Two Isle of Wight men are leading crews in the round-the-world Clipper Yacht Race, which set off from Portsmouth yesterday (Sunday).

Josh Stickland, 35, and Max Rivers, 29 have joined skippers from the UK, South Africa, Uruguay and the Netherlands, each in charge of a yacht in a race around the globe.

Each is in command of a 70ft yacht and many of their crew will have no prior sailing experience.

For crew members, there is an intensive and compulsory four-week training programme, before going to to tackle some of the most challenging conditions on the planet.

Isle of Wight County Press: Josh Stickland, bottom right, and the crew of Ha Long Bay, Viet Nam.Josh Stickland, bottom right, and the crew of Ha Long Bay, Viet Nam. (Image: Clipper Race.)

Isle of Wight County Press: Josh Stickland, from the Isle of Wight, who is skippering for the second time.Josh Stickland, from the Isle of Wight, who is skippering for the second time. (Image: Clipper Round the World Yacht Race.)

Light conditions and the Solent’s strong tidal flow made for a particularly tactical start.

Clipper Race director, Mark Light, said: "There was glorious weather and it was a beautiful day for spectators. Light south easterlies provided a challenging but clean start for the teams, with many different sail plans on display.

"The skill in keeping the boats moving in such light winds shone through across the fleet.

"After a short course in the Solent, the fleet headed east around the Isle of Wight and into the English Channel where they will find stronger south easterly breezes to carry them through towards the north west tip of France and down across Biscay."

Isle of Wight County Press: The clipper fleet leaving the Solent on Sunday.The clipper fleet leaving the Solent on Sunday. (Image: Clipper Race.)

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As leaders, race skippers, Josh and Max, not only need the expertise to race across an ocean safely, but must possess the right combination of mentorship, coaching and people management skills to create a team, from a group of diverse novice sailors.

Isle of Wight County Press: Our Isles and Oceans Team, skippered by Max Rivers.Our Isles and Oceans Team, skippered by Max Rivers. (Image: Clipper Race.)

Josh has previously been a skipper on the race, while Max was a supporting skipper and is stepping up for the first time. 

Josh Stickland first took to the water aged 10 and with the Prince’s Trust and UKSA’s support, he qualified as a watersports instructor, then a professional sailor.

He has logged over 150,000 nautical miles in his career.

Returning to the Clipper event, Josh said: "I have missed the racing element, and the thrill of forming a competitive race team. 

"The vast conditions keep you on your toes - in the South Atlantic we had 86 knot (98mph) wind speed creep up on us in a matter of hours.

"As the skipper, you need to be as positive as possible - you don’t have to have that in any other sailing role. Your morale makes a real difference every single day."

Isle of Wight County Press: Islander Max Rivers will skipper for the first time.Islander Max Rivers will skipper for the first time. (Image: Clipper Round the World Yacht Race.)

Max, has a wealth of sailing experience and a degree in adventure education and he has been sailing since the age of 13.

He said: "I think setting that culture early on is so important: that we race hard and race well.

"But also, that we work for each other, and we look after one another."