From Scotland to the Southern Ocean | Andrew Ritchie GGR 2026 Interview

In this Golden Globe Race 2026 skipper interview, Don McIntyre sits down with Andrew Ritchie, the Scottish sailor preparing to take on one of the toughest solo challenges in sailing. Andrew joins from the west coast of Scotland, where he and his family run an outdoor activity centre for schoolchildren, offering canoeing, climbing, mountaineering, caving and more. But beyond that life ashore, Andrew is now deep into preparations for the GGR 2026 aboard his Saga 36. In this interview, Andrew talks about: growing up in Scotland and being introduced to sailing young through his parents leaving school without many qualifications and building a successful business with his wife Margaret selling that business and creating a long-running outdoor centre for children how following the 2018 and 2022 Golden Globe Races slowly pulled him into the dream why he chose a Saga 36, one of the most talked-about boats in the fleet his preparation schedule, qualifier plans, and final push toward the start line concerns about breakages, self-steering, antifouling and heavy-weather tactics sailing with a Hydrovane and carrying a complete spare head his thoughts on isolation, family, HF radio, weather, celestial navigation and life at sea what he is most looking forward to — from crossing the equator for the first time to seeing albatrosses in the Southern Ocean Andrew’s approach is calm, practical and deeply human. He is not chasing hype. He is chasing experience, challenge, and the unknown. One of the strongest lines from this interview: “I’m trying to enjoy the journey, as opposed to the destination.” If you want to know the man behind the boat, this is a great introduction to one of the quieter but very serious contenders in the GGR 2026 fleet. #GGR2026 #GoldenGlobeRace #AndrewRitchie #SoloSailing #Saga36 #OceanSailing #Circumnavigation #DonMcIntyre #SailingAdventure