Junk Sailing

This picture needs little explanation. It is Hong Kong Clipper departing from Hong Kong in April 2003. Up until the 2000 race the Clipper yachts were named after famous Clipper ships such as Arial, Serica, Thermopile, Mermerus, Chrysolite and so on, which meant a lot to nautical historians, but little to most other people. These names were in general quite difficult to spell correctly and almost impossible to pass over radio circuits to Chinese radio operators … and many others!

In 2000 the boats were named after UK cities as part of The Times millennium project. In 2002 three of the boat become international, namely Cape Town, New York and Hong Kong. This has set the stamp on the current race format.

Here Hong Kong Clipper’s local supporters club had got together and chartered one of the few traditional junks remaining in Hong Kong. Even today racing round the world in a relatively small yacht is still a great achievement. To think that the Chinese sailed their junks everywhere is an amazing thought, especially on the windward legs!