Walker and ‘Parko’ join Team
Ragamuffin before turning New Year sights to Volvo Ocean Race bid
Abu
Dhabi Ocean Racing (ADOR) skipper Ian Walker, and fellow crew member Luke
‘Parko’ Parkinson, join forces on Boxing Day to take on the infamous Rolex
Sydney-Hobart Yacht Race on board Australian yachting legend, Syd Fisher’s,
Team Ragamuffin.
The
gruelling 628 nautical mile race is known as one of the world’s most
challenging sailing events and is a fearsome test and a New Year launch-pad for
the ten months of intense Volvo Ocean Race preparations that lie ahead for
them.
Aussie
‘Parko’ (23) was last week appointed the latest member of ADOR which will take on the world’s greatest
marine adventure, the 2014/15 Volvo Ocean Race, beginning in Alicante, Spain in
October next year. The Abu Dhabi Tourism & Culture Authority (TCA Abu
Dhabi) – backed team will contest its second consecutive Volvo Ocean Race with
the UK’s double-Olympic silver medallist at the helm.
“Sydney-Hobart is always a
great challenge and a thrill for any sailor,” said Walker.
“Parko and I raced together
recently with Team Ragamuffin from Hong Kong to Vietnam and what I saw of him
then convinced me, without doubt, that he’s the right man for our set-up. He
has the right attitude and crucially has the ability to crew both as bowman and
helm – I expect we’ll bond firmly during the Sydney-Hobart gig and get deeper
insights into our individual approaches, which will help us in the months that
lie ahead.”
Parko,
who turns 24 in February and is a member of the Australia Sailing Development
Squad and the Western Australian Institute of Sport for sailing, will be one of
ADOR’s under-30 crew members for next year’s Volvo Ocean Race. But for now his
focus is firmly on the gruelling Boxing Day challenge.
“Over the next few days
there’s no opportunity to be thinking about the Volvo Ocean Race, the focus is
simply on giving everything for Team Ragamuffin to try to take the honours in
Hobart.
“I’m looking forward to
sailing with Ian again and I’m under no illusion that it will be a very tough
few days racing. The competition in the 100fters is stiff, and the conditions
for the Sydney-Hobart always make things interesting and inevitably throw in
plenty of surprises and unexpected issues to deal with. This is a great chance
to store up more experience to bring to the ADOR team.”
Walker
and ‘Parko’ join a Team Ragamuffin that is steeped in history and impeccable
racing credentials. Originally launched in 1989 as Maximus, the yacht underwent
a major rebuild in 2004, and was then lengthened to 100ft in 2009. Team
Ragamuffin’s legendary skipper Syd Fischer was honoured in October with
Yachting Australia’s Lifetime Achievement award and at 86 years old, this year
equals the record for the oldest skipper in the Sydney-Hobart race.
The
fleet is expected to reach the Tasmanian port of Hobart on 28th December when,
following several days of rest and recovery, Walker and Parko will turn their
focus on the Volvo Ocean Race challenge ahead. The first major ADOR milestone
for both will be in February, when the full ADOR team gathers in Abu Dhabi. For
Parko it will be his first ever trip to the Arabia and he’s looking forward to
getting a feel for waters around Abu Dhabi city - the host for the 2014/15
Volvo Ocean Race New Year stopover.
“I’ve heard so much about
Abu Dhabi from Ian and from Adil Khalid who’s ADOR’s Emirati crew
member,” said Parko.
“The previous Volvo Ocean
Race stopover and in-port race in Abu Dhabi looked incredible, with stunning
blue waters and thousands of fans on the breakwater watching the action and
clearly so passionate about the race. It’s what you dream of as a professional
sailor. Hopefully, the success of Abu Dhabi Ocean Racing will help to continue
to grow interest and participation in sailing across the UAE.”
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