Sailing: James Blake receives warm welcome from mum Lady Pippa as Volvo Ocean Race reaches Auckland

James Blake arrived in Auckland aboard Turn the Tide on Plastic on Wednesday morning. Photo: Jesus Renedo/Volvo Ocean Race

About 28 years ago, Pippa, Lady Blake was on the dock in Auckland to welcome husband Sir Peter when he returned home during the Whitbread Ocean Race.

It was a familiar setting this morning, therefore, when she stood at the dock in Wynyard to welcome home her son James.

The boat he was on, Turn the Tide on Plastic, crossed the line fifth place at 1:45am today.

James was taking part in the 2017-18 edition of the race around the world, now called the Volvo Ocean Race, as an on-board reporter. The role combined his love of the sea and adventure with his passion for film-making.

"I was really proud to see James come in, but in doing his passion which is filming and naturaly history filming and adventure filming," Pippa told the Herald. "But he loves the sea and he's a great adventurer himself so I'm just really proud."

SO YOU THINK YOU CAN FLY? 🤔🚁@TurnTidePlastic OBR James Blake earning his stripes with some serious drone skills onboard whilst floating in the Doldrums 👌 #leg6 pic.twitter.com/kdCc6jQOYY

— The Ocean Race (@theoceanrace) February 21, 2018

While James wasn't sailing in the race, Pippa said his arrival into Auckland brought back some memories from when Sir Peter was racing.

"I'm a bit rusty at standing on wharves and waiting around for boats, which I've done countless, countless times," she admitted.

"It's just really exciting to be out there and see all the boats coming in and zooming up the harbour at night."

Sir Peter Blake, Pippa Lady Blake and their children Sarah-Jane and James aboard Enza in 1994. Photo: Getty Images

As an on-board reporter, James has spent his time in the voyage so far across three teams, most recently sailing aboard Turn the Tide on Plastic from Hong Kong to Auckland.

James told the Herald earlier in the campaign that the race around the world offered an opportunity as a film-maker that was hard to pass up.

His moving between boats sees him get a glimpse of various team environments, while the race takes the fleet through some beautiful and testing waters.

He was making the most of the opportunity, with a variety of his work being shared on social media, and Pippa said having his moving between boats meant she couldn't pick a favourite in the campaign this year.

"Every boat that he's on, that's the boat that I want to see do really well."