Music playlist

How many songs will there be in your play-list? 500

What will be the most represented musical styles in the playlist? Rock, Pop

Can you list a few singers/bands of the playlist? Coldplay, Amy Winehouse, Queen, Bowie, Coldplay, Adele

How important will music be to you during the Vendée Globe (how long will you listen to music every day, etc…)? Quite important, I listen every day.

What do you listen to music for? I listen for enjoyment.

How will you listen to music? (MP3, CD, computer, etc…) Run off an iPhone through amplifiers.

Will some of your friends and family members prepare a playlist for you before the race? I hope so!

What is your favorite song? I don’t have one.

To you, what is the greatest song ever written about sailing and the sea? I don’t know one except for Sailing by Rod Stewart and I’m not going to say that!
 

Cinema

Do you get to watch movies on board? Yes.

What has been your favorite movie this year? I’ve only watched kids films this year and none have been my favourites.

What DVDs will you bring with you on board? I’ll load some DVDs onto a hard drive, probably about ten. I will probably watch stuff that I have watched before, you can pick it up and stop watching depending on what is happening onboard.

Do you enjoy or avoid watching movies about disasters at sea? Does superstition have anything to do with it?  I don’t enjoy or avoid and have no superstitions about this.

Do you prefer art films or blockbusters? Blockbusters.

To you, what is the greatest movie ever about sailing and the sea? There was a great TV series called Captain James Cook and I loved Waterworld. The idea of just pressing a button and the mast and the sails self-hoist. That would be cool!

A movie taking place during the Vendée Globe is currently in production. Do you think it is a good idea?  I think it is a great idea.
 

 
Literature

Who is your favorite author? Arthur C Clarke.

What is your favorite book? Science Fiction.

How many books will you take with you? 5 or 6.

How much time do you think you will spend reading during the race? How ever long it takes to read five or six books and most of them get read twice. I read new books if I can.

To you, what is the greatest book ever written about sailing and the sea? Sailing Alone Around the World by Joshua Slocum.

 

Food

How much food do you think you will bring on board? How long is your stock planned to last? 150 KG. I hope it will last to the end!

Are you taking any treats with you? Wine Gums, a little bit of chocolate, Rich Tea biscuits. And they have to be the real McVitie Rich Tea.

What type of food are you bringing with you? Bit of fresh for the first five days, fruit, bread. Then freeze dried mainly, supplemented with some cheese (Roquefort) and Serrano ham.

What is your typical meal? Either freeze dried or pasta based.

Are you going to fish? No

Do you cook seaweed? No

 

Drinks

What drinks will you take with you? We have energy drinks, protein drinks, recovery drinks and rehydration drinks. Also squash to flavor the water as the taste of desalinated water is pretty bland.

Will you bring alcohol? A little bottle of Champagne Mumm and maybe a little bottle of red.
 

 

Hygiene

How do you deal with laundry? I wash out underwear and socks every so often and the rest you don’t deal with. Wear it, then bag it when you want something fresh.

How do you wash? With a minimal amount of water. You have to wash quite often to keep the salt off your exposed skin (3 or 4 times a day). It becomes quite uncomfortable, it stings and becomes uncomfortable. I’ll have a proper wash once a week, a flannel bath on deck. We use a surgical scrub on a towel called Hibiscrub, which kills all known bugs.

Do you try to shave? Once every three or four days.

How do you take care of the needs of nature?  Bucket and chuckit!

What is in your toiletries bag? Toothbrush, toothpaste, no real luxuries. Suncream is the most important, which also works as a moisturizer.

How long and how often will you sleep during the race? Very short but frequent sleeps. On average 5.5h a day. Maximum length 1h.
 

 

Clothes

What clothes are you taking with you to face such various weather conditions? All our clothes are supplier by Musto. For the Atlantic we use their mid layers and MPX Offshore and for the Southern Ocean HPX jacket and trousers. I’ll take HPX Ocean Boots as well as Crocs for warmer days. In addition there are base

 

Lucky charms & hobbies

What wouldn’t you leave for the Vendée Globe without? Pictures of my family.

How do you relax on board? Books, films, music, sleeping.
 

If you hadn’t become a yachtsman, what would be your current job? I’d still be a professional fire officer.


Do you have any hobbies that don’t have anything to do with sailing? I like cars and mountain biking.

Are you interested in other sports? Which ones? F1.

Do you support some athletes or teams? Team GB in the London 2012 Olympics.
 

 

Staying in touch
How do you communicate with your loved ones during the race? How often? I call home daily via Irridium – this gives me a really important psychological boost. Everyone always worries if they haven’t heard from you.

Do you stay in touch with the general news from your country and in the world? How? This is one thing I do miss. If only data was cheaper, I would love to listen to radio as I listen to it at home a lot. Even with a good radio, I don’t think you would get much coverage offshore. Perhaps that is something that I need to look more into…

How long do you spend answering the media?  I speak to my media team at least daily and also on the radio vacations.