As we approach the UK's winter, it's worth noting that Clipper Yachts are not heated! Some will have a small oil-filled heater & dehumidifier which is aimed, largely, at trying to keep the crew area and sail bags (in the same place on a Clipper 68 training yacht) as dry as possible when alongside and between courses. However, overnight and when at sea, Winter on a Clipper Training Yacht is cold. When there are lots of people below, it can also get wet, with lots of warm breath and a cold deck making for a chilly rainforest in some conditions. The best way to plan for this is to invest in a specialist marine sleeping bag. Ocean Sleepwear do one which is Goretex ™ lined and has dual fleece interiors. These are great bags, but not cheap. The basic mummy-shaped bag comes in at over £250 and the square 'Volvo' bag is over £300. Our pre-used classified ads also have Ocean Bags from time to time. An alternative to this has been sourced by me and is available online for about £50. It's the Mountain Warehouse Sutherland sleeping bag. We did a quick review of the Sutherland Bag here. And the Ocean Bag here. Amazon Reviews | Click to View All Amazon ReviewsThe Sutherland Sleeping Bag is perfect for fishing trips into the wild. Designed in durable ripstop polyester fabric, it is fleece lined for better insulation and extra warmth when out camping on cold winter evenings. SPECIFICATION
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If you are training in the UK between October and April, I seriously suggest you consider buying one of these warm, fleece-lined sleeping bags. The Volvo Ocean bag is brilliant, but about 5 x the price of this bag.
The Sutherland bag can be ordered on Amazon and delivered in the UK. They sell for about £60 at the time of writing. In this short video I discuss what you should be thinking about packing for a cold ocean leg. In this context, I consider Cold Ocean Legs to be Legs 2, 3 , 4, 6 and Leg 8. Fierce Turtle (Packing for Training) : http://bit.ly/PackingListfortraining Check Out our Classified Pages for pre-used kit:
https://www.fierceturtle.co.uk/pre-used-kit Le Chameau Boots: http://bit.ly/sailingboots Ocean Sleeping Bag Hire: http://bit.ly/oceansleepingbag
Sailing in the Southern Ocean in Summer is a tough old gig, even for the pros on The Volvo Ocean Race. It seems no coincidence that so many use the Le Chameau Neptune boot for the really tough, cold race legs.
Click here for our review of the Le Chameau Neptune. Clipper Crew can claim 15% OFF the Le Chameau Neptune if purchased in February 2018. The DISCOUNT CODE is WARMFEET. Just enter the code at checkout. Sail safe. |
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The AuthorMark Burkes is a former Clipper Race Skipper, Round the World Crew, Clipper Training Skipper & jobbing RYA Yachtmaster Instructor (Ocean). He has over 200,000 miles logged.
Mark also writes professionally both online and offline and has written for Yachting World. Fierce Turtle is not linked to nor is it in any way accredited by the splendid folk at Clipper Ventures. All opinion is our own.
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