without hearing the same track again.

In amongst that musical lexicon there are still the prime cuts of Robbie, jeroboams of Jamiroquai and Jack Johnston, a serious helping of Elvis-es Presley and Costello, Eminem, A-Ha, Adam and the Ants, Alicia Keys, and tracks for the 'up' days and 'down' days ….’Days go By’ by Dirty Vegas, even…’Suicide is Painless’ ….neither the original Johnny Mandel version which was the theme tune to M.A.S.H, nor Marilyn Manson version, but the Fatima Mansions/Manic Street Preachers version.

Mike Golding has mellowed in his approach since he won Global Challenge round the world race with a team who reportedly had to cut their handles off their tooth brushes to save weight, he has an music collection with him on ECOVER 3, and as a 'man of a certain age' enjoys everything from punk standards from the Undertones to Amy Winehouse – a current favourite – Coldplay, the Crash Test Dummies as well as classical and chill out compilations. But he is an occasional rather than regular listener. He, like many other skippers, is a huge fan of his Apple I-Touch.

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