© Amory Ross/PUMA Ocean Racing/Volvo Ocean Race

The media crewmembers on each Volvo Ocean Race boat must balance getting the footage race organizers and fans crave, without hampering the crews ability to race the boat. They also have to cook and clean in their spare time.

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For the January/February 2012 issue of Sailing World, we took a closer look at the daily lives of the media crewmembers circling the globe with the Volvo Ocean Race. Here's the full transcript of our conversation with PUMA Ocean Racing's Amory Ross, Telefonica's Diego Fructoso, and Camper/Emirates Team New Zealand's Hamish Hooper, which took place midway through Leg 1:

Can you describe a day-in-the-life of a media crewmember while under way?
Amory Ross: The days are surprisingly busy for someone who lives on a sailboat but isn't allowed to sail. My day starts at about 2:45 AM (all times UTC) when I wake up and go through the day's food bag. From the food bag I pull three freeze-dried meals (breakfast, lunch, and dinner) snacks, candy, protein bars, and other various assorted items like toilet paper, baby wipes, etc., and move them to the day bag‚ at the base of the mast, or the head. What was left from the previous day is moved to an extras bag for rationing purposes.

I then cook breakfast so it's ready around 3:40, just in time for the 4:00 watch change; coffees as needed.

Next I settle in by the computer and write my blog‚ MCMs are required to write 200 words a day‚ which is due by 6:00. When that's finished, I start editing photos and videos from the previous day.

When this is done, it's usually close to the 6:00 watch change, so I'll stay up to serve breakfast and make coffees. Then it's time to go back to bed, or, depending on where we are in the world and what it's doing outside, shoot the sunrise.

Whichever it is, I'm back in front of the computer around 9:30 to finish editing the day's material (I will have added content from the morning) and send it off the boat. MCMs are required to send two-minutes of video and five photos to Volvo Ocean Race HQ by 12:00. It has to be done before 10:30, because that's when I return to clean the pot for lunch. I start cooking again at 11:00 so it's ready in time for the 12:00 watch change.

When lunch is over I'll finally have a chance to breathe, and that's usually when I'll start the filming. I'll work until 5:00 and then head down to start the editing process again. By 6:30 I'm cleaning the pan, and I start cooking at 7:00 for the 8:00 watch change.

After eating some dinner myself, I head to bed, usually around 9:00. Depending on the conditions I'll be up a few more times between then and 2:45 to make some coffees and bail.

I'll be bailing all day as well, whenever I have time or whenever it's needed. These boats are extremely waterproof, but in the wet conditions there is just no way to keep water out; it is a constant procedure and one that is never over.

Diego Fructuoso: Make the videos, write, take pictures, take audios, clean the boat, make the food (cook), help the crew, make the water to drink, put the water out of the boat (we have a lot inside)...A lot of work in very difficult conditions.

Hamish Hooper: My alarm goes off at 5 a.m. each morning, but this isn't necessarily when I get up, as often I don't hear it. Luckily, I sleep right by the Nav station, so there's generally a navigator there who will wake me up and give me grief about how many times I snooze my alarm for.

I am pretty much straight into the galley to make sure that breakfast is prepared and ready for the watch change over at 6 a.m. The guys going on watch will have breakfast, and the guys coming off as well, then two hours later another couple of watches will have theirs.

Then I am straight back into the media station to finish writing my daily written report, which is due to be delivered at 6 a.m.

Generally, there is still a couple of hours darkness before sunrise, so I will get back into the galley to give it a full clean, warm wash the dishes, clean out last night's dinner, restock snacks, etc. Depending on the conditions, this can take a bit of time. Then I will do some bailing, and sponging, which on these boats is pretty much an endless task, best done in full wet weather gear so you can just slosh around in it.
If the sun still isn't up, I will start looking through my photos from the previous afternoon and sorting through which ones will be the select five to send back to Volvo. I also will continue putting together my two minutes of video, which, along with the photos, has a 12:00 p.m. deadline.

In the small amount of time, if any spare before 10:45am, I will shoot/film anything else I need to complete my daily video/photo packages.

10:45 is back into the galley to put a freeze-dry meal on for lunch, which needs to be ready for the guys going on watch at 12:00 p.m.. In this hour before midday I will also do my uploading of video/photo packages.

I then generally have a few hours in the afternoon to film/photograph what's going on, plan stories, review photos and footage, etc.

Then 4:45pm it's back into the galley to get rid of the lunch meal and get straight into cooking dinner. Today it was out the vegetable curry lunch and on with the roast lamb and vegetables.

Then pretty much from 5:30 p.m. until about 10:30 p.m. its back to my media station, making media, doing audio interviews, a touch of editing, sorting photographs, writing, etc.

Then, in between all of these times, is facilitating live phone or video interviews for the crew, making cups of tea or coffee, bailing and sponging, and of course eating a can of tuna or muesli bar or something.
So its a pretty full on and time specific agenda.