Spotty management and bizarre decisionmaking may have marred the history of the Volvo Ocean Race’s On-Board Reporter (née MCM) program, but there’s no disputing that the decision to bring specialist media crews on board for the world’s biggest ocean race was a landmark one. Everything from the Vendee Globe to the Sydney Hobart Race to the America’s Cup has felt the influence of the program, especially as guys like Matt Knighton, Amory Ross, Brian Carlin, and Sam Greenfield have brought their training and experiences from the VOR into other forms of racing.
After three mistake-filled editions of the program, the 2017 version looks to finally reach maturity under the umbrella of progressive new CEO Mark Turner , especially if the VOR hangs onto some of the more crucial management players in the last race – guys like the indomitable Mark Covell and TV boss Leon Sefton – and embraces the vast changes to the media landscape over the past five years. The next edition will mark great leaps forward in both the distribution of content from on board and the technology employed to capture it, and you have a chance to shape it.
We like the campaign the VOR just launched to get new blood into the OBR spot – called #ifyoudiedtomorrow, it’s pretty compelling shit. Given the dominance of SA’ers in OBR spots during the past couple of editions, you guys have a great shot at getting in, so watch the video and get your CV together, and let us know if you do put together something awesome for the VOR choosers.
