While most people view solo offshore racing as a solitary endeavour, the truth is that it takes a team to successfully complete the Vendée Globe, and that support team is as important as the skipper. This is most definitely the case at White Ocean Racing. When Steve sets off at the start of a race, he will need to know that his boat has been meticulously prepared, that his PR team are ready to tell his story and gain maximum exposure for his sponsors, and that his mental and emotional needs will be met during the toughest moments of the race. The White Ocean Racing team stands ready to take on the challenge.
Andrew Roberts – Project Management and Finance. During 30 years in the marine industry, Andrew has been intimately involved in some of the most exciting and pioneering sailing and ocean yacht racing projects.
He prepared seven successive race yachts for Chay Blyth between 1975 and 1984, including British Steel, Great Britain 2, 3 and 4, and Brittany Ferries, and monohull and multihull race yachts for legends Rob James, Mike Birch, Robin Knox-Johnston amd Loïck Peyron amongst others.
In 1989, he joined forces with Chay Blyth to form Challenge Business and create a “wrong way” round the world race for amateurs. Andrew and his team were involved in every element of the design, construction, preparation and maintenance, as well as the event management and shore support for four successive round the world races. He also modified yachts and supported solo round the world records by Mike Golding in 1993/94, Samantha Brewster in 1995/96 and Dee Caffari in 2005/6, before leaving Challenge Business to pursue new projects.
More recently, Andrew was Campaign Director for Dee Caffari's hugely successful Aviva sponsored Vendée Globe campaign, which saw Aviva reach 49% of all UK adults, on average 8.3 times.
Merf Owen - Technical Director. Merf Owen has not only successfully managed top Open 60 campaigns, but he has also circumnavigated the world as skipper of the Global Challenge entry, Global Teamwork. Now, as co-founder of the acclaimed design firm Owen Clarke Design LLC, Merf is at the top of his game with a number of his Open 60 designs winning international yachts races. Merf will bring his wealth of practical expertise as a well as a technical eye that will allow Steve to get the most performance out of his boat.
Kim White - Onshore Operations. Kim is Steve's wife and co-founder of White Ocean Racing, mother of their four children and a keen sailor. Onshore Operations includes business administration and the provision of logistical and marketing support. Kim had a good commercial background from early on in life working in the family business. Because the Vendée Globe is as much a mental exercise as it is a physical one, Kim’s unconditional support will allow Steve to concentrate fully on the task of racing around the world.