This year a small band of seven intrepid storytellers are experiencing one of the planet’s most gruelling yet exciting adventures, sharing their stories as they go – made possible by Inmarsat.
We spoke to four of the race’s Onboard Reporters (OBRs) about their experience and methods of storytelling at the extreme.
They are on the journey of their life with the Volvo Ocean Race – a 38,739 nautical mile odyssey that pushes people, technology and engineering to the limit, and has allowed a new generation of journalists to bring the most remote places on earth to screens in our homes and in our pockets.
These dedicated OBRs are on each of the Volvo Ocean 65 race boats using Inmarsat’s global satellite communications network to transmit video, photos and blogs to fans around the world, from places thousands of miles away from land.
The OBRs’ main challenge in the race is to survive some of the most uncomfortable living and working conditions imaginable, while still operating as world class photographers, film makers and writers.
Sadly, since we recorded these interviews, life for Brian Carlin, OBR on Team Vestas Wind, took an even more extreme turn for the worse when during Leg 2 of the Volvo Ocean Race from Cape Town to Abu Dhabi, the boat grounded on a reef north east of Mauritius.
The crew were forced to abandon the boat – a dramatic moment captured by Brian Carlin and shared with the world via Inmarsat’s BGAN service which you can watch here. Just another incredible story made possible by Inmarsat.
Each of the race boats is kitted out with Inmarsat’s flagship Maritime services including FleetBroadband 500, FleetBroadband 250 and Inmarsat C for safety. In addition an IsatPhone 2 is stored in the boats’ liferaft grab packs.
The six remaining teams are currently en route to Sanya, China, having set sail from Abu Dhabi on Leg 3 of the race on 2 January. Catch up on all the latest live news feeds from the OBRs on the dedicated ‘Crew Communications made possible’ section of our Volvo Ocean Race website.
