NINE MONTHS RACING AROUND THE WORLD

10 legs. 9 months. 8 competitors. And 37,000 nautical miles. It started at the port town of Alicante, Spain and will finish at the port city of St. Petersburg, Russia.

The race began 40 days ago and is expected to finish in late-June of 2009.

All eight racers finished the first leg safely (from Alicante to Cape Town, South Africa) and had departed from Cape Town six days ago.

The race began in 1973 and was known back then as the "Whitbread Round the World." In 2000, Volvo became the primary sponsor and renamed it the Volvo Ocean Race (VOR).



The boats are essentially giant surfboards because of the way they perform. These are huge vessels, 70 feet long (21 meters), and manned by 11 maniacs. The maniacs come from Britain, Russia, China, Ireland, Spain, Sweden, Norway, Brazil, Australia, New Zealand, Canada, Uruguay, etc.



From the official website:

During the race the crews will experience life at the extreme: no fresh food is taken onboard so they live off freeze dried fare, they will experience temperature variations from -5 to +40 degrees Celsius and will only take one change of clothes. They will trust their lives to the boat and the skipper and experience hunger and sleep deprivation.

The race is the ultimate mix of world class sporting competition and on the edge adventure, a unique blend of onshore glamour with offshore drama and endurance.

It is undeniably the world’s premier global race and one of the most demanding team sporting events in the world.

After looking at these videos, tell me if you don't fall in love with the sport!