Clipper Yacht Race: Roles & Respon­sibi­lities

The Clipper Round the World Yacht Race continues, with the crews of all vessels working hard to try and get a crucial edge. Though success depends on the team working together, each individual team member has a specific, very different job to do: here we look at some of the many roles onboard a yacht taking part in this iconic race.

Bowman. Responsible for running the foredeck of the vessel, the bowman is directly involved in most manoeuvres during the race

• Mid-Bowman. Second in command, the person taking on this role must learn to anticipate what the bowman requires. The mid-bowman prepares the sails before hoisting and is involved with any and all sail changes throughout the race
• Mastman. A vital communication link between the bow and cockpit, the mastman is also responsible for much of the hard, heavy work such as hoisting sails
• Pitman. Always calm, even when multi-tasking under pressure, the Pitman is in control of the halyards and must anticipate the combined needs of the bowman, mid-bowman and mastman
• Grinder. A grinder controls the sheet, constantly trimming and altering the sails with every wind shift
• Trimmer. Keeping a close eye on the sails and issuing fine-tuning instructions to the grinder, trimmers know how to make the most of every change in wind speed and direction
• Running Backstay. Wind-filled headsails place many tonnes of forward pressure on the mast and this force is counterbalanced by the backstay. The running backstay's job is to balance these forces

Here at Bachmann Group, all of our staff are keeping a close, keenly-interested eye on the Clipper Round the World Yacht race. If you would like to stay updated on the race, as well as receive lots of other news and features, please subscribe to the Bachmann Group newsletter.