The UK round of the award-winning Extreme Sailing Series™ now in its sixth year will be staged in Cardiff the capital of Wales between the 24-27 August, 2012. In a three-year deal, Cardiff won the bid to host the UK event of this global sailing circuit that is only one of four events with ISAF (International Sailing Federation) Special Event status, positioning the city alongside the other seven premium international sporting venues hosting an Extreme Sailing Series Act in 2012. The host venue agreement with Cardiff City is backed by a Welsh Government grant for 2012-2014.

The Extreme 40 catamarans, raced by many of the world’s best sailors, will race on Cardiff Bay over four days with the event open to the public between the 25-27 August as the Extreme 40 fleet race in the circuit’s action packed ‘stadium’ format.

Executive chairman of the organising company behind the series, Mark Turner of OC ThirdPole, said: “The circuit continues to represent perfectly the developments in the world at large, with its balance of east and west, different cultures and languages and variety of conditions.

“Year on year the commercial value to the host cities of securing this event for the host venues has steadily increased, and this is reflected in 2012 developments. A pro-active and innovative host venue is critical to the success of the event, and we are very excited in this respect by the partnership with Cardiff and the Welsh Government.”

Cardiff Council’s Executive Member for Sport, Culture and Leisure Cllr, Nigel Howells commented: “It’s great news that Cardiff has secured the Extreme Sailing series for the next three years, as a council we will do all that we can to support the event.

“Cardiff has proved time and time again that it can play host to a variety of world class sporting events. From top class football and rugby to newer events like Extreme Sailing. Since the opening of Cardiff International White Water (CIWW) in 2010 more and more watersport events are coming to Cardiff, which is helping to attract a new audience to Cardiff and Wales.”

The 2012 Extreme Sailing Series will be staged at 8 different international venues across three continents, attracting hundreds of thousands of spectators. Alongside other significant media exposure, once again a dedicated TV series will be produced and broadcast on up to 40 channels around the world, including CNBC, Bloomberg, Channel 4 (UK), Sky (UK), Al Jazeera, Fox (Latin America, Australia Middle East), ESPN, Sport+ (France), RAI (Italy).

As we enter the final countdown to the first Act in Oman, the 2012 team line-up will be revealed this coming weekend at the Dusseldorf Boat Show.

2012 Calendar & Host Venues:
Act 1 : Muscat, Oman 28th February-2nd March
Act 2 : Qingdao, China 17th-20th April*
Act 3 : Istanbul, Turkey 7th-10th June
Act 4 : Porto, Portugal 5th-8th July
Act 5: Cardiff, UK 24th-27th August
Act 6 : Trapani, Italy 13th-16th September
Act 7 : Nice, France 18th-21st October
Act 8 : Brazil 29th November-2nd December

Due to official Chinese naval activities in the port of Qingdao, Act 2 will now be staged between 17th-20th April instead of the 19th-22nd April as previously communicated

 

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There was a good breeze for this second part of the second leg, between Sharjah and Abu Dhabi, which formed a 98-mile coastal course raced under the influence of the Shamal desert wind. After a prudent start, Groupama 4 was really firing on all cylinders during the two long reaches and ultimately overtook the Spanish leaders thanks to a final solid sprint under spinnaker… 

There were rough, short seas for today’s race start at 0530 UTC off the Arab Emirate of Sharjah: around twenty knots of westerly wind with three metre waves and a beat to hunt down the first mark positioned some 18 miles ahead. The New Zealanders on Camper and the Americans on Puma got off to the best start at the end of the line, whilst the Spaniards on Telefonica and the French on Groupama 4 quickly put in a tack to reposition themselves a few hundred metres to weather of the fleet. A long port tack lay ahead as it took over an hour and a quarter for Telefonica, then Groupama 4, to put in their first tack change. The two VO-70s were slightly below the mark and had to make two additional manoeuvres to get around it. The same was true for Puma and Abu Dhabi…

A long leg with eased sheets

The Spanish led around the first mark, boasting a very slight edge over the New Zealanders, whilst the Americans managed to slip under Groupama 4′s bow and Abu Dhabi brought up the rear. The deficits between the five boats were extremely minimal at that point as they prepared for another very long upwind sprint with sheets slightly eased to hunt down mark 2, moored around fifty miles further down the racetrack to the West-South-West.

Three hours later, Franck Cammas and his men were right on Telefonica’s stern as the latter led the fleet around the second course mark: the two sisterships were unquestionably the most at ease in these sailing conditions (17-22 knots of breeze at 70°) since the New Zealanders were relegated to 1.1 miles astern, the Americans 1.3 miles astern and the Emirati boat 2.8 miles shy of the leaders! There were still 23 miles to go and the fleet were continuing to sail with eased sheets as they homed in on mark number 3 offshore of Abu Dhabi, before bearing away sharply for a final twelve mile sprint, on a broad reach to the finish line.

1hr20 later, the Spanish on Telefonica were first around the final course mark of this 98-mile course, though Groupama 4 was closing fast, less than a hundred metres astern of her, whilst the other three VO-70s had dropped back. As such there was just one fast reach under spinnaker to the finish of this drag race, where the two Juan Kouyoumdjian designs were able to show just what they were made of in the breezy conditions which continued to punch into them providing 20 knots or so of wind.

Overtaking under spinnaker

Just after the manoeuvre to hoist the spinnaker, Franck Cammas and his crew screamed into the lead and held onto it to the finish off the port of Abu Dhabi. The final sprint proved to be extremely close since Groupama 4 crossed the finish line just 52 seconds ahead of Telefonica after a little less than seven hours of racing! This victory for the French boat doesn’t alter the hierarchy in the overall standing but it does demonstrate that the French team can make the right choices when it counts, and above all that the crew has made considerable progress in this format of short races and is capable of linking together manoeuvres smoothly. The shore crew now have eight days to prepare the boat in preparation for the next “In-Port” race off Abu Dhabi, on 13 January, then another short leg before once again being loaded onto the cargo and shipped to the secret port in the Indian Ocean…

Quotes from the Boat…

Franck Cammas at the finish in Abu Dhabi
“Telefonica defended itself very well as we were a touch quicker and they gave their all to prevent us getting past them. We had one last chance because we managed to position ourselves to windward of them and thanks to a gust we were able to overtake. They are a very good crew with a very good boat and we’re very happy to have been able to get past them. It has to be said that the conditions were perfect for Groupama, which is particularly fond of reaching in breezy conditions. It was nice to get a bit of revenge after the first part of this second leg, because we were in a winning position at one point and were very frustrated not to pull it off. This morning we were still a bit concerned about finding our bearings, but I think we were so fast that the anxiety didn’t even have time to surface. It’s a fantastic day for the whole of Groupama sailing team, and it’s been a real confidence boost. It may not have given us many points, but this victory is important for the next stage…”

Thomas Coville
“It was a fine battle, all the way to the finish. On a personal level, this is what the Volvo Ocean Race is all about for me: never give up on anything! We enjoyed a very fine match race in some fantastic sailing conditions… Even though it was very wet on deck! We were with Camper at the start and Laurent (Pagès) viewed the race zone brilliantly. Thanks to our speed, we were gradually able to make up ground on Telefonica. We were spoilt by the warm wind and the sunshine and the sea was rough and vigorous but okay.”

Charles Caudrelier
“The course was pretty simple in terms of navigation: it was only the first part which required some tacks. We didn’t go off on any fliers and remained with the fleet as the aim was to stay in contact for the big sprint with eased sheets where we knew we were pretty quick. The success of this leg is the result of the work carried out by all the technical team: we have a research department, guided by Franck (Cammas), which analyses the different parameters. It’s a good feeling to rack up this victory! Indeed, though the boat is quick, it’s also down to the crew which was superb today…”

Standing for the second part of the second leg (Sharjah to Abu Dhabi: 98 miles)
1-Groupama 4 (Franck Cammas) at 12h 22′ 09 UTC
2-Telefonica (Iker Martinez) at 12h 23′ 01UTC
3-Camper (Chris Nicholson) at 12h 27′ 48 UTC
4-Puma (Ken Read) at 12h 28′ 38 UTC
5-Abu Dhabi (Ian Walker) at 12h 32′ 21 UTC
DNS-Sanya (Mike Sanderson)

Overall standing after the second leg
1-Telefonica (Iker Martinez) 66 points = 1+30+6+24+5
2-Camper (Chris Nicholson) 58 points = 4+25+5+20+4
3-Groupama 4 (Franck Cammas) 42 points = 2+20+2+12+6
4-Puma (Ken Read) 28 points = 5+0+4+16+3
5-Abu Dhabi (Ian Walker) 19 points = 6+0+3+8+2
6-Sanya (Mike Sanderson) 4 points: 3+0+1+suspended racing

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On this first day of winter in Europe, Franck Cammas is celebrating his first birthday (39th) racing at sea. As such Groupama 4′s pole position can only come as a source of satisfaction to the youngest skipper in this Volvo Ocean Race! Indeed the French boat will enter into the Indian version of the Doldrums this Friday with a lead of nearly 80 miles.

 
Though winter is proving to be mild in Europe, summer in the southern hemisphere is both very hot and very wet: indeed Groupama 4 is nearly at 11° South and is gradually leaving the high pressure of the Mascareignes High behind her to confront the random mood swings of the Doldrums. Indeed this Inter-Tropical Convergence Zone (ITCZ) doesn’t appear to be very easy to apprehend, even though in theory it is supposed to be less ‘twisted’ than in the Atlantic.

“I’m preparing a chocolate cake for Franck’s birthday” announced Yann Riou, Groupama 4′s media man, during the lunch time radio link-up this Thursday. “Together with my pressure cooker and a few eggs, which I’ve managed to keep cool, I’m going to make a change to the usual routine and already the aromas are more reminiscent of a patisserie and have replaced the rather vivid odours resulting from the ambient humidity. Indeed the skies are becoming overcast and decidedly grey even. It is very hot as we’re closing on the Doldrums, which we’re set to reach this evening…”

Happy birthday Franck!

This Friday afternoon Groupama 4 has also been the first to enter the ‘stealth’ zone, an area marked out on the map by the Volvo Ocean Race organisers to combat the risk of piracy. Positioned between the Arabic peninsula, the southern tip of India and the North of the island of Madagascar, this vast expanse will no longer enable us to track the progress of the six boats as far as the finish, but the distances between the competitors will still be broadcast to the public. This ‘stealth’ zone, which begins at 12° South, is also close to the Doldrums, which appear to start at around 9° South.

“Thanks for wishing me happy birthday! Usually I’m on land at this time of year… However, the current preoccupation is more geared around the Doldrums: it’s always a fairly hazardous zone and it’s hard to find the best way through. We’re happy with our positioning for tackling it as we can still control the fleet behind us. We already know that our pursuers will make up some ground on us over the coming hours since we’ll be the first to be slowed… We’re the pacesetter and everyone will be watching where we go to get an idea of the ambience. However, it remains an enviable position: we have a lead of 80 miles with a finish lining up after around 1,000 miles. The coming days will be more complicated than in recent hours though and we could lose a lot of ground” indicated Franck Cammas at noon this Thursday.

Two hundred difficult miles

Franck Cammas has opted to traverse the ITCZ at 67° East for several reasons: first of all because an opening appears to be taking shape along this axis as a depression isobar (1008 hPa) is bending round between Sri Lanka and the Diego Garcia atoll. The south-easterly wind of around fifteen knots on Thursday morning, will ease to just ten knots or so as it gradually clocks round to the South, then the South-West at around five knots at noon on Friday. Furthermore, by remaining further to the West, Groupama 4 is giving herself the opportunity to dip back down to the North-East, ahead of her rivals, should the opportunity present itself. It’s easier to luff up in the light airs and accelerate rather than bearing away under spinnaker as you slow… Finally, the third element to take into account is the rotation of the wind to the West at 7° South, followed by a gradual shift round to the North-West and then the North on approaching the equator. By positioning herself further to the West, Groupama 4 won’t have to put in any tacks to complete this first part of the race.

“It’s said that the Indian Doldrums are different to those of the Atlantic but when I asked this same question to those who traversed this zone three years ago, they told me that they’d been stuck fast for three days… It doesn’t have the same shape as it’s more cross-shaped with a fairly thick North-South axis, quite a way off, and an East-West branch which we’re going to traverse. The exit is due North in any case! As a result we’ll have to gain miles in all the squalls so as to stand a chance of being the first to exit the zone and latch onto the westerly wind near the equator.”

What of the wave?

Ian Walker, the skipper of Abu Dhabi announced that the formation of a tropical wave could reshuffle the cards as they pass through the Doldrums. In line with this, the Spanish on Telefonica and the New Zealanders on Camper have curved their route inwards over recent hours, which would suggest that they’re keen to attack the ITCZ at 72° East. Indeed it would appear that another way through is opening up at 75° East, but this involves extending the trajectory with a more easterly exit from the Doldrums and hence a final beat to round off the leg.

“A tropical wave is a weather phenomenon, a kind of atmospheric trough, which traverses the tradewinds in the direction of the Doldrums: this generates stronger activity with southerly wind. This in turn breaks the ITCZ and enables connections between two breeze systems, and hence opens up ways through. There doesn’t appear to be a very pronounced tropical wave at the moment, but there are some small elements on the files…”

Torrid ambience

“We going to pass through some fabulous areas with some very remote islands: there are flying fish at the moment, but not too much activity in the water and in the air. Added to that we’re going to have even less movement over the coming days! Aboard the boat it’s very hot and at times we’re envious of you back in Europe… However, it’s also a quiet atmosphere: it’s a good thing for Jean-Luc (Nélias, navigator) and I that our option paid off after the failure in the first leg. It’s always good to have confidence in oneself and in one’s crew… Furthermore, we won’t be cut off from the world in this stealth zone as we’ll still receive all the data from the organisation.”

After eleven days at sea and lots of turnabouts since the start in Cape Town, the arrival in the secret port is scheduled for Monday, the day after Christmas… The question is, will there be another present for Franck and his crew at the end of it?

Position of the competitors in the Volvo Ocean Race in the second leg from Cape Town – Abu Dhabi at 1600 UTC on 22/12/2011
1. Groupama 4
2. Puma – 65,4 miles astern of the leader
3. Telefonica – 82,9 miles astern of the leader
4. Camper – 124,6 miles astern of the leader
5. Abu Dhabi Ocean Racing – 210,2 miles astern of the leader
Team Sanya – suspended racing

 

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Telefónica snatched the lead from PUMA’s Mar Mostro on Monday just as the fleet prepared to enter the Doldrums and trust to luck. Anything could happen at this crucial stage of Leg 1 in the Volvo Ocean Race as the boats charge towards the infamous area just north of the Equator where weather systems converge.

“Crossing the Doldrums is done always with nervousness,” said Ken Read, skipper of PUMA Ocean Racing powered by BERG, who were passed by Team Telefónica at the 1300 UTC position report. “It’s always a bit of a crapshoot. You can do all your homework and enter where you think the right path through is and still get it very wrong.”

The Doldrums, officially known as the intertropical convergence zone, is a dynamic area of low pressure characterised by light winds but notorious for sudden squalls. Constantly changing shape, the Doldrums make up one of the trickiest areas of the planet to navigate and one that has caused the reshuffle of many an ocean race leaderboard.

“How you do in the Doldrums has a lot to do with luck,” explained Volvo Ocean Race CEO Knut Frostad, a four-time veteran of the race. “The Doldrums can give you cards to play with or no cards at all. It is crucial point in the race. It’s scary for the teams because it’s one of the only times they have absolutely no control.”

It’s an especially tough time for the navigators. Weather conditions are localised so they can’t be accurately predicted using computer software. Instead, the crews will have to rely on eyesight alone to deal with whatever Mother Nature decides to throw at them.

“You can forget about weather data or routing,” Frostad added. “You have to go on what you can see outside. It’s a very tense time.”

Telefónica, skippered by Spanish Olympic gold medallist Iker Martínez, reeled in PUMA in 12 hours on Monday morning and were less than a nautical mile in front at 1300 UTC, with around 250 nautical miles to sail to reach the Doldrums. The Volvo Ocean Race’s chief meteorologist Gonzalo Infante said he expected the first teams to be reaching the Doldrums by 0000 UTC on Tuesday.

“Once the first boats hit the Doldrums the fleet will compress as the leaders slow down in the light winds,” he said. “Depending on where the boats cross the Doldrums it could take them around 24 hours to pass through. Once out they will be into the southeast trades sailing fast towards Fernando de Noronha. The elastic band effect will be reversed and the distances between the boats will expand again.”

Speaking to Race Control this morning PUMA skipper Read said his crew were frustrated by Telefónica’s gains.

“Telefónica have a little better angle coming in right now,” he said. “Over the last few days they have eaten away at our lead and I wouldn’t be surprised if they were actually first into the Doldrums. We’re a little frustrated because we really liked our line and Telefónica’s line is proving to be a little better right now. Every three hours you get a report and it really sets the mood on the boat. There’s a tad of frustration that the wind gods haven’t played it exactly as we had planned but that’s life and we’ll get through it.”

Chris Nicholson’s CAMPER with Emirates Team New Zealand, around 70 miles to the west of PUMA, continued to see their hold on the leaders’ coat tails slip, with another nine miles lost between 1000 and 1300 UTC.

In the east Groupama continued to pay the price for taking a risky course close to the coast of Africa during the first phase of the 6,500 nautical mile leg to Cape Town. At the 1300 report they were 327nm behind the leaders doing 18 knots compared to Telefónica’s 20 knots.

Groupama helmsman Charles Caudrelier said their course would see them cross the Doldrums at its widest point – currently around 200 nm – but that could pay dividends in the sprint to Fernando de Noronha, the Leg 1 turning mark off the coast of Brazil.

“To cross the Doldrums well you need some knowledge but also some luck,” he said. “The further east you go the higher the risk is, but at the same time the angle when you’re out is more interesting for Fernando. It’s never an easy choice. You need to pick your entry point and cross your fingers.”

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Despite winds gusting into the 30s and a grim sky suggesting the onset of winter, so in the late afternoon the wind dropped below 20 knots and the turning tide flattened out the sea to allow racing to begin on the penultimate day of the Extreme Sailing Series Act 5 at Aberdeen Asset Management Cowes Week.  Perhaps the greatest surprise given the damp overcast weather was the huge turn-out of spectators crowding to Egypt Point, and the beach surrounding the Extreme Sailing Series Race Village.

 

The Extreme 40 crews have been tested to the limit in the breezy conditions that have dominated Act 5, and it has been a case of ‘taming the 40-foot beast’ to the best of their abilities. Asked to compare their Extreme 40s to an animal, the skippers came up with some surprising answers!

By the time racing started later than usual at 1640 BST the wind had dropped to the teens. “It was quite windy, gusting to almost 20 knots so it wasn’t nearly as ‘extreme’ as we have had for the rest of this week: nice and flat water as well which made the tacking and boat handling a little easier, so you didn’t see too many rudders out of the water today, but still a windy day and a hard day to battle a boat around the course,” described Luna Rossa helmsman Paul Campbell-James.

Alinghi helmsman Tanguy Cariou said that in the conditions it was still hard work on board: “It was really physical, really tough for us especially at the end as you had to come in so close to the shore before tacking it was quite difficult, but I think we were quite solid and I think anything could happen tomorrow.”

 The 11 Extreme 40s were divided into groups as the conditions on the penultimate day were still on the limit to race the fleet in one group with reefed mainsails but gennakers permitted after the first two races much to the publics delight.  With half of the fleet racing at a time, the tactical objective for the crews was to get as far into the shore as possible on the beat to make the best of the favourable eddy off Eygpt Point and definitely out of the 2.5 knot counter current offshore. As Campbell-James put it: “There was one way to do it – to come off the line, hit the beach and push your luck on the rocks. Whoever nailed that strategy was the guy who usually came up in first at the windward mark.”

The most tense moments came on the first beat of each race when the Extreme 40s would get as close as possible into shore and occasionally not get enough room to tack. But despite some hair-raising moments none of the boats went aground.

In fact it was the strong tide that proved the major stumbling block with several crews underestimating the angle of the rope tethering the weather mark. As a result several snagged it on their rudders causing them to pop up, perhaps the most dramatic being when Luna Rossa careered off downwind seeming to gybe twice accidently before they got their Extreme 40 under control.

 Campbell-James described it: “We just skimmed the windward mark on the way round and that popped the leeward rudder up. It was pretty dangerous in the big breeze with the one rudder in and one out, so we got to the leeward marks and we stuck it head to wind, did our penalty while putting the rudder back down. It was all a bit of a drama, but we managed it. Alister [Richardson] hurt his back a little bit a bit in the process.”

Team Extreme suffered the same fate in the third race and crewman Benedikt Wenk cut his hand as he attempted to get the rudder back down. Wenk required a couple of stitches and Roland Gaebler’s team had to retire from racing for the day.

Star of today’s competition was ex-Tornado sailor Pierre Pennec and the crew of Groupe Edmond de Rothschild who won three of their four races. Their third race was the tightest of the day with Leigh McMillian at the helm of The Wave, Muscat first to the top mark with the French team on their transom. There were whoops from the crowd ashore as the French crew came close to rolling past their Omani rivals. However, the real coup for the French team came on the second run when The Wave, Muscat crew thought they had crossed the finish line only to find that the race had been extended to finish on the next upwind leg. This wavering allowed the French team to overhaul them and to take their third bullet of their day by a matter of centimetres.

 

Groupe Edmond de Rothschild skippered by Pierre Pennec tearaway and the bows dig in, spray everywhere © Lloyd Images

Alinghi won their third race of the day and Tanguy Cariou was satisfied with their performance. “Today it was quite good, quite solid team work and good manoeuvres. We fought well against the other opponents.” In contrast it wasn’t such a good day for the Italian team on Luna Rossa who prior to their rudder incident at the top mark had suffered a broken outhaul shortly after the start of the first race.

At the close of play The Wave, Muscat continues to lead with a margin of 10 points on Luna Rossa, Alinghi third with Groupe Edmond de Rothschild fourth, now just six point shy of the podium. But as Paul Campbell-James points out it could inevitably once again come to tomorrow’s double points-scoring final race.  “Leigh is in front of us as he had a really good day today, so we’ve just got to put in a solid day tomorrow and see what happens in the double points last race,” said Campbell-James. “Basically it will be man against man with Leigh which I have been doing since I was nine years old!”

The weather forecast for tomorrow is looking good – 11-15 knots and sunshine, which will mean the Extreme 40s can, once again, race as one fleet for the for the final day of Act 5.

Extreme Sailing Series Act 5 at Aberdeen Asset Management Cowes Week
Current overall standings, day 6 (11.8.11)

Position / Team / Skipper & crew / Points

1st The Wave, Muscat (OMA), Leigh McMillan / Kyle Langford / Nick Hutton / Khamis Al Anbouri 138 points
2nd Luna Rossa (ITA), Max Sirena / Paul Campbell-James / Alister Richardson / Manuel Modena 128 points
3rd Alinghi (SUI), Tanguy Cariou / Yann Guichard / Nils Frei / Yves Detrey 117 points
4th Groupe Edmond de Rothschild (FRA), Pierre Pennec / Christophe Espagnon / Thierry Fouchier / Hervé Cunningham 111 points*
5th Red Bull Extreme Sailing (AUT), Roman Hagara / Hans Peter Steinacher / Will Howden / Luke Cross 104 points
6th Oman Air (OMA), Sidney Gavignet / Kinley Fowler / David Carr / Nasser Al Mashari 101 points
7th Team GAC Pindar (GBR), Ian Williams / Mischa Heemskerk / Andrew Walsh / Jono Macbeth 93 points*
8th Niceforyou (ITA), Alberto Barovier / Stefano Rizzi / Daniele de Luca / Simone de Mari 81 points
9th Emirates Team New Zealand (NZL), Adam Beashel / Richard Meacham / Andrew McLean / Chris Ward 73 points
10th Aberdeen Asset Management (GBR), John Pink / Rick Peacock / Greg Homann / John Gimson 69 points
11th Team Extreme (EUR), Roland Gaebler / Nahid Gaebler / Benedikt Wenk / Dan Morris 51 points
12th Artemis Racing (SWE), Santiago Lange / Andy Fethers / Michele Ivaldi / Phil Jameson 23 points*
 

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Today thousands of spectators filled the Extreme Sailing Series™ Race Village and were treated to a spectacle of 49er racing followed by eight first-class, action-packed Extreme 40 races. A good sea breeze allowed the Extreme 40s to showcase how this style of stadium racing really works, with live onboard commentary from US sailor Cam Lewis and Britain’s Andy Green.  The start/finish area located just a few meters off the shore gave the public a close-up view of all the action and the home crowd were truly behind Terry Hutchinson’s Artemis Racing, cheering the team home every time. Fifth man guest Dennis Piretra was impressed by the public support: “We could see people up and down the docks watching with a lot of people really engaged. It’s not just a social event they are really enjoying the sport.”

Check out the video of Red Bull Air Force skydiver Jeff Provenzano landing at the Race Village before hitching a ride with the Extreme 40

A six-boat 49er fleet showcased the Olympic class that will compete in the Olympics for the third successive time in a row in 2012, with three teams from the USA and three from Canada (see below). As the Extreme 40 circuit returns to European waters in August, the European 49er class will form part of the circuit competing for the 49er Europe Cup at the Extreme Sailing Series.

The top five places on the overall leaderboard remain unchanged with Artemis Racing holding the top spot, although three races from the end of day the Swedish team momentarily lost their lead to The Wave, Muscat. Leigh McMillan had a wobbly start to the day posting a 9th and a 6th giving Dean Barker’s Emirates Team New Zealand to chance to overhaul the Oman team. But a last place in the fifth race of the day for the Kiwis, gave McMillan’s team the opportunity to get back. Check HERE to hear what his rivals and friends have to say about the British sailor who is currently riding the wave…

Max Sirena’s Luna Rossa team had a better day, leaving them just 4 points adrift of the French at the halfway stage. However, the ‘stand-out’ team of the day was the Swiss team Alinghi, posting three race wins: “It is the first time in the season that we have three race wins in one day, so we are very happy,” said Tanguy Cariou. “The beginning of the event was quite tough for us and we were disappointed with that but we have tried to close the gap. We have been more aggressive with our sailing and had some good starts.”

Britain’s Ian Williams, skipper of Team GAC Pindar, nearly scored their first race win of Act 4 and were leading round the final top mark in the fourth race of the day before a twist in the gennaker spoiled ruined that prospect. However, the team’s improved performance today allowed them to leap-frog Roland Gaebler’s Team Extreme on the overall leaderboard.

Going into the penultimate day 22 races have been staged so far and with a potential 12-14 races still on offer the teams have plenty of points to play for. What is clear now is that every point counts.

49er Teams at Act 4, Boston:
Trevor Parekh/Matt Dubreucq – CAN
Zach Brown/ Thomas Barrows– USA
Rob Frost/Tom Arbuckle – CAN
Mike Brodeur/Tom Carlton – CAN
Jon Goldsberry/Charlie Smythe – USA
Max Fraser/Dan Morris – USA

Extreme Sailing Series Act 4 at Fan Pier Boston, USA
Current overall standings after 22 races, Day 3 (2.7.11)

Position / Team / Skipper & crew / Points
1st Artemis Racing (SWE), Terry Hutchinson / Sean Clarkson / Morgan Trubovich / Julien Cressant 169 points
2nd The Wave, Muscat (OMA), Leigh McMillan / Kyle Langford / Nick Hutton / Khamis Al Anbouri 159 points
3rd Emirates Team New Zealand (NZL), Dean Barker / Adam Beashel / James Dagg / Jeremy Lomas 158 points
4th Groupe Edmond de Rothschild (FRA), Pierre Pennec / Christophe Espagnon / Thierry Fouchier / Hervé Cunningham 156 points
5th Luna Rossa (ITA), Max Sirena / Paul Campbell-James / Alister Richardson / Manuel Modena 151 points
6th Red Bull Extreme Sailing (AUT), Roman Hagara / Hans Peter Steinacher / Will Howden / Craig Monk 148.2* points
7th Alinghi (SUI), Tanguy Cariou / Yann Guichard / Nils Frei / Yves Detrey 141 points
8th Niceforyou (ITA), Alberto Barovier / Mark Bulkeley / Daniele de Luca Simone de Mari 114 points
9th Oman Air (OMA), Sidney Gavignet / Kinley Fowler / David Carr / Nasser Al Mashari 106 points
10th Team GAC Pindar (GBR), Ian Williams / Mark Ivey / Andrew Walsh / Jono Macbeth 83 points
11th Team Extreme (EUR), Roland Gaebler / Bruno Dubois / Sebbe Godefroid / Bob Merrick 72 points

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The ever changing conditions on the second day of racing at the Extreme Sailing Series™ Act 4 in Boston, resulted in a game of snakes and ladders for many of the 11 Extreme 40 teams and leaves Act 4 wide open going into the halfway stage tomorrow. After another seven races today there have been a significant number of place changes on the overall leaderboard, although Terry Hutchinson’s crew on Artemis Racing extended their lead at the top ahead of The Wave, Muscat by 7 points. So no change for the top two, however Dean Barker’s Emirates Team New Zealand strong performance today moved the Kiwi team up to 3rd place: “We were really happy with today,” commented Dean back on the dockside at Fan Pier. “We won four races and sailed in good shape for the rest. In the last race we copped a penalty and managed to fall back three places, so we were actually pretty happy with how we continued as it would have been easy to give up but we finished in 8th which is good, and an improvement on yesterday.”

The racing started out in really light and fluky winds. In the first race, won by Emirates Team New Zealand, three boats fell foul of the time limit rule for not finishing within 6 minutes of the winning boat. It wasn’t until the fourth race that the sea breeze really filled in and stabilized. Then the boat speeds picked up and the action moved up a few gears delighting the Boston crowd who turned out in force again today.

The Swiss team of Alinghi, skippered by Tanguy Cariou, after a mixed bag of results yesterday, came back strongly in the second half to climb from 9th to 6th place. Unfortunately, for Austrian skipper Roman Hagara, skipper of the popular Red Bull Extreme Sailing team here in Boston, a collision in the fifth race with Team GAC Pindar put them out of action with damage to their rudder system, and the team has dropped from 3rd yesterday to 8th. Undoubtedly, Hagara’s team will be seeking points redress as the fault for the collision sits with Team GAC Pindar.

For many of the teams new to the circuit, the experience of three events already under their belts is starting to pay as they accelerate up the learning curve. Italy’s Niceforyou is in a great battle mid-leaderboard, only 2 points behind Alinghi, and skipper Alberto Barovier is clearly enjoying the experience: “The racing is pretty tricky,” said Alberto. “We survived two days with a good consistency on results which is very good for us and an improvement on the other venues. We are looking forward to doing better tomorrow and the next day.”

The final race of the day was one of joy for Roland Gaebler’s Team Extreme who posted their first win of the regatta with American 470 Olympic silver medalist Bob Merrick onboard, and one of huge disappointment for the Pierre Pennec’s French team on Groupe Edmond de Rothschild. The team crossed the line first but touched the finish mark and was instantly penalized, forcing them to re-cross the finish line. Pennec was visibly unhappy with his 6th place but the French team are still very much in the running having posted multiple 2nd places today, and maintaining their fourth place overall.

A day of frustration for many and joy for others but there are still many more points up for grabs and no one is placing any bets on which teams will be standing on the podium come Monday. “It’s just all about getting to Monday with a chance to win,” said Terry. “Everyone is so good but I am very hungry to win here.” And with more breeze forecast for the final two days, the action is going to get hotter and hotter.

Boston’s Mayor Thomas Menino visited the Extreme Sailing Series Race Village at Fan Pier to see the action first-hand: “It’s very special to have the Extreme Sailing Series in Fan Pier,” said the Mayor. “Boston has a great harbour but to have these boats here is a very special time for us. We hope that the sailors have a great time and we hope that the event comes back in future. This could be the start of a great tradition in our city and I want to thank everyone involved in this for choosing Boston to be the place to come in America. In short this is awesome. There is no better place and time to be in America than on 4th of July on Boston harbour.”

The Extreme Sailing Series Race Village at Fan Pier was rocking until late last night culminating in a fantastic firework display and there is palpable party atmosphere in the build up to Monday’s Independence Day celebrations.

There is plenty of action still to see at Boston Fan Pier all weekend long and on the Fourth of July.

Extreme Sailing Series Act 4 at Fan Pier Boston, USA
Current overall standings after 14 races, Day 2 (1.7.11)

Position / Team / Skipper & crew / Points
1st Artemis Racing (SWE), Terry Hutchinson / Sean Clarkson / Morgan Trubovich / Julien Cressant 114 points
2nd The Wave, Muscat (OMA), Leigh McMillan / Kyle Langford / Nick Hutton / Khamis Al Anbouri 107 points
3rd Emirates Team New Zealand (NZL), Dean Barker / Adam Beashel / James Dagg / Jeremy Lomas 106 points
4th Groupe Edmond de Rothschild (FRA), Pierre Pennec / Christophe Espagnon / Thierry Fouchier / Hervé Cunningham 101 points
5th Luna Rossa (ITA), Max Sirena / Paul Campbell-James / Alister Richardson / Manuel Modena 88 points
6th Alinghi (SUI), Tanguy Cariou / Yann Guichard / Nils Frei / Yves Detrey 78 points
7th Niceforyou (ITA), Alberto Barovier / Mark Bulkeley / Daniele de Luca Simone de Mari 76 points
8th Red Bull Extreme Sailing (AUT), Roman Hagara / Hans Peter Steinacher / Will Howden / Craig Monk 70 points
9th Oman Air (OMA), Sidney Gavignet / Kinley Fowler / David Carr / Nasser Al Mashari 69 points
10th Team Extreme (EUR), Roland Gaebler / Bruno Dubois / Sebbe Godefroid / Bob Merrick 57 points
11th Team GAC Pindar (GBR), Ian Williams / Mark Ivey / Andrew Walsh / Jono Macbeth 44 points

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LIVE COVERAGE THIS WEEKEND!!

Turkey’s national TV broadcaster, TRT, will be covering the Extreme Sailing Series live this weekend and TRT’s TV feed will be available on the Extreme Sailing Series website. TRT1 will broadcast live from Saturday between 1600-1650 CET and on Sunday 1700-1900 CET [see further details below].

It was another intense day on the Halic estuary at the Extreme Sailing Series™ Act 3 in Istanbul, with gusty conditions and tight race courses resulting in a few collisions and numerous close calls. Luna Rossa has been craned out tonight to check for damage after crunching into Team GAC’s back beam and then another knock with Artemis Racing inflicting some damage to the aft port hull. However, Max Sirena’s team who have dropped from 2nd overall to 4th place will be back racing tomorrow as will Ian Williams’ Team GAC Pindar.

The team that started the second day on top, Terry Hutchinson’s Artemis Racing, has extended their lead even further from 1 point yesterday to 19 points today after another seven races. The other two event podium places are now currently occupied by Alinghi, skippered by Tanguy Cariou and helmed by Yann Guichard, in 2nd: “The first two events were very difficult for us as we are a new team,” explained Guichard. “We need to get to know how to work together. We are improving every day, in every race so we are happy till now, everything is coming together well.” But they will have to keep raising there game in this fiercely contested field as the Swiss team are on equal points with Dean’s Barker’s Kiwi team Emirates Team New Zealand going into the halfway stage tomorrow, as Guichard conceded: “The game is really tight out there. It’s fun, very fun but you you’re not allowed to make one mistake!”

Watch the ‘Skipper Snippets’ video.

Overall series leaders Groupe Edmond de Rothschild from France bounced back from a difficult start yesterday – 7th this morning – up to 5th by the end of play today. And Roman Hagara’s Austrian Red Bull Extreme Sailing Team also climbed two places: “It was a little mad on the water today,” said Hagara. “Lots of up and down, lots of close finishes and close marks roundings. You can see some teams leading on one race and finishing last on the next one. The general level of the fleet is going up and that’s good to see five different winners out of seven races today. I’m really happy with my team, we’re having fun and loving it here. That’s the first time we are racing in Istanbul and it’s absolutely fantastic.”

The conditions were similar to yesterday with 7-10 knots of breeze and some fierce gusts that quickly turned these 40-foot Extreme 40 racing machines into one big handful for the 44 sailors representing some of the best in the sport. The short two-lap races lasting just 10-12 minutes, saw the sailors grappling with their huge gennakers as they flew into the downwind mark and it required slick handling to avoid a major incident: “The racing is pretty brutal out there but we keep improving,” said Barker. “We had a couple of shockers, but you know, you need to deal with what you get and try do do things a little bit better each time, and make less mistakes. Of course there’s a lot we can do better, but we jump on every opportunity we can and try to make the best out it.”

Alberto Barovier’s team Niceforyou scored two 2nd places today lifting them from 11th place into 10th. The all-Italian team enjoyed their first race win in Muscat and it is sure another one is on the cards as the team gets to grips with the Extreme 40 under the tutelage of 2010 series winner crew member, Mark Bulkley.

Tomorrow Act 3 moves up a gear into stadium sailing format as the doors open to the public here in Istanbul. For now the 44 sailors are resting, bruised boats being patched up, but the 11 Extreme 40s will all be back in front of the public tomorrow.

Check out the Extreme Sailing Series Channel for the latest video compilation from Act 3, Istanbul including the action from day 1.

TRT LIVE COVERAGE:
TRT1 TV channel covers all the major sporting events including football and Formula 1 and on Sunday TRT will cover the Monaco Formula 1 live before switching to the on-water racetrack here in Istanbul for the final day’s racing. TRT1 will broadcast live coverage from 1700-1900 CET on Sunday and 50 minutes coverage on Saturday between 1600-1650 CET. The coverage will obviously come with TRT’s Turkish commentary but follow the English race blog on the home page.

Extreme Sailing Series – Act 3, Istanbul
Current overall standings after Day 2 (26.5.11)

Position / Team / Skipper & crew / Points
1st Artemis Racing (SWE), Terry Hutchinson / Rodney Ardern / Morgan Trubovich / Julien Cressant 116 points
2nd Alinghi (SUI), Tanguy Cariou / Yann Guichard / Nils Frei / Yves Detrey 97 points
3rd Emirates Team New Zealand (NZL), Dean Barker / Glenn Ashby / James Dagg / Jeremy Lomas 97 points
4th Luna Rossa (ITA), Max Sirena / Paul Campbell-James / Alister Richardson / Manuel Modena 95 points
5th Groupe Edmond de Rothschild (FRA), Pierre Pennec / Christophe Espagnon / Thierry Fouchier / Hervé Cunningham 95 points
6th The Wave, Muscat (OMA), Torvar Mirsky / Kyle Langford / Nick Hutton / Khamis Al Anbouri 87 points
7th Red Bull Extreme Sailing (AUT), Roman Hagara / Hans Peter Steinacher / Will Howden / Craig Monk 78 points
8th Oman Air (OMA), Sidney Gavignet / Kinley Fowler / David Carr / Nasser Al Mashari 76 points
9th Team Extreme (EUR), Roland Gaebler / Bruno Dubois / Sebbe Godefroid / Nicholas Heintz 64 points
10th Niceforyou (ITA), Alberto Barovier / Mark Bulkeley / Daniele de Luca Simone de Mari 64 points
11th Team GAC Pindar (GBR), Ian Williams / Mark Ivey / Mischa Heemskerk / Jono Macbeth 55 points

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