Do you feel like you’re due for a life-changing adventure? Dropping all the worries of the daily grind, travelling to remote parts of the world, facing challenges, and creating memories that will last a lifetime?
Well, that’s where the Clipper Round the World Yacht Race comes in. It elevates ordinary people, many with no prior sailing experience, and gives them the opportunity to sail around the world.
Whether you’ve always dreamt of sailing across the Pacific Ocean or are simply hungry for an epic adventure, read on to discover more about the Clipper Race and how you can take part below.
What is the Clipper Round the World Yacht Race?
The Clipper Round the World Yacht Race is the brainchild of Sir Robin Knox-Johnston, the first person to sail solo non-stop around the world.
The first Clipper Race took place in 1996, and since then, over 6,000 Race Crew from all walks of life and from over 60 nations have participated in the race.
The race features 11 identical yachts, each with a vastly experienced professional skipper and first mate to expertly lead the teams around the world. Then, after you sign up as Race Crew, you’ll need to pass a four-level rigorous training programme, designed to fully equip participants with the skills they need to safely cross an ocean.
The race then follows a 40,000 nautical mile route around the world, split up into eight legs, for a total of 11 months at sea. If you like, you can choose to do one or multiple legs, such as following the Trade Winds across the Atlantic from the UK to South America, or crossing the mighty North Pacific – the world’s largest ocean.
In some ocean crossings, you’ll be so remote that the closest other humans are the astronauts onboard the International Space Station.
Or, you can sign up to complete the entire race and become one of the few people who can say that they’ve sailed around the world, like 34-year-old Lorenzo Gaudenzi Morandi from Italy:
“In the beginning I didn’t sign up for the circumnavigation, I just wanted to do three legs. But then as things went on, I imagined myself stepping off the boat and seeing the boat leaving the docks with my crew, and I thought that wasn’t possible! I have always wanted to do big things, and the Clipper Race was the biggest thing I could do. What attracted me was the challenge, the waves, and the adventure of a lifetime.
“Each and every race is a huge learning process. It taught me how to be compassionate, strong, fierce and courageous when needed. Also, it taught me how to step back and let someone who could do a better job do it rather than me. The biggest lesson I learnt is to never give up. You must push until the end because you never know what you are going to get.”
What about the racing?
The Clipper Round the World Yacht Race is not just about circumnavigating the globe: it’s also a challenging, and sometimes gruelling, race.
The route is broken up into separate races, with more points awarded for finishing up the order, and there’s additional points available through challenges along the way, including ocean sprint time trials and by passing through scoring gates.
However, the Clipper Race is a marathon, not a sprint, and the biggest challenge is working together with a diverse 20-person crew in difficult sailing conditions. And at the end of the day, it’s mostly about creating life-changing experiences and memories.
That’s exactly what Jaci Smith from Wyoming, USA, was seeking when she put her career as an Operations Director on hold to take on the Clipper Race.
After sailing as part of the Ha Long Bay, Viet Nam team, which won the overall championship, she said the race is “something to overcome, something that pushes you out of your comfort zone, that challenges you and that lets you see a different side of yourself. I knew that I was going to feel that I experienced something, and that I was going to go through something transformative and that I would grow. I feel like the race did all of that.”
How do I take part?
The best part about the Clipper Race is that anyone can take part, even if you’ve never stepped foot on a boat before, thanks to the comprehensive training programme before you set sail.
As long as you’re willing to challenge yourself, support the team, and embark on an adventure of a lifetime, you can become part of the Race Crew.
Places are still available for the 2025-2026 edition of the Clipper Round the World Yacht Race.
You can find out more about the race and how to take part by heading the website here.