It\u2019s not just enough to set out on an adventurous voyage \u2013 you need to capture it as well. But has \u2018social media\u2019 sailing gone too far?Our defences have run out: social media has well and truly infiltrated our precious, antiquated sailing world. It\u2019s terrifying to think that our secret passage to escapism and isolation at sea has been discovered. But, like most things that scare us, could there be a thrilling aspect to this challenge?
\nDecades ago, sailors could go \u2018dark\u2019 and justifiably claim the atmospheric conditions weren\u2019t great and the SSB radio wasn\u2019t working. Now, if we don\u2019t live stream every part of daily life at sea, our followers feel disappointed.
\nAs this past Vend\u00e9e Globe has demonstrated, raw, unedited, and \u2018real\u2019 daily updates are now considered the norm. It\u2019s expected \u2013 by sponsors, race organisers and content-craving supporters. And so, life at sea for any sailing professional has changed. Now we have to adapt to not one, but two higher powers: Mother Nature, and her fierce deputy: The Algorithm.
\nDepression in the face of a storm is never useful for a sailor. The shift has happened, and there is no going back. So we need to adjust our course and harness its power.
\nOne upside to wide stream internet at sea is that, when used effectively, it provides a platform for lesser-known sailors to gain recognition and \u2018win\u2019 in a broader sense. Violette Dorange is a fantastic example of this. She now has 650,000 followers on Instagram and 3.1 million likes on TikTok, having come 23rd in her first Vend\u00e9e Globe.
\nTo put Violette\u2019s online prowess into perspective, race winner Charlie Dalin has 73,000 followers on Instagram.
\nStarting the Vend\u00e9e at all is considered the pinnacle of many a solo-sailing career. But to get noticed among a fleet of 40 incredible competitors is another feat, and one she mastered with aplomb.
\nArticle continues below\u2026<\/p>\n
\t\t\t\t\t\t\tOnline sailing communities and apps: Speaking to Sailing La Vagabonde stars<\/p>\n
\t\t\t\t\t\t\tFleeting acquaintance has always been part of sailing, particularly for bluewater cruisers. A friendship struck up over a rum cocktail\u2026<\/p>\n
\t\t\t\t\t\t\t10 women doing great things in competitive sailing right now<\/p>\n
\t\t\t\t\t\t\tWith a Women\u2019s America\u2019s Cup due to start in 2024, a gender balanced sailing event at the Paris Olympic Games,\u2026<\/p>\n
That impact will be a huge bonus for Violette as her career develops. There\u2019s no doubt she will go on to achieve great things in sailing, and her social media mastery will be part of that story.
\nAnother positive thing about social media and an increased online presence for sailing is how it casts the net wider. Participation in major sailing events around the world is decreasing and it\u2019s a major problem. We need to attract more people back to \u2013 or new people into \u2013 the sport.
\nUS ocean racer Cole Brauer has nearly half a million followers on Instagram, including many of those harder-to-reach audiences: women, younger people. Most of her followers were non-sailors \u2013 she told Yachting World that many followers didn\u2019t even know she was competing in a solo race.
\nMaybe you think that\u2019s silly. I think it\u2019s brilliant. Sailing at the top of \u2018normal\u2019 people\u2019s newsfeeds normalises the sport and will inevitably tempt more people onto the water.
\nBut while I do have some enthusiasm for social media, I believe we need to heed caution. There is a shadowier side to the cyber influence at sea.
\nProfessional racers are now expected to document ever moment of their race. Photo: Pip Hare Ocean Racing \/ Medallia
\nPractically, it\u2019s really hard work. Memories of endless \u2018liquid detected in charging port\u2019 alerts, trying to work a smartphone screen with wet fingers, and having to look at myself speaking into a camera after four days at sea with minimal sleep still haunt me.
\nBut now that demand for social media output has spiked, will it negatively impact sailing performances? Is it actually possible to sail with the exceptional superiority and focus of racers like Charlie Dalin or Yoann Richomme, and put out the quantity of social media required?
\nPeople have always followed sailing for the drama and the adventure. It\u2019s what made Ellen MacArthur, Pete Goss and Peter Blake such household names \u2013 they had an epic story to tell. But, they told their stories with hindsight. Now we are demanding a real-time connection to the action and to the personal journey of the sailors. Will that push them to make seamanlike choices?
\nI could easily imagine a scenario where a skipper might feel pressured to wake up the off-watch in an ocean race for a sail change, not because they need to, but because it could make for better drama. We\u2019re already pushing humans to the edge with the increasing speed of ocean racing boats \u2013 is a social media output quota a step too far? Guidelines are going to be needed, and soon.
\nUltimately sailors are optimists and adaptable. But before we resign our fate to algorithms, we need to work out how to integrate this \u2013 possibly wonderful \u2013\u00a0tool into our sport in a healthy way.<\/p>\n
If you enjoyed this\u2026.<\/p>\n
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The post \u2018Has \u2018social media influencer\u2019 sailing gone too far?\u2019 \u2013 Nikki Henderson appeared first on Yachting World.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
It\u2019s not just enough to set out on an adventurous voyage \u2013 you need to capture it as well. But has \u2018social media\u2019 sailing gone too far?Our defences have run out: social media has well and truly infiltrated our precious, … <\/p>\n