3 clocks
Dear Valentin: That is an astute question, and the answer is yes, it is very difficult to get used to the changes of hours as we go so fast from west to east through time zones. 360 degrees of longitude in the world divided by 24 hours means a time zone every 15 degrees of longitude. Since we crossed the Prime Meridien on December 2, we have crossed 7 time zones in 18 days, so about a time zone every 2.5 days approximately. Everything gets moved forward by an hour: meals, sleeping times, deadlines for communications with home, sitesALIVE, or Race Management.
I have 3 digital clocks at the chart table; one for Boston time; one for UTC/GMT/Z; and one for boat time. See the photo. Boston time on top, GMT in the middle, and Boat time at the bottom. All Race Management communications are in GMT. In Vendée Globe 2008, I was so tired that I could no longer make these calculations of local time, so I gave up and had breakfast at 2 am and dinner at 2pm. I’m doing better at it now in Vendée Globe 2016!
– Question submitted by Valentin, La Crèche, France