Leadership and Karaoke on the high seas

We currently have Dee Caffari, World class record breaking solo yachtswoman, staying with us at the Carnegie Alpenrose. After very recently returning from her third around the world challenge where she was taking part in the Vendee Globe race, she is enjoying a well deserved break as well as easing herself back into some land-based exercise.


At sea Dee was very much confined to the boundaries of her 60ft yacht. Although controlling a boat of this class is extremely strenuous work, it is mainly her arms that bore the brunt of this work. Dee describes her physical appearance on return to land as similar to that of the well loved seadog Popeye! However there was no spinach in sight, just days and days of freeze dried rations! My Peak Potential’s John Doyle has been taking her on early morning runs to get those land legs back up to full speed whilst Herbie, our chef, has been making sure she gets her greens! With a combination of gentle runs in the foothills, Nordic skiing, Ski-touring and snow-showing each day Dee will soon be back up to peak fitness and the next challenge in front of her, the Around Britain and Ireland Record. Is there no stopping this woman?




Dee’s stay with us has also coincided with a group of students who are with us as part of a prize they received from their student festival. On the first evening of their stay they listened to our very own Dave Bunting present his Everest West Ridge expedition story and on evening two Dee kindly offered an impromptu account of her own experiences of her record-breaking world challenges.



Having heard Dave’s inspirational story a few times now, I was really looking forward to finding out all about another inspiring adventure. With questions reeling around my head of how you cope with the loneliness, what happens if your injure yourself and the nearest person to you is actually on the international space station above you (This is true of one point on the route, and just happened to coincide with Dee’s birthday this year!), I made myself comfy in the lecture room.
The statistics are pretty impressive and I think Dee herself is just coming to terms with them. Apparently only four people have ever circumnavigated the world in both directions, and only one of these four is a woman. That woman is Dee! She seemingly surprises herself with this statistic and follows it up with a congratulatory....”Get in!”

Dee is an extremely personable woman and so it is even more fascinating that she has chosen to sail around the world twice, solo. I have always imagined it to be the theatre of slightly introverted and steely characters; this is the antithesis of Dee’s nature. Dee’s sunny personality captivates her audience. She describes the horror of hearing the fate of other sailors in the fleet. How news of dismastings and capsizes unnerve her in the southern oceans. How the lack of sleep, the waves as high as a three storey house and the drifting Icebergs (a very real threat to a boat made from Carbon fibre) are all elements of the journey she battles with alone each day.

Dee’s 60 ft yacht Aviva, became her ally and confidant on her 3 month journey.
With the nearest person hundreds of miles away, you need some company. They were in this race together so many conversations would be had between the two of them, well...in one direction, but none the less; Aviva was always consulted on the next move!

Music appeared to be another savoir from the loneliness of this solo race. With nothing but the sound of three storey waves crashing into your hull, it provided a great distraction for the mind. Dee states that her Karaoke skills were much improved on her return!



The most interesting part of this story to us as a leadership training facility is the way Dee coped with leading herself and her 60ft Yacht across hundreds of thousands of kilometres of forbidding seas. She had an amazing team supporting her from dry land, but if something breaks or goes wrong, the decision making is ultimately up to her. How to manage herself, her time, her eating, her sleeping is all down to Dee. She is her own mechanic, own chef, own doctor, own manager, own counsellor and own companion.

As an ex student of Leeds Metropolitan University she worked closely with them on the physiological and psychological aspects of her trip. By analysing diaries she kept on her last trip against the prevailing winds, she was able to recognise patterns of behaviour fairly quickly and react accordingly. She uses one example, which although a seemingly obvious reaction in children, we rarely recognise in ourselves as adults. She noted that when her emotions and stress were running high and her ability to cope with them was low, it was because she either needed a sleep or something to eat. Things are always so much easier with a little shut eye and a full tummy. Try it next time!

Thank you very much Dee for your presentation and a very big congratulations on your record –breaking double and your 6th place in the Vendee!
Dee is available for motivational and after dinner speaking. Please contact us to find out more.