克利伯船员故事第二季（五）用帆船作职业生涯“间隔年”的工程师吕翔

2022-12-09 10:38 陈杰 JieCHENClipper201516

Niklas LV, An Engineer Taking Sailing as Gap Year
Part Five, Season Two, Stories of Ordinary People Sailing Around the World
前言：笔者作为克利伯环球帆船赛2015-16青岛号大使船员参加了第三赛段南大洋比赛，从南非开普敦-西澳大利亚奥尔巴尼，后于2016-17年为《环球少儿航海》杂志撰写专栏文章《普通人的环球航海》，介绍克利伯参赛船员的故事。今年青岛号自2005年首次参赛以来第一次收获了赛季总冠军，每一位克利伯中国船员都为之自豪，也让更多人好奇这个环球航海比赛中他们的故事。于是，有了这个《普通人的环球航海第二季》，这一系列，会用中英文两种语言为你介绍克利伯环球帆船赛中国船员们的故事，茫茫大海有怎样的魅力？他们和你有什么不同？你是不是也可以是他们中的一员去挑战自我、拥抱大海？欢迎你，了解他们，了解帆船运动，爱上大海。
Prelude: After joining in Leg 3 from Cape Town, South Africa to Albany, Australia, Clipper Round the World 2015-16, the writer wrote series of column articles for a Chinese magazine, Global Children Sailing to introduce stories about Clipper sailors. This year, with the awarding of Clipper 2019-20 Race Winner by Qingdao team, all the Chinese Clipper crew are proud that more people are getting increasingly curious about the sport and the crew. Thus, Season Two of Stories of Ordinary People Sailing Around the World is launching with both Chinese and English to help more people understand the stories behind. Why the ocean is so attractive? What is the difference between you and them? Will you be one of them to challenge yourself and embrace the ocean as well? You are welcome to get to know them, to know sailing and to love the ocean.
如同欧美很流行的高中生毕业以后通常选择“间隔年”一样，吕翔也在从德国学成回国工作一段时间后暂时离开职场，开始充分享受帆船，在以克利伯环球帆船赛2019-20青岛号大使船员身份完成比赛后，重返职场，这样用帆船作为职业生涯“间隔年”的海归机械认证工程师的故事，你会好奇吗？
Similar to the popular Gap Year taken by high school graduates in the West, Niklas LV too worked for a while after getting back from Germany with a Master degree, left the job to enjoy sailing, joined in Clipper Round the World Yacht Race 2019-20 as Qingdao Ambassador Crew, and then back to work. This is the story of an engineer taking a ‘Career Gap Year’, are you interested?

意外开始接触帆船的机械工程师 Started Sailing by Chance
2016年2月，在德国顺利修完机械设计硕士课程的吕翔回到家乡青岛，开始工作，在一家工厂担任机械设计工程师。初入职场的兴奋似乎没有持续多久，他开始看到自己几十年后依然埋头设计的样子，隐隐中有些忐忑。3月底，青岛的CCOR城市帆船赛即将举行，复旦校友会准备有一只队伍参赛，但缺少一个前甲板人员，在青岛又颇爱运动，母亲是复旦校友的吕翔于是被劝上了船。
Niklas went back to his hometown, Qingdao in February 2016 after finishing his Master of Mechanical Design in Germany. He first started work as an engineer in a factory. The excitement of beginning the career didn’t last long - with worry already setting in as he started to realize what work would be like after several decades of designing mechanics. At the end of March, CCOR sailing regatta is going in Qingdao. Fudan University Alumni Association had a participating team but lacking a bowman. Niklas’ mum is a Fudan graduate, he was asked to join in the team as a second generation of Fudan Alumni.
就这样，在青岛出生长大，无数次在海边看见过船帆点点的吕翔上了“贼船”，这一上，就真的下不来了。吕翔很难解释那种缘分，只觉得这种在阳光大海中的运动，一队人配合着把那白帆和白船操控着去尝试与风、浪和阳光的合作与享受。这运动太帅了，相见恨晚。
In this way, Niklas started onboard after born and growing up in Qingdao, seeing so many times of the sails in the ocean there. When he got onboard with sailing, he could not get off with sailing any more. Niklas could not explain the link with sailing, but feel it is such a cool sport enjoying the sunshine and ocean together with a team of people to try the cooperation with wind, wave and sunshine and using the sails and the boat to move and sail. He regretted that he only knew sailing at such late time.

辞职拥抱帆船 Resign To Embrace Sailing
CCOR之后，吕翔开始和家里人讨论和倾听自己内心的声音。于是9月底，工程师吕翔辞职和朋友一起成立了一家帆船俱乐部，四五个人，一艘船，慢慢开始帮助更多人培养对帆船的兴趣和爱好。吕翔自己也不断学习精进自己的帆船技能，并逐步获得ASA210以下各个级别的教练资质和培训证书。到了18年，俱乐部发展到11人，2艘龙骨帆船和一艘三体船，同时拥有帆船和高尔夫两条业务线。也是这一年，因为青岛上合会议召开，青岛奥帆中心作为会议场地的一部分，俱乐部业务暂停。吕翔继续开始他的思考。
After CCOR race, Niklas started to discuss with families and listen to his own heart. Then at the end of September, engineer Niklas resigned and set up a sailing club together with friends. With four to five people, one boat, they began to help more people to build up their interest and love with sailing. Niklas kept learning and developing his sailing skills and got all the coach and training certificates for ASA210 level and below. By the year of 2018, the club has developed to 11 people, 2 keelboats and one trimaran, as well as two business lines of both golf and sailing. Also in this year, as the opening of Shanghai Cooperation Organization meeting in Qingdao, their base in Qingdao Olympic Sailing Center would be used as a part of the meeting venue and had to suspend their business. Niklas began to think again.
结缘克利伯 Meeting Clipper
随着在俱乐部与帆船的日益相伴，也随着更多参赛或者带队参赛国内各种近岸帆船比赛的经历，吕翔越发希望自己能够有机会参加离岸赛事体会跨洋帆船比赛，于是他很认真地备战克利伯环球帆船赛青岛号大使船员的选拨。理工科工程师的特点发挥出来，从分析选拨要求到分项准备，吕翔让自己读了很多英文的帆船书籍，练了很多帆船技巧，甚至拉着自己俱乐部的一个美国同事，帮自己演练英文面试阶段可能需要的presentation（口头演讲）。没有意外的，他顺利入选成为克利伯19-20届比赛青岛号大使船员。
Spending more time with sailing in the club, and with more experience to join in the sailing regattas in and out of China with his teams, Niklas began to wish more and more to join in some off shore races crossing the ocean. So, he took very serious to prepare for the selection of Clipper Round the World Yacht Race Qingdao Ambassador Crew. His expertise as an engineer was called upon. Understanding each selection criteria and breaking down each single selection item, Niklas made himself read quit a lot of English sailing books and practice quite a deal of sailing skills. He even asked one of his American colleagues to practice the English presentation he thought would be used in his interview. Without any doubt, he was selected as one of the Ambassador Crew for Qingdao team, Clipper Round the World 19-20.
这时候，吕翔才发现原来这不是自己第一次接触克利伯。早在2008年，还是高中生的吕翔被父母带着一起参观过克利伯赛队在奥帆中心的停靠。那个时候，虽然完全不了解帆船，不知道这些帅帅的船队是什么，依然很兴奋地让父母给自己拍照。如今，翻看着当年的照片，吕翔相信和克利伯的缘分多年前就已经被深深地播下了种子。
At that time, Niklas found this was not his first time to meet Clipper. Back to 2008, Niklas was a high school student, and he was taken by his parents to watch the clipper fleet in Qingdao Olympic sailing center. He did not know anything about sailing and had no idea what was those cool boats there, he just got excited and asked parents to take photos for him. Now, looking at those photos, Niklas believed that there was something growing in his heart about Clipper.
不断被刷新和颠覆的帆船认知 Understanding for Sailing Always A Challenge
也是这个由克利伯英国总部亲自到青岛来主持的选拨过程，让吕翔觉得和自己以前理解的帆船不同。精心准备的各种帆船技能、甚至英文演说，几乎都没派上用场，克利伯更在乎的似乎是个人的沟通、交流能力，对帆船的好奇和兴趣。你会不会，之前有没有经验，都不重要，你不会我们教你，从头教就好，只要你愿意学。吕翔之前会以为这样的环球帆船比赛一定是要筛选出有很好帆船基础的人。
It was from this selection process run by Clipper UK staff in Qingdao that Niklas realized the difference of his understanding for sailing. He made careful preparation in advance including sailing skills, English presentation but was almost no use in the selection. What Clipper want is one’s communication skills and the curiosity and passion about sailing. It does not matter whether you are good at sailing or even with or without any experience. Clipper can teach you if you know nothing about sailing as long as you want to learn. He thought only the experienced sailors would be chosen for such round the world yacht race before he joined in the selection.
接下来在英国总部接受克利伯帆船培训的那一个多月，吕翔再一次被不断刷新着自己对帆船的理解。来自国外的大部分克利伯船员均为自费船员，他们并不是职业或者退役帆船运动员，就如同你的邻居一样普通，更多的还是人到中年甚至60、70的老人，但这些老头老太太一样在船上生龙活虎，迎着风浪挑战体能，并用自己这些年的人生经验、阅历和生活技能为船上的大家贡献着。
Afterwards, all the ambassador crew went to UK to have sailing training at the Clipper headquarter. Niklas felt his understanding about sailing was kept challenging again and again. All the expat crew paid the race fee by themselves, and they were not professional or retired sailing athletes. They are just as common as your neighbors, and quite a few of them were middle aged people or even over 60s and 70s wanting to challenge themselves physically, embracing the wind and waves and supporting the team with their rich life experiences.
克利伯的培训地在Gosport，离普利茅斯很近的一个港口小城，去之前大部分人都不知道这个地名，可到了那里一看，吕翔被港口规模、泊船的密度和无数根高高耸立的桅杆深深地震撼了。出入于船上、港口码头上人的密度、年龄跨度和交谈语言种类，都远远超过以前吕翔在青岛奥帆中心所见。吕翔对帆船这种运动的理解不断被划上问号：还可以这样？原来是这样？
The training venue was in Gospot, a small harbor near Portsmouth. Many people even did not hear about the place before they arrived. Soon after arrival, Niklas was shocked by the scale of harbor, boats ported and the numerous high masts there. The number, range of age and types of languages talking by people walking around the boats and harbor were far more than what he could see in Qingdao Olympic Sailing Center. He kept asking himself about sailing, the sport: could it be like this? Is this the way?
克利伯比赛难忘瞬间 Unforgettable Clipper Race Moments
吕翔被安排参加第四赛段，从澳大利亚东部到澳大利亚西部，2019年12月18号出发，其间会在船上过圣诞过新年。好巧不巧的，吕翔在船上感冒了，很严重的感冒，并且导致极度晕船。以前在船上一直没有太多不适的小伙子这下子感受到了身体的绝望，站都站不住，只能躺下来，原本自己要承担的甲板上值班上不去了，只能请组员们代劳，以为可以在甲板下的妈妈班帮忙刷个碗之类的，也什么都承担不了。时不时队员们会安排个人过来看看他，给他递杯热水送颗药。那时候，吕翔突然感到大家平时说的在船上，首先就是照顾好自己，别给别人添麻烦是多么的重要。照顾好自己，就是对船队最基本的贡献。照顾好自己，才可以安全地承担自己在船上的本职工作，才不会麻烦队友们在自己的工作休息之余来关照你。
Niklas was arranged to join in Leg 4, from the east of Australia to the west. He was departing on the 18th of December 2019 and would spend the Christmas and New Year on the boat. Unluckily, he caught cold, serious one and caused heavy seasick. The previous never had much uncomfortable Niklas now felt a total disappointment of the body. He could not stand straight and had to lay down. The scheduled watch on deck was unable to make. He asked cover by the teammates in the same watch. He thought he could help the Mother Watch to wash the dishes under the deck, but he could not manage. There would be one team member came to see him and pass some hot water and one pill from time to time. That was the time that Niklas suddenly realized what they talked in the past that the first thing onboard was to look after yourself well and how important is it to do not trouble others. When you look after yourself well, you are contributing to the team at the most basic level. When you look after yourself well, you can carry out your jobs safely on the boat and do not need to trouble others to take care of you besides their own work.
几天之后是圣诞节和新年。虽然航行在茫茫大海中，船上依然被圣诞新年的装饰物布置得颇有节日氛围。新年午夜时分，甲板上值班的队友们照旧忙碌着，舱里所有的人却全都一一跳出来到甲板上彼此拥抱、问候新年，唱起新年的Auld Long Syne，那种仪式感，让吕翔觉得很温暖很温馨。那一晚，所有人在甲板上一躺，闲闲地聊天，事无巨细，什么都聊。那一晚，人和人之间的距离很近很近，没有任何隔阂。
It was Christmas and New Year after several days. Even though they were sailing in the middle of the ocean, they still put on seasonal decorations on the boat and looked quite cheerful. In the midnight of New Year Eve, the crew on watch were still working on the deck, while everyone under the deck were jumping out one by one to the deck, hugging with each other and greeting Happy New Year. They sang the new year song, Auld Long Syne together. That moment with the new year celebration made Niklas feeling so warm and sweet. On that night, everyone laid on the deck casually and chatting everything. That was a night there was no distance between one and the other.
这一程，没有太大的风暴，但是2-3米高的浪也是常态。白天的太阳总是很晒，夜晚又特别冷，所有的衣服都需要穿上，身上会长很多痱子，人特别不舒服。长时间在海上航行，带的蔬菜也有限，长时间吃不到蔬菜以后，吕翔开始牙龈出血，口腔里长了很多小溃疡，难受极了。队里有一位牙医帮吕翔看了以后告诉他，这不算病，就是身体在适应海上的生活，建议他每天用海水漱漱口，好在一直航行在大海深处，海水也没有什么污染，吕翔试了这个方法以后有了些好转，等到比赛结束回到岸上多吃了几天蔬菜水果以后就痊愈了。
That was a leg without too big storms but still always had waves around 2-3 meters high. The sunshine was always strong while the evening was always so cold. People need to put on all the clothes they had and began to grow heatrash on the body, very uncomfortable. There was limited vegetable on the boat with long time sailing. When there was no fresh vegetable to eat for a long time, Niklas began to have bleeding gums and cankerous sores in the mouth. There was a dentist in the team who checked his teeth. He told Niklas that he was not sick but his body was trying to adapt to the life on board. He suggested to gargle with the sea water everyday. As they were sailing across the ocean, the sea water was quite clean and OK to gargle. Niklas tried and got a bit better. When he finished the race and got back to land to eat more vegetables and fruits for several days, he was fully recovered.
虽然诸多磨难，吕翔在德国念书的时候练就的德国胃帮助他成为在船队里几乎是唯一一个从来没有什么忌口的人，哪个队友用哪个国家的方法做饭都吃，还吃得很香，让人颇为羡慕。船队快要到达终点的时候，大副很认真地告诉他：好希望你可以和我们一起环球呀，船上有你太好了，每个人都会多吃一点饭，每个人都可以吃什么都那么香。船上的精神状态会很好。
Even though there was quite a lot difficulties, with the German stomach built up in his study time there, Niklas still became probably the only one in the team to be able to eat almost every type of food on the boat made by members from different countries. He could eat happily and made others feeling jealous as they were unable to eat. When they were approaching the finishing line, the AQP told him seriously, ‘How I wish you could go circumnavigation with us. It is so nice to have you on the team. Everyone could eat a bit more and everyone could eat so happily. The team spirit could be better with you.’
在帆船运动中看到的人和精神 The People and Spirit Met from Sailing
从和帆船结缘以后，吕翔总是被在这个运动所看到的人和精神所打动。第一位把他拉上“贼船”的复旦校友队队长，是一位年轻的女生，当时比赛负责中舱。无论在岸上的准备和船上的操作，都非常认真卖力，但是比赛中，每当风浪稳定下来，不需要调整绳索不需要操作的时候，她就会趴在船舷边吐，说晕船起初操作的时候顾不上，吐完接着回到位置上工作，平静之极。第一次上船的吕翔看得目瞪口呆震撼不已。原来队长也晕船呀，原来晕船还可以这样不耽误工作呀。
After getting to know sailing, Niklas was always moved by the people and spirit he met through this sport. The first one was the team leader of Fudan Alumni team and who got him onboard for the first time. She was a young lady and worked very hard in land preparation and on boat operation. But during the race, when the wind is a bit stable there is no need to adjust the sheet and do other jobs, she would lay besides the boat and poke. She said she was seasick and could manage to do that while working. After the poking, she would get back to her position to keep working calmly. The first-time onboard NIklas was astonished with this and thinking, wow, the leader was also having seasick and while, having seasick could still keep working in this way.
那一次的CCOR比赛，吕翔认识了Frankie郑毅，那时候他们各自在不同的队伍，彼此是对手。刚认识Frankie的时候，他英文不好，也颇让他在克利伯17-18的赛段比赛中吃足了语言不通苦头，但是比赛完回到青岛的Frankie拼命学习，狂补英文，同时还去学摄影、学视频编辑，学和帆船相关的很多知识。当再度在克利伯19-20培训船上同船练习的时候，Frankie流利的英文和扎实的帆船技能和与队友们熟练的沟通能力，让吕翔颇为佩服，也好奇帆船究竟有怎样的魅力让他如此有动力拼命学习。
During that CCOR race, Niklas met Frankie Zheng, the youngest circumnavigator in Qingdao team 19-20 and a previous sailing athlete. They were on different teams and competed with each other. Frankie had very poor English when he first knew him and suffered quite a lot with almost no communication skills in his Clipper 17-18. But when he got back to Qingdao after the race, he made all his efforts to study English, photography, video clipping and all sorts of knowledge related with sailing. When they met again in Clipper 19-20 training, Frankie could speak very fluent and beautiful English. His profound skills in sailing and good communication skills with all the training members really impressed Niklas. He was curious how could sailing have such a magic to drive one person to learn with such self-motivation.
帆船作为爱好或者事业 Sailing as Hobby or Career
也许是船上船下的种种经历和感受，和以前在青岛接触帆船运营帆船俱乐部有很多不同，而与克利伯队友们种种人生经历的交流也让吕翔有更多思考。疫情开始不久以后的吕翔准备重返职场，继续自己的机械工程师生涯。他加入了SGS公司从事机械认证工作，帮助机械行业类的公司获得ISO认证。这一次，没有刚回国开始工作时候的忐忑，而是笃定而愉快地在工程师的职业路上积累和发展自己。
Probably as there were huge difference about the experience and reflection on and off the boat between what he had in Qingdao running the sailing club and what he talked with the Clipper crew about their life experience, Niklas thought a lot by himself. He planned to get back to work and continue his career as an engineer after the pandemic. He joined in the SGS to work for the industrial certification and help the companies in mechanic industries to achieve ISO certification. This time, he did not had any worries like before when he was starting his job after returning to China, but happily and surely develop himself on the career path as an engineer.
工作的时候，吕翔是一位认真严谨的工程师，周末和节假日的时候，吕翔回归那个热爱帆船的“少年”，兴致勃勃练习帆船继续参加比赛，也积极去尝试皮划艇、棒球各种各样的运动，乐此不疲。“拼命工作拼命玩”，这句职场上被很多人奉为宝典的话就这么被吕翔实实在在地演绎着。同事们都很羡慕吕翔的状态，有工作有帆船，积极的运动和休息总是让他在工作中保持良好的状态。
While working, Niklas is a careful and serious engineer; but come weekend and holidays, Niklas is back to the young man who loves sailing. He continued to join in the sailing training and races, and try kayaking, baseball very happily. Work hard and play hard, such inspiring words for career people was just implemented naturally by him in real life. His colleagues admired his way of living, good job, work hard and having sailing as hobby. The active sports and rest always enables him to stay a very good condition at work.
虽然也有人会问他，去玩了几年帆船回到工作要从头开始，如果没有这么“拐个弯”的话，无论职称、职场发展都不会有停滞，这样不是很亏吗？吕翔的回答很简单很坚定，找到自己要做什么比已经做到哪里更重要。因为找到自己的使命以后，接下来的路就可以走的更远更扎实，而且会更享受。而在帆船上的种种经历，团队合作、与人相处、风浪来的时候如何应对、遇到困难怎样自救，点点滴滴，都是可以转化在职场和生活中，让人受益的。
Even though there would be people who asks quite often if it was a pity that to start from scratch careerwise after enjoying sailing for several years, Niklas would answer simply and firmly, ‘It is more important to find what you wish to do than what you have already done. Because when you are able to find your mission, you can walk further, longer and even more enjoyable. While everything in sailing, no matter teamwork, dealing with people, or how to handle when there was waves and storms and how to help yourself in crisis, was so valuable and transferrable in career and life.’
可能，这是为什么很多欧美学生会非常热衷于高中毕业拿到大学录取通知书以后选择和尝试自己的“间隔年”的原因。去体会、寻找自己的内心长久的热情会在哪里，一两年以后再回归大学开始高等教育，而这时候，学什么、做什么、为什么去努力，都会比间隔年以前更清晰。
This could possibly be the reason why many western high school graduates love to take a Gap Year after getting their university offers. Having that one year to experience and to find where their passion lies could in turn allow them to begin their tertiary studies with a clear purpose.
职场上的间隔年，也许仅仅是无意，而吕翔，因为带着这些寻找，无论对帆船对职业都有不同的感悟和收获。未来，职业机械认证工程师和业余帆船爱好者的结合，还会有更多交融和跨界结合的精彩篇章，期待我们未来再继续来讲更多故事。
A Gap Year in the career taken by Niklas might seem like a chance encounter but in actual fact, the time was spent in self-reflection about finding his purpose in life during sailing. This in reality, has helped Niklas to develop his professional career and sailing in a more synergetic way. We hope to hear more stories about him in the future.

*关于克利伯环球帆船赛：克利伯环球帆船赛（Clipper Round The World Yacht Race，https://www.clipperroundtheworld.com）是全球最有影响力的环球航海赛事之一，首届赛事于1996年举办，每两年举办一次，比赛线路途经六大洲，全程共40000多海里，完成整个赛程需要近一年时间，每届参赛人数近700余名。赛事欢迎航海爱好者及无航海经验的人士报名参加，通过四周严格的赛前培训后，在专业船长和大副的带领下完成环球比赛。截止目前，全球已有6000余人、中国已有近130人通过参加克利伯环球帆船赛，完成了他们环球航海的人生梦想。
* About Clipper Round The World Yacht Race (https://www.clipperroundtheworld.com): The Clipper Race is one of the biggest challenges of the natural world and an endurance test like no other. It was started in 1996 as a biannual event. It's a 40,000 nautical mile race around the world acrossing six continents in nearly one year. There are around 700 people to join in each edition. The race is open to sailing lovers and non-experienced ones. Every candidate will have to pass a four-week strict training and then join in each team with a fully qualified skipper and first mate to safely guide the crew. By now, nearly 6000 people all over the world and around 130 Chinese people have enjoyed the Clipper race and their dreams of crossing the ocean and circumnavigation.

注：本文图片、视频来自于克利伯官网及吕翔，英文编辑Vii C，特此感谢。文章如需转载或引用，请注明出处，欢迎联系作者获得授权。
* Note: The photos and videos in this article are coming from Clipper Website & Mr. Niklas LV, Vii C helps with editing the English version. Thanks. If you would like to use or quote the article, please make reference, or contact the author for authorization.