Dryad’s Director of Intelligence, Ian Millen, and Nikki Carpenter, Head of Marketing & Communications joined the 9,000 other revelers in Galway to mark the end of the 2011/12 Volvo Ocean Race. The City, second time host to the finale of this prestigious event, had all the excitement of a major festival with added Irish charm.

But as the teams competed in their final in-port races and the organisers celebrated the successful end to the Race, Race Director Jack Lloyd asserted he already has his thoughts firmly set on the next Race of 2014/2015 and in particular the security challenges which prompted the dramatic redrawing of this year’s Race.

Demonstrated by the changes in the piracy threat landscape between the Race of 2008/2009 and those of 2011/2012, Jack and his team are mindful they must not be complacent when assessing the risks and security challenges of future races nor rely solely on the types of threats and events of the past to plan their mitigation strategies.

Jack’s comments come as a timely reminder to all professional mariners facing threats from piracy in the Indian Ocean during the current so called ‘off season’; the period of the Southwest Monsoon which has the tendency to lull mariners in to a false sense of security by the apparent lack of piracy incidents.

Jack’s advice following his experience in dealing with the challenges of piracy in a complex, enduring environment is one of extreme caution, preparation and receipt of daily assessment of the threats. This successful recipe for the yachts of the 2011/2012 Race was the result of the dedication and foresight demonstrated by the Race organisers.