Nine of the ten yachts in the Clipper 11-12 Round the World Yacht Race are now in Stealth Mode for the cruise phase between the first and second parts of Race 7. The fleet is divided into three groups, accompanying each other through the Celebes and Sulu Seas for safety reasons. Edinburgh Inspiring Capital is approximately 50nm from the gate and will be the final boat to go into Stealth Mode as part of the race organisers’ anti-piracy measures. Assistant Race Director, Justin Taylor explains, “The plan is for them to rendezvous with Visit Finland and Welcome to Yorkshire. They have both held station for 12 hours and are now progressing at a reduced speed to allow Edinburgh Inspiring Capital, which is approximately 100nm behind these two, to catch up.” Yesterday the Race Committee made the decision to allow Edinburgh Inspiring Capital to use their engine before the gate for the finish of the first stage in order to allow them to transit the Celebes and Sulu Seas in company with the other two teams. Skipper Gordon Reid says, “We have utilised the engine in short stints, but ironically sailed for most of yesterday and last night in some fairly constant breeze. We are now about to cross into the Celebes Sea and rendezvous with the other yachts and the wind has once more died off. “Yesterday we entered yet another patch of light variable wind. The crew are well practised and have been taught to see the wind and seek the wind and, like giddy children, they indeed did find wind where others may have failed. “The light conditions have also allowed us to crack on with many boat jobs, essential maintenance and repairs, but on every racing yacht the jobs list is never empty, the crew are very fond of the ‘Purple Beastie’ and like to look after her well. It’s great to see such enthusiasm.” In the meantime the leading group consisting of Clipper Race frontrunner Gold Coast Australia and Derry-Londonderry are approximately 170nm from the restart gate located in the South China Sea. It is estimated that they will restart in the next 24-36 hours. Justin explains, “Gold Coast Australia must restart within 95 hours of beginning the ‘cruise’ phase which is before 2054.59 UTC tomorrow. Derry-Londonderry must restart tomorrow before 2214 UTC. They can restart at any time before this, however I suspect that they will leave it as long as possible as the wind conditions in the South China Sea are a bit light at the moment with the wind forecasted to increase slightly in about 48 hours’ time.” Skipper Mark Light from Derry-Londonderry expresses gratitude for the Race Office’s decision to suspend racing on this stage of the race. “The idea of motoring was partly due to the very low risk of piracy activity and partly due to the general lack of wind in this area. This has proven to be a very wise decision as we experience another windless day with very high temperatures and a flat, shimmering sea,” he explains in his 0600 report to the Race Office. “We are making good progress and have only 175nm to go until the re-start gate. Our 12-hourly stops for engine checks bring a welcome opportunity for a swim between the boats. The water is a great temperature (we estimate approximately 27C). We also managed to do a book exchange this morning. So, all going well, no pirates, no sharks and plenty of sleep. Roll on the re-start gate and let’s get racing!” They may not have seen sharks, but aboard their current companion, Gold Coast Australia, the crew has been spotting plenty of other activity in the water. “Sailing through the Sulu Sea has bought with it an abundance of wildlife and we have been spotting dolphins, whales, massive schools of fish and a rogue squid that jumped aboard in the middle of the night and squirted ink from the foredeck to the cockpit covering the mast, sails and everything in its way with spots of ink!” says skipper, Richard Hewson. He continues, “Whilst I love racing yachts more than anything else in the world there are times where I am very grateful that we are in a cruise phase. The last couple of days have been perfect cruising days with very little wind, sunshine and a view of Philippine paradise. After breakfast we hailed Derry-Londonderry and stopped for a swim while we conducted our engine checks.” As the teams motor-sail towards the restart gate, the crews have been able to put to the test some of the other skills learned during their pre-race training. Justin explains, “As De Lage Landen have been using their main engine to charge their batteries during the race from Australia, they have a little less fuel than the other yachts. As a precautionary measure they completed a yacht to yacht fuel transfer from New York yesterday. This involves transferring jerry cans from one yacht to the other. It’s an exercise that we cover in the pre-race training for just such an eventuality.” De Lage Landen’s skipper, Stuart Jackson, says, “Finally the weather has sorted itself out for our cruise section of the race. We now have blazing sunshine and have been enjoying a refreshing swim when we stop our engine to do routine maintenance checks. At lunchtime today we and New York did this together, so it was great for the crews to see some other familiar friendly faces to have a chat with. “It hasn’t been all sunbathing and relaxing as we have been working hard on our maintenance list to give us more time off during the stopover. With the weather being calm and dry these have been the perfect conditions to do this and carry out a thorough deep clean of the boat.” New York’s crew also have maintenance on the agenda. “The time under motor has for the first time let the crew relax and enjoy the views and get on with jobs around the yacht. I have been fixing our sewing machine for the past five hours so we can sew our now taped medium weight kite, which the crew have been working on for the past few days,” says skipper, Gareth Glover. The rest of the teams are also making good progress across the Sulu and Celebes Seas and tactics on the next stage is one of the topics of discussion on board all of the yachts. Singapore’s skipper Ben Bowley says, “We have nearly finished polishing all the stainless, gel-coat and re-splicing all spectra loops on kites and poles. Winches are being serviced and halyard ends attended to. “Presently there looks to be very little wind all across the South China Sea and we shall have to work hard to ensure that we finish at least an hour ahead of either Geraldton Western Australia or Qingdao to claim another podium. I fear that with Derry-Londonderry and Gold Coast Australia being a little further ahead they may catch a little puff of wind and extend their lead before it dies away. That’s not to say that they are un-catchable; when the wind does come back there is every chance it will fill in for the boats further back first, allowing us (and the guys behind us!) the chance to catch up. Time will tell,” he adds. For Juan Coetzer and his crew on board Geraldton Western Australia, the chance to take a dip during the engine checks has been more important than just cooling off. “In the afternoon the wind died completely and the sea was as flat as a pancake, so it was a good time for a swim. After hitting the logs a few days earlier, I had been waiting for a good opportunity to check under the boat for damage. So we took this time for a swim and an inspection. The news was good,” he reports. The skipper of Qingdao, with whom Geraldton Western Australia is travelling, Ian Conchie, says, “Last night we passed through the Basilan Strait and into the Sulu Sea without fanfare and we are now looking forward to reaching the re-start point to try and improve on our race position on the next leg to Singapore. We are just praying there will be wind.” The teams took the opportunity when they stopped last night to have a little bartering session and swap some supplies. They are not alone, as Visit Finland’s skipper has been doing some bartering of his own. Olly Osborne says, “Today began with a surprise visit from the Welcome to Yorkshire crew who swam over and joined us for cake and coffee which was a great opportunity to share stories and see some friendly faces. “The locals are proving very friendly, too, and the large yachts attract a lot of attention from the local fishermen who come up alongside in their wooden skiffs, which are a lot like canoes with motorbike engines on the back. At first this caused me some concern but it soon became clear that they only wanted to offer us fish. So today I exchanged two packets of tobacco for four small tuna and a large dorado, which seemed like a very good deal as far as the fisherman was concerned. We will cook these tonight and I am sure they will be a very welcome addition to our usual fare.” Visit Finland and Welcome to Yorkshire are the third group and are employing a fuel-saving method as they wait for Edinburgh Inspiring Capital to join them. Olly explains, “We are taking turns to tow each other in order to save fuel and to stay in company. We will remain here on station until the Edinburgh Inspiring Capital crew joins us, so we are enjoying a break from frequent sail changes and squally conditions, and instead have rigged a sun cover over the boom and have the fire hose going to keep cool. Welcome to Yorkshire skipper, Rupert Dean, says his crew are also enjoying the company from the Finnish entry, but are eager for Edinburgh Inspiring Capital to join them so they can get going. “They are now around 100nm behind us, so hopefully we will all be able to motor in convoy together in a day or so in the interests of fleet security. “Without the pressure of sailing our yacht to the max, we are focussing on other things. The most important of which is doing as many maintenance jobs as possible before we arrive in Singapore. “There is no doubt all the fleet would like more wind from the correct direction at the moment, which would enable us to make far better progress towards the finish line. In the interests of fleet security and fuel economy we need to motor slowly in convoy at present. The former to look out for each other, for we’re continually being accosted by friendly fishing boats; the latter being improved by sharing towing duties, reinforcing the skills learnt during our training all those months ago before the race start in Southampton.” If you want to see what participating in the Clipper Round the World Yacht Race requires, the second episode of Against the Tide airs in the US on Velocity at 10pm Eastern (7pm Pacific) today. It will be repeated at 1am, 5am and 10am (Eastern) on Tuesday mornings and at 5pm Eastern on Fridays. ESPN and STAR Sports channels start airing the series from this week – dates and times vary, check local listings for details in China, South East Asia, Hong Kong, Indonesia, India, Malaysia. After a very successful airing in the UK, Against the Tide, is also available on DVD from www.bookharbour.com. ENDS Teams are required to restart within 95 hours of suspending racing. Gate crossing times. All times are UTC 1 Gold Coast Australia 2154.59 13 January 2012 2 Derry-Londonderry 2314.00 13 January 2012 3 Geraldton Western Australia 0229.40 14 January 2012 4 Qingdao 0313.25 14 January 2012 5 Singapore 0325.31 14 January 2012 6 De Lage Landen 0936.29 14 January 2012 7 New York 1224.02 14 January 2012 8 Visit Finland 2022.00 14 January 2012 9 Welcome to Yorkshire 0322.20 15 January 2012 10 Edinburgh Inspiring Capital DTF* 1,409 at 1200 UTC 16 JanuaryNine of the ten yachts in the Clipper 11-12 Round the World Yacht Race are now in Stealth Mode for the cruise phase between the first and second parts of Race 7. The fleet is divided into three groups, accompanying each other through the Celebes and Sulu Seas for safety reasons.

Edinburgh Inspiring Capital is approximately 50nm from the gate and will be the final boat to go into Stealth Mode as part of the race organisers’ anti-piracy measures.

Assistant Race Director, Justin Taylor explains, “The plan is for them to rendezvous with Visit Finland and Welcome to Yorkshire. They have both held station for 12 hours and are now progressing at a reduced speed to allow Edinburgh Inspiring Capital, which is approximately 100nm behind these two, to catch up.”

Yesterday the Race Committee made the decision to allow Edinburgh Inspiring Capital to use their engine before the gate for the finish of the first stage in order to allow them to transit the Celebes and Sulu Seas in company with the other two teams.

Skipper Gordon Reid says, “We have utilised the engine in short stints, but ironically sailed for most of yesterday and last night in some fairly constant breeze. We are now about to cross into the Celebes Sea and rendezvous with the other yachts and the wind has once more died off.

“Yesterday we entered yet another patch of light variable wind. The crew are well practised and have been taught to see the wind and seek the wind and, like giddy children, they indeed did find wind where others may have failed.

“The light conditions have also allowed us to crack on with many boat jobs, essential maintenance and repairs, but on every racing yacht the jobs list is never empty, the crew are very fond of the ‘Purple Beastie’ and like to look after her well. It’s great to see such enthusiasm.”

In the meantime the leading group consisting of Clipper Race frontrunner Gold Coast Australia and Derry-Londonderry are approximately 170nm from the restart gate located in the South China Sea. It is estimated that they will restart in the next 24-36 hours.

Justin explains, “Gold Coast Australia must restart within 95 hours of beginning the ‘cruise’ phase which is before 2054.59 UTC tomorrow. Derry-Londonderry must restart tomorrow before 2214 UTC. They can restart at any time before this, however I suspect that they will leave it as long as possible as the wind conditions in the South China Sea are a bit light at the moment with the wind forecasted to increase slightly in about 48 hours’ time.”

Skipper Mark Light from Derry-Londonderry expresses gratitude for the Race Office’s decision to suspend racing on this stage of the race.

“The idea of motoring was partly due to the very low risk of piracy activity and partly due to the general lack of wind in this area. This has proven to be a very wise decision as we experience another windless day with very high temperatures and a flat, shimmering sea,” he explains in his 0600 report to the Race Office.

“We are making good progress and have only 175nm to go until the re-start gate. Our 12-hourly stops for engine checks bring a welcome opportunity for a swim between the boats. The water is a great temperature (we estimate approximately 27C). We also managed to do a book exchange this morning. So, all going well, no pirates, no sharks and plenty of sleep. Roll on the re-start gate and let’s get racing!”

They may not have seen sharks, but aboard their current companion, Gold Coast Australia, the crew has been spotting plenty of other activity in the water.

“Sailing through the Sulu Sea has bought with it an abundance of wildlife and we have been spotting dolphins, whales, massive schools of fish and a rogue squid that jumped aboard in the middle of the night and squirted ink from the foredeck to the cockpit covering the mast, sails and everything in its way with spots of ink!” says skipper, Richard Hewson.

He continues, “Whilst I love racing yachts more than anything else in the world there are times where I am very grateful that we are in a cruise phase. The last couple of days have been perfect cruising days with very little wind, sunshine and a view of Philippine paradise. After breakfast we hailed Derry-Londonderry and stopped for a swim while we conducted our engine checks.”

As the teams motor-sail towards the restart gate, the crews have been able to put to the test some of the other skills learned during their pre-race training.

Justin explains, “As De Lage Landen have been using their main engine to charge their batteries during the race from Australia, they have a little less fuel than the other yachts. As a precautionary measure they completed a yacht to yacht fuel transfer from New York yesterday. This involves transferring jerry cans from one yacht to the other. It’s an exercise that we cover in the pre-race training for just such an eventuality.”

De Lage Landen’s skipper, Stuart Jackson, says, “Finally the weather has sorted itself out for our cruise section of the race. We now have blazing sunshine and have been enjoying a refreshing swim when we stop our engine to do routine maintenance checks. At lunchtime today we and New York did this together, so it was great for the crews to see some other familiar friendly faces to have a chat with.

“It hasn’t been all sunbathing and relaxing as we have been working hard on our maintenance list to give us more time off during the stopover. With the weather being calm and dry these have been the perfect conditions to do this and carry out a thorough deep clean of the boat.”

New York’s crew also have maintenance on the agenda.

“The time under motor has for the first time let the crew relax and enjoy the views and get on with jobs around the yacht. I have been fixing our sewing machine for the past five hours so we can sew our now taped medium weight kite, which the crew have been working on for the past few days,” says skipper, Gareth Glover.

The rest of the teams are also making good progress across the Sulu and Celebes Seas and tactics on the next stage is one of the topics of discussion on board all of the yachts.

Singapore’s skipper Ben Bowley says, “We have nearly finished polishing all the stainless, gel-coat and re-splicing all spectra loops on kites and poles. Winches are being serviced and halyard ends attended to. 

“Presently there looks to be very little wind all across the South China Sea and we shall have to work hard to ensure that we finish at least an hour ahead of either Geraldton Western Australia or Qingdao to claim another podium. I fear that with Derry-Londonderry and Gold Coast Australia being a little further ahead they may catch a little puff of wind and extend their lead before it dies away. That’s not to say that they are un-catchable; when the wind does come back there is every chance it will fill in for the boats further back first, allowing us (and the guys behind us!) the chance to catch up. Time will tell,” he adds.

For Juan Coetzer and his crew on board Geraldton Western Australia, the chance to take a dip during the engine checks has been more important than just cooling off.

“In the afternoon the wind died completely and the sea was as flat as a pancake, so it was a good time for a swim. After hitting the logs a few days earlier, I had been waiting for a good opportunity to check under the boat for damage. So we took this time for a swim and an inspection. The news was good,” he reports.

The skipper of Qingdao, with whom Geraldton Western Australia is travelling, Ian Conchie, says, “Last night we passed through the Basilan Strait and into the Sulu Sea without fanfare and we are now looking forward to reaching the re-start point to try and improve on our race position on the next leg to Singapore. We are just praying there will be wind.”

The teams took the opportunity when they stopped last night to have a little bartering session and swap some supplies.

They are not alone, as Visit Finland’s skipper has been doing some bartering of his own.

Olly Osborne says, “Today began with a surprise visit from the Welcome to Yorkshire crew who swam over and joined us for cake and coffee which was a great opportunity to share stories and see some friendly faces.

“The locals are proving very friendly, too, and the large yachts attract a lot of attention from the local fishermen who come up alongside in their wooden skiffs, which are a lot like canoes with motorbike engines on the back. At first this caused me some concern but it soon became clear that they only wanted to offer us fish. So today I exchanged two packets of tobacco for four small tuna and a large dorado, which seemed like a very good deal as far as the fisherman was concerned. We will cook these tonight and I am sure they will be a very welcome addition to our usual fare.”

Visit Finland and Welcome to Yorkshire are the third group and are employing a fuel-saving method as they wait for Edinburgh Inspiring Capital to join them.

Olly explains, “We are taking turns to tow each other in order to save fuel and to stay in company. We will remain here on station until the Edinburgh Inspiring Capital crew joins us, so we are enjoying a break from frequent sail changes and squally conditions, and instead have rigged a sun cover over the boom and have the fire hose going to keep cool.

Welcome to Yorkshire skipper, Rupert Dean, says his crew are also enjoying the company from the Finnish entry, but are eager for Edinburgh Inspiring Capital to join them so they can get going.

“They are now around 100nm behind us, so hopefully we will all be able to motor in convoy together in a day or so in the interests of fleet security.

“Without the pressure of sailing our yacht to the max, we are focussing on other things. The most important of which is doing as many maintenance jobs as possible before we arrive in Singapore.

“There is no doubt all the fleet would like more wind from the correct direction at the moment, which would enable us to make far better progress towards the finish line. In the interests of fleet security and fuel economy we need to motor slowly in convoy at present. The former to look out for each other, for we’re continually being accosted by friendly fishing boats; the latter being improved by sharing towing duties, reinforcing the skills learnt during our training all those months ago before the race start in Southampton.”

If you want to see what participating in the Clipper Round the World Yacht Race requires, the second episode of Against the Tide airs in the US on Velocity at 10pm Eastern (7pm Pacific) today. It will be repeated at 1am, 5am and 10am (Eastern) on Tuesday mornings and at 5pm Eastern on Fridays.

ESPN and STAR Sports channels start airing the series from this week – dates and times vary, check local listings for details in China, South East Asia, Hong Kong, Indonesia, India, Malaysia.

After a very successful airing in the UK, Against the Tide, is also available on DVD from www.bookharbour.com.

ENDS

Teams are required to restart within 95 hours of suspending racing.

Gate crossing times. All times are UTC

1 Gold Coast Australia 2154.59 13 January 2012
2 Derry-Londonderry 2314.00 13 January 2012
3 Geraldton Western Australia 0229.40 14 January 2012
4 Qingdao 0313.25 14 January 2012
5 Singapore 0325.31 14 January 2012
6 De Lage Landen 0936.29 14 January 2012
7 New York 1224.02 14 January 2012
8 Visit Finland 2022.00 14 January 2012
9 Welcome to Yorkshire 0322.20 15 January 2012
10 Edinburgh Inspiring Capital DTF* 1,409 at 1200 UTC 16 January

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Charged with documenting the race from the perpectives of the crew on board, the role of Media Crew Member is often percieved as a glamorous “dream job”.

 But throw into the mix a gruelling work schedule alongside tasks including cleaning the bilges, bailing water from the boat and cooking all meals, and suddenly it’s not all fun and games if you’re a Volvo Ocean Race MCM.

While the Volvo Open 70s are in transit from the safe haven port, we caught up with Amory Ross, MCM on PUMA Ocean Racing powered by BERG, about the challenges of life on board Mar Mostro.

volvooceanrace.com: You came into this race quite late. Has it met your expectations so far?

Amory Ross: I didn’t come into this race with any expectations per se but I think it’s been a lot of what I was looking for in a sense of getting out there, finding something new and different. It’s been a really special opportunity. The material the MCMs are given is really impossible to access from any other perspective. We’re certainly hitting on all strides there. We have certainly been one for surprises so far – no shortage of new, off the topic adventures with islands and all kinds of stuff going on. It’s been exciting and the expectations have been a little left behind in terms of new adventures, and something to really sink the teeth into.

 VOR: The dismasting on the first leg must have been incredibly difficult to cover as an MCM. Tell us a bit about how you dealt with that.

AR: When it happened I think we were all more surprised than anything else. The nice thing about my situation is that there are 11 guys on the boat and each has a job to do. The sailors understand I am there for moments like that, and they have all been really gracious and welcoming with questions, and forthcoming with honest answers. Thinking about it now, it was tough. It seems like it was just yesterday. With the suddenness of it all, I immediately started recording the footage but not necessarily the reactions, just making sure from a technical standpoint everything was there because those are the moments you don’t get again. You get one try and that’s that. That very quickly shifted to trying to talk to some of the sailors. I’d be lying if I said it was easy, and there were some less than pleased reactions, but that’s my job. I look back at it now and I’m happy I had the gusto to say something because we all look back on it now in a very different light and everyone understands that in the heat of the moment it’s very frustrating for all.

 

VOR: What are the challenges of being an MCM?

AR: There’s no question that the public’s perception of the job is probably a little glamorous while from the inside it’s anything but. If I had to pick three of the more challenging components they would be:

1. Mentally being ok not helping out. That’s a big one for me. I come from a sailing background and it’s not necessarily that I want to improve the boat’s performance or anything but it’s tough. When times are down and people are struggling a bit I just want to help, I just want to grab something and offer two more hands to the equation. The nice thing is I direct that energy to the food, to the bailing, and just try to stay positive. For me that’s my contribution to the performance of the boat.

2. The scheduling we have is another one. The first leg we had was easy as it was pretty much north-south so there wasn’t much change in daylight hours or time zones. This last leg I had a really hard time with my schedule. I have a schedule for Volvo Ocean Race which runs on UTC, I have our boat time which was Cape Town time, and then I have the changing daylight so people are asking what time food’s coming up, if they are eating dinner when it’s really light or breakfast when it’s really dark. It messes with everyone’s cycle. Trying to regulate my own time and make sure meals are cooked on time, the content’s off the boat on time, making sure I get sleep – it’s a lot to handle.

3. Lastly it’s really hard to find time to rest. My time to work is when it’s sunny and so I find myself up all day, and then at night I’m editing. Sometimes it’s so loud and there’s so much going on. Whether you’re tacking or gybing or stacking your stuff, you really don’t have much rest. I always tend to end these legs pretty darn exhausted. The upside is that we get the opportunity to capture something really special. I will find myself in a bit of a swear-fest hating life, and two hours later I’ll take a picture or get something on video that makes all of it worthwhile. It’s amazing how quickly you forget.

 

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It’s a day of reflection and celebration for the ten-strong fleet of
ocean racing yachts taking part in the Clipper 11-12 Race as the
skippers and crew members look back on a year which has seen them race
half way around the world.

“The race so far has been full of emotional highs and a great sense of
achievement,” reveals Geraldton Western Australia skipper, Juan Coetzer.

“The crew have all had time to reflect on how far they have come since
they started their training back in Gosport, UK, were the Clipper Race
HQ is based,” continues Juan, with his team currently sitting second
behind rivals Gold Coast Australia.

“We have just past our virtual mark and currently the wind has decided
to be kind and give us a massive lift to the next virtual mark of New
Ireland. We came across our first fishing vessel today, and sadly there
were two whales hanging around in the area.”

Meanwhile on board Australian rivals Gold Coast Australia, skipper
Richard Hewson reports perfect sailing conditions to conclude a year
which has seen his team claim five wins out of a possible six.

“It has been almost like a dream run and I have been saying to all on
board how lucky we are to have this wind as we sail up through the
Solomon Sea,” explains Richard.

“The area we are sailing through is so beautiful sometimes you need to
close your eyes and remember where you are, however you can be quickly
reminded as the wind shuts down completely and the familiar crack crack,
crack crack of the main flapping across the boat in zero knots of wind
and the random swell.”

Crew members across the fleet are being faced with stifling conditions
as they close in on the Equator with dehydration becoming a constant
danger.

“Today at midday, being New Years Eve we had planned to have champagne,
but it was so hot this has been postponed until later in the evening
when it cools down.”

The champagne sailing conditions were also short lived as the Australian
team today saw their boat speed fall to zero knots.

“During the calm conditions we have also made a wind scoop for the front
hatch to try to funnel what wind we can down into the ghetto. This
scoop will probably come in very handy for the remainder of the race in
the north east trade winds once we reach them.”

Also attempting to make best of the current scorching conditions is
Singapore’s skipper, Ben Bowley.

“It is not just the heat that is sapping our strength but also the
humidity. I did not think it was possible for the human body to sweat so
much!” explains Ben.

“Even our two Singaporeans (for whom you would think this climate was
vaguely acceptable) are suffering. Relief comes in the form of squally
downpours shortly after dark. Be aware though, if you are going to dive
below and lather up in shampoo and shower gel mid tropical shower, you
need to be sure there is enough rain left to rinse it out again when you
return on deck.”
Every knot of boat speed becomes of vital importance during light
conditions as Singapore continue their battle with Qingdao.

“We are making our way slowly north via a series of tacks, trying to
ensure that we are always on the making tack. Qingdao have once again
been our sparring partners and a good pace guide to let us know when our
performance is wavering. Occasionally the wind gets up to a more
sensible ten knots of true and our big red bus gets moving nicely; but
mostly we have to be content with ghosting along hoping that the rest of
the fleet is in the same predicament. It seems that the Solomon Sea is
not keen to let us go!”

Just 84miles separates the ten ocean racing yachts as they continue
north for the way point of New Ireland.

“With only a couple of hours away from New Year, the crew are getting
very excited in expectation of the Big Party,” reports Stuart Jackson,
skipper of De Lage Landen.

“Every once in a while we must take some time to celebrate what we have
achieved so far. For half the crew we are going to celebrate the last
five months of this year, since they’ve been gone from home and raced
halfway around the globe. Also I would like to take some time to thank
every one of them for the enormous effort that has been put in this
challenge so far.

“What a beautiful place and a great bunch to celebrate New Year with
signing off with the last blog of the year.”

With over 3,400 miles still to go, Race 7 is still anyone’s to play for,
with Welcome to Yorkshire’s skipper, Rupert Dean, hoping recent
conditions are a sign of things to come.

“Finally we’re moving again! After 24 hours of long calms, interspersed
with intense squalls, Welcome to Yorkshire is on her way.

“Sailing in these Doldrum like conditions has been quite a challenge. It
truly has been an all or nothing scenario. From keeping our yacht moving
in the lightest of zephyrs under windseeker, to deep reefing the main
and beating with staysail alone, constant evolutions and attention to
trim have been required,” explains Rupert.

“Navigationally it has been a challenge too, with 90 degree wind shifts
requiring numerous tacks, in order to remain on the one with the best
VMG.

“The crew are working hard and all are looking forward to welcoming the
New Year in tonight,” signs off the Yorkshire entry’s skipper.

“A Happy New Year to all from the crew on New York,” says Gareth Glover,
skipper of the Big Apple entry.

“This New Years the crew of New York will be working hard on trying to
pull in some miles on the leading yachts and put some to the others and
working every point of a knot upwind. Life on a race yacht is nonstop
even on New Year’s Eve.

“As the fleet are tacking towards our next way point at New Ireland
which is still over 350 nautical miles away we were able to pull in some
miles on the Singapore and Qingdao to a point when we were able to chat
on the VHF,” continues Gareth, with his team sitting in seventh place.

“During the night there was a big patch of wind then no wind so if you
were lucky you would sail in 20 knots for 30 minutes and then no wind
until the next clouds came over so it was on and off all night.”

Ahead of New York by just three miles is Derry-Londonderry, whose
skipper, Mark Light, summed up the race to Singapore so far.

“Heat, thunder, lightning, squalls, torrential rain, fierce gusts, poor
visibility, tropical cyclones, unfamiliar waters, lots of reefing, all
in contrast to blue skies, lots of sunshine, calms, reefs, islands,
fishing boats and flat seas!”

Currently nine miles behind fifth placed Visit Finland, the Northern
Ireland entry will hope to make gains on the Finns during the New Year
period.

“As you may appreciate we are experiencing a bit of everything and lots
of certain things – notably rain!

“Conditions are stifling down below decks and when it is not raining we
have the hatches open wherever possible just to make the temperature
slightly bearable inside!” says Mark.

“Unfortunately for us, we sailed through a large squall last night all
very prepared, knowing what to expect but afterwards didn’t quite expect
the wind to desert us while all other boats in our vicinity managed
after a short while to sail slowly away as we sat there helpless! Let’s
hope our luck will change in 2012!” signs off Mark.

“What a year it has been” reveals Gordon Reid, skipper of Edinburgh
Inspiring Capital.

“For me the entire year has been spent preparing and training crews for
the race. Being appointed skipper of Edinburgh Inspiring Capital in this
fantastic adventure racing around the world is definitely one of my
highlights; surfing monster waves in the beautiful, wild and furious
Southern Ocean another highlight.

“The sailing conditions have been fairly variable from very light winds
to howling squalls, thunder and lightning and heavy rain bouncing off
the decks, numerous head-sail changes all the way from Yankee number 1
to wind-seeker and back and constant reefs in and out of the mainsail,”
explains Gordon.

“We are still racing hard and our efforts seem to be paying out as we
continue to close on most of the other yachts.”

ENDS

Positions at 0900 UTC, Saturday 31 December

Boat DTF*
1 Gold Coast Australia 3420nm
2 Geraldton Western Australia 3423nm (+3nm)
3 Qingdao 3443nm (+23nm)
4 Singapore 3443nm (+24nm)
5 Visit Finland 3464nm (+44nm)
6 Derry-Londonderry 3467nm (+47nm)
7 New York 3469nm (+49nm)
8 De Lage Landen 3480nm (+60nm)
9 Edinburgh Inspiring Capital 3490nm (+70nm)
10 Welcome to Yorkshire 3495nm (+75nm)

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Swelteringly hot conditions as Clipper 11-12 fleet continues to race north 
and Crews warned of dehydration risk. 

All ten yachts competing in the Clipper 11-12 Round the World Yacht Race have been experiencing some fantastic sailing conditions and, as the sea state has subsided from the three-metre swell of race start day, it has allowed all of the teams to dry out kit and carry out some maintenance.

Gold Coast Australia has been monitoring some damage to the stern gland, the flexible membrane around the prop shaft that prevents water entering the boat. It was damaged on race start day and Singapore and Welcome to Yorkshire’s crew transferred the necessary kit from their yachts to Gold Coast Australia to allow them to repair it.

“This morning after three hours of hard labour and a little bit of cursing, Terry Martin and I managed to get the new stern gland on,” reports Richard Hewson. “The replacement process is normally undertaken while the boat is out of the water and there were a few problems that we had to work out prior to starting the exercise, including how not to lose the propeller and shaft altogether, how to prevent masses of water entering the hull, how to get the water out, and what to do if it all goes horribly wrong.

“The process involves disconnecting the propeller shaft from the gear box and sliding it back, then using a puller to remove the spindle that attaches the shaft to the gear box. This required a special tool to pull the spindle off and thankfully it was in a box passed over by Singapore shortly after race start. The spindle had not been removed for a long time and the nuts took a bit of heat, WD40 and elbow grease to crack. Finally, with the bilge pumps running flat out to remove the water that was flooding in, the spindle was off, and we were able to remove the old cracked stern gland.

“With a bit of messing about the new stern gland was on and with a bit more elbow grease and a little more cursing, Terry and I managed to get the shaft re-attached to the gear box and the stern gland secured in place without sinking the boat.”

Richard continues, “We are still in the lead and in a good position to receive the new wind from the west first, so hopefully will continue to extend this lead over the coming days to reach the Coral Sea Scoring Gate first and gain three points, but more importantly, be the first yacht into the north easterly trades and commence our sprint to Singapore.”

As the temperatures continue to rise – skippers are reporting the mercury reaching the high 30s in the airless environment below decks – dehydration becomes a very real risk for those on board.

“At my midday ‘happy hour’ brief I warned crew about the dangers of sunburn, heat stroke and dehydration,” says Richard. “While conditions on deck are at the moment quite pleasant due to the gentle ten knots of westerly wind, conditions below are getting exceedingly hot.  Our water maker is basically running flat out to cope with the water required for drinking, cooking and showers.”

“Down below the temperature rises with every passing day, although the flatter seas have allowed us to rig our wind scoop today which has brought a welcome breeze through the boat,” reports Qingdao’s skipper, Ian Conchie. “Keeping hydrated is so important as you constantly sweat and lose fluids. As a result we have been using our water maker already to maintain our water stocks.”

The water maker, a desalination unit that allows sea water to be turned into drinking water, is an essential piece of kit, but it is not the only source of fresh water during this stage of the race. Along with the blue sky, champagne sailing, come tropical downpours. At crew brief before the start of Race 7, Joff Bailey, the Race Director, also instructed crew to consider ways of capturing the rainwater in case they need it.

“Wow it’s HOT!” exclaims Ben Bowley, Singapore’s skipper. “I think that we had all forgotten just how hot it gets in the tropics when the wind dies off. Sitting here in the nav station the temperature is hovering in the high 30s. Yesterday evening saw the champagne sailing start properly with our belated ceremonial toast of bubbly to celebrate Christmas. Shortly thereafter the wind eased enough for us to hoist our favourite kite, Vicky, and fly her on a reach. She did us proud overnight but as the sun showed us the first glint of dawn, the breeze swung forward a little too far for us to hold her. 

“The rest of the day has been spent alternating between swift fetching and ghosting along with barely enough wind to keep the sails from collapsing.  At least we have had some company to help keep the crew focused on trimming and driving the boat along an arrow-straight course.  De Lage Landen, New York and Visit Finland have been our sparring partners all day.

“These light, swelteringly hot conditions can be almost as big a drain on energy and concentration levels as slogging it out in the Southern Ocean.  We do have the advantage however of getting some good tans and the obligatory tropics ‘grade 0/1′ haircuts. For now we are making the most of sedately heading in the right direction as in a couple of days we are likely to be smashing our way to windward into 30 to 40 knots of breeze!”

“The racing is staying close with five of us within sight of one another, so everyone is keeping their eyes peeled. With the wind looking to be light for the next few days it will be interesting to see where miles are won and lost,” comments De Lage Landen’s skipper, Stuart Jackson.

He continues, “Sweating seems to be top of today’s agenda, with little chance to get respite from the tropical sunshine. I am sure that is not going to get us much sympathy from those in the British and northern European winter at the moment! We have all taken to having buckets of salt water thrown over us to keep cool whilst on watch.”

>From the tightly-bunched leading group New York’s skipper Gareth Glover writes, “We have Singapore and De Lage Landen on our starboard beam. This keeps us on our game and determined to keep our currently held third spot and improve to second or first. One of our crew has the binoculars permanently fixed on our close rivals, watching their every move. This makes a change from previous races where we have gone weeks without seeing any ships, with only birds for company.

“The sun is still shining and many of the round the world crew have started to reminisce about Leg 1 where they experienced equally hot conditions. Below decks still feels like a sauna, the only difference this time is we have fewer crew. This does have its benefits: no hot bunking and the pick of the bunks around the fans. One of our new leggers, Brian, who joined in the Gold Coast, has rigged up a bimini over the helm to provide some relief from the harsh rays.

“We had a good run overnight averaging about nine or ten knots, flying the heavyweight spinnaker, then the winds dropped as predicted. We peeled to the lightweight in the early hours and then eventually hoisted the Yankee 1.”

Visit Finland is also with the main group of yachts on the east of the race track, neck and neck with Welcome to Yorkshire.

Olly Osborne, skipper of the Finnish entry says, “Today the Coral Sea seems to be living up to its name with clear blue skies only interrupted by a few streaks of cirrus cloud and even the odd coconut floating past! The sun is beginning to feel pretty intense now though and, as the wind ebbs away to little more than a zephyr, being down below is pretty uncomfortable. On the plus side though the racing has been fantastic and we are still within sight of several boats. It looks like it will all boil down to light airs tactics over the next day or so, and we will be watching the weather closely for signs of change.”

Rupert Dean on board Welcome to Yorkshire agrees with Olly, saying, “As far as tactics and routing go, the next few days will be very interesting indeed. With wind speeds expected to drop further, swinging round to the west and then north, it will be fascinating to see whether the boats on the east or west extremities will come out best. In the meantime, for us, it’s all about keeping up good apparent wind speed to maximise our distance north, before ex tropical cyclone Grant moves our way. Hopefully we will all be well north of its centre when it arrives.

“Racing under relentless sunshine and decreasing winds is hot work indeed, requiring plenty of discipline from the watches to maintain focus, whilst ensuring everyone is adequately hydrated and protected against the burning, energy-sapping forces of the sun. Fortunately focus is very good at present, helped by having Visit Finland and De Lage Landen in visual and AIS range. It’s also very good to share some VHF banter with them too, recalling the treats and celebrations made on each boat over this unique Christmas period.”

Derry-Londonderry rounded off their Christmas celebrations with a glass of port on Boxing Day evening, toasting to health, happiness and a safe return to all taking part in the race.

“With the Christmas festivities over and the last of the goodies being devoured we will return to our freeze dried foods, porridge and tinned fruit desserts,” remarks Mark Light, skipper of the Northern Ireland yacht.

“We have entered the forecast area of light winds. The sky is almost perfectly clear apart from the odd fluffy white cumulus clouds which give a rare but welcome relief from the intense sunshine. Up above it is very hot but thankfully we are now sailing upwind, giving some sort of light breeze over the deck. Down below decks the temperature is even higher and with no air flow through the boat you can imagine what it feels like. Strange odours and lots of sweat are inevitable as we continue our daily routines of life at sea. Only 1,000nm to go to the Equator, I remind my crew, so get used to the temperatures!

“The fleet is now once again bunching up into the belt of light winds as we approach the first of our mandatory gates and we all wait to see if the latest tropical cyclone will track towards us and give us any helpful or adverse wind and sea conditions.”

Qingdao and Edinburgh Inspiring Capital are carving out a more central path than the main group to the east of the fleet, while Geraldton Western Australia is furthest to the west.

Skipper of the Chinese entry, Ian Conchie, says, “We enjoyed great downwind sailing during the night starting off with our heavy weight kite, ‘Henri’ and then this morning our lightweight, ‘Zorro’ [so called because of the shape of the scar of the repair tape across the sail]. This was a great change for our new crew to re-familiarise themselves with kite work, especially when we peeled between to the two early this morning. Since then we have changed back to white sails and are trying to make the best of the light conditions.

“Tactically it is a very tight race so far, we are still in VHF range of a few boats and we are pushing hard to try and improve our position and get the boat into the best position for the next weather system when it arrives in a few days.”

“What a total contrast to the weather on Christmas Day: from 40 knot gusts and wild seas to a light breeze and blazing sunshine. The deck is too hot to walk on with bare feet,” notes Gordon Reid, skipper of Edinburgh Inspiring Capital.

“The wind hasn’t veered as forecast and instead it has eased and remains from a north westerly direction. We are currently holding our upwind sail plan as we seek the wind amongst the isolated cloud banks. If it continues to ease it may even be time to get the windseeker up.

“Our wind instruments shorted out during the first rain storm of the first day’s racing, and only today is it suitable for a trip to the top of the mast. Unfortunately the intrepid Scarlet (Nick Barclay) dropped the entire cable down the mast whilst trying to re splice the connections… Doh! So our quick fix is turning into a mammoth task and we are now on our third trip to the top in as many hours.

“On we truck towards the Scoring Gate and as Baz (Barry Chamberlain) reminded me… ‘Always keep the faith, Skip.’ So that is exactly what we will be doing!”

Out to the west and sailing their own course, covering more ground than any of the other ten yachts in the 12 hours to 0900 UTC, Geraldton Western Australia’s skipper, Juan Coetzer, has allowed his crew a little festive celebration as a reward for a good day’s work.

“In the early hours of the morning the kite came down, and the Yankee 1 went up. We have been cruising along today so well and so much maintenance had been done, I thought it to be a good idea to crack open some champagne for happy hour. During this time I told the crew they could have their first shower. This really is champagne sailing.”

ENDS

ENDS

Positions at 1200 UTC, Tuesday 27 December

Boat                                DTF*
1 Gold Coast Australia 3,903nm
2 Singapore 3,917nm (+14nm DTL*)
3 De Lage Landen 3,921nm (+19nm)
4 New York 3,925nm (+23nm)
5 Welcome to Yorkshire 3,926nm (+24nm)
6 Geraldton Western Australia 3,927nm (+25nm)
7 Visit Finland 3,926nm (+26nm)
8 Qingdao 3,936nm (+33nm)
9 Derry-Londonderry 3,945nm (+42nm)
10 Edinburgh Inspiring Capital 3,953nm (+50nm)

 

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The teams are enjoying a welcome respite from the ferocious weather of the past few days as they commence the charge to the Scoring Gate.

At the front of the fleet Gold Coast Australia is maintaining a comfortable lead in the calmer conditions. Richard Hewson and his team are heading slightly north to make the southern end of the Scoring Gate.

 ”Life on Gold Coast Australia is a little less extreme now the winds have abated and we are heading north. Whilst conditions remain a chilly 7 degrees Celsius outside during the day and below 5 degrees at night, the wind has reduced and the ocean is no longer boiling with white caps,” Richard said

Richard reports that Gold Coast Australia passed 34 miles to the north of lle aux Cochons (Pig Island) and later today will pass to the north of other islands in Crozet group en route to the southern end of the Scoring Gate. “This is the closest we will be to land for almost half a month before we land in Geraldton,” Richard said.

Gold Coast Australia is now just 170 miles from the Scoring Gate for Race 4 and Richard will have his sights set on bagging the maximum three points on offer. The first, second and third teams to cross the line between 40 degrees south and 55 east and 45 south 55 east will be awarded three, two and one points respectively. Richard was back up the mast yesterday trying to remove the remnants of their badly damaged heavyweight spinnaker and checking the rigging following their monster wrap.

 ”When I was up the mast I took a few minutes to observe the fantastic beauty of the surrounding ocean. It is possibly one of the most amazing feelings in the world perched above the albatross and petrel with the boiling white seas of the Southern Ocean below. I took in the amazing expanse of beauty that surrounds us for thousands of miles in a land where in the past only sealers and whalers dared to travel,” he said. After experiencing the full force of Mother Nature in the Southern Ocean over recent days, the teams will be studying the weather closely to ensure they are prepared for the next onslaught.

 To help them navigate and stay safe in the notorious Southern Ocean, the skippers receive a daily weather update from meteorologist Simon Rowell, who skippered Jersey Clipper to victory in Clipper 2002. Simon has been commissioned to provide the skippers with forecasts, and he does this by analysing observations relayed back from the fleet and creating local charts from data available from the US National Center for Environmental Prediction (NCEP) Global Forecast System (GFS) model.

 ”The next depression seems to be going south of the fleet, but the skippers will need to be careful of the front as it’s looking sharper than the GRIB files suggest, and the amount of precipitation on the 48 hour forecast indicates lots of squalls and therefore gusts,” Simon said. “Before the cold front goes over, the winds will be coming in a northerly direction from the tropics, so it may give the teams poor visibility over the cold sea,” Simon warns. New York has regained second place from De Lage Landen as they charge for the Scoring Gate, and skipper Gareth Glover is feeling upbeat. “The repairs following yesterday’s damage have begun, the tunes are playing, the sun is almost shining, the bread smells amazing and cups of tea are flowing. The news of our second place has boosted morale even higher and it’s not far to the gate, so who knows,” Gareth said. “In the last 24 hours the winds have been pretty fraught, increasing to over to 20 knots overnight. Despite the cold and wet conditions morale stayed high throughout the night as we surfed the waves and covered some good mileage,” he added.

On De Lage Landen, Stuart Jackson and his team are also enjoying a reprieve from recent conditions despite persistent cold. “There’s more frozen rain coming with the clouds down here, so things haven’t decided to warm up yet. Although now the low has passed conditions have improved greatly with the wind down to around 20 knots on the beam,” Stuart said. “We still have a rather sloppy sea state from the swell of the low that passed through and it looks like conditions should stay pretty much like this for the next few days,” he added.

Rupert Dean, skipper of Welcome to Yorkshire, said his team has slipped back into fifth overnight due to what he describes as “a poor decision” to run bare-headed after tearing their Yankee 3 headsail. “Normally we’d have changed for another sail whilst we repaired the Yankee 3 and then re-hoist. Due to the strong gusty conditions, however, I felt the Yankee 2 would be too big a substitute, so elected to carry on running just with a deep-reefed main. The result was that we sailed with vastly reduced speed, handing back hard won miles to Qingdao and the rest of the fleet,” Rupert said. “With 20:20 hindsight, I should have got the crew to rig the storm jib as a suitable alternative to the Yankee 3 whilst it was being repaired. Why I didn’t do this I don’t know, so I’m pretty cross with myself right now,” he said. “This could be due to a general lack of sleep, as sailing downwind in this rough remote part of the world requires relentless concentration to look after the boat and crew whilst gunning for competitive speed,” he added.

 Qingdao was the boat to benefit from Welcome to Yorkshire’s stint without a headsail but has since slipped back into fifth, albeit by only a mile. Despite sailing in one of the most remote places on the planet, Ian Conchie and his crew have been within VHF range of  Welcome to Yorkshire and a fishing boat. “Just when you think you are the only boat for miles you are proved wrong,” Ian said, adding that he called fellow skipper Rupert Dean for a catch up and spoke to the fishing vessel to ensure they were not trawling large nets. “You have to be careful with fishing vessels this far out, as the large commercial nets they carry can stretch for miles. After a quick chat on the VHF we established through the Asian crew’s broken English that they were using long lines which do not pose a problem to us,” he said.

Ian said he was later called on deck for a large ship of the port side that was not showing on AIS which turned out not to be a ship at all. “I checked the screen as sure enough nothing was showing. I popped my head up and saw the “ship” in question. I told the crew to keep taking bearing on it to be sure but that I was certain it would not be a problem for us. When they asked why I explained that it would not come within 250,000 miles of us as it was the moon!” he said.

Edinburgh Inspiring Capital has slipped back down to ninth after a brief stint in seventh place overnight, and skipper Gordon Reid reports that his team has been experiencing the “full fury of the mother of all storms”. “What a ride! I have never seen anything like it and I have sailed lots of places all over the world,” Gordon said. “We’ve been taking waves that washed the entire watch on deck from the high side into the cockpit and knocking the helm off his feet,” he added. Gordon describes the extreme conditions that his team has been experiencing as they eat up the miles towards Geraldton. “We were free falling off the top of massive waves all night, one after another after another, the wind was gusting over 60 knots and at one time we were going so fast we caught the wave in front and buried the bow and half the hull straight into it at 25 knots,” he said. “The whole boat was swamped and everyone on deck was washed into the cockpit. The cockpit was full, water pouring down the companionway and everything inside was thrown all over the place,” he said. “Nothing like a bit of seriously scary sailing to make you feel the adrenaline rush of being alive – this is the ultimate Southern Ocean adventure,” Gordon added.

Geraldton Western Australia is hot on the heels of Qingdao as the most northerly of the fleet as they race towards their home port. “The gusty winds make it feel like a roller coaster, but it has all settled down now and we’re making good progress towards the Scoring Gate,” skipper, Juan Coetzer, said. On Derry-Londonderry, skipper Mark Light reports that the temperature above and below decks has dropped dramatically. “We have an air temperature of about 4 degrees Celsius and when you add wind chill factors and lots icy cold Southern Ocean spray, it feels very cold indeed,” he said. Mark said that helming is being done in shifts of 20 minutes to give crew the opportunity to rotate between being on the helm, on watch and down below to warm up. “Hot drinks are a must and we have a large thermos flask down below permanently filled with hot water. Our generator is now run through the night now only to charge our batteries but also to add a precious heat source which has now doubled up as a drying room for gloves, hats and even boots,” he said. Mark said that watches are woken earlier now to give them more time to get ready with all the extra layers required. “One crew member went on deck last night with eight separate layers on and when I commented on the amount of layers she calmly said that she was saving the ninth layer for when it gets really cold. Welcome to the Southern Ocean guys!” he said. On Singapore, Ben Bowley and his crew have managed to hoist progressively more sail as the wind moderates but with a few crew out of action with a bout of the flu, progress has been hampered. “Right at this moment it would be perfect to hoist the heavyweight kite but I am inclined to wait until the next watch change when we have a full complement on deck,” Ben said. Other crew members are struggling with the cold. “Some people are also struggling with fingers seizing up whilst trying to hank and un-hank sails due to not having the correct kit,” Ben said. “It amazes me that many of the crew did not realise just how cold it could get when the southerly Antarctic wind blows, numbing bodies and minds,” he added.

Ben’s top tips for kit for sailing in this part of the world are a good thick pair of wetsuit diving gloves and boots at least one size too large to accommodate thick winter socks without losing feeling in the toes.

Olly Osborne, skipper of Visit Finland, reports that a short break in the weather yesterday allowed his team to run the lower half of the main sail out of the mast track and carry out a repair. “Two large sole boards made a good platform on deck to lay out the damaged part and by holding the sail in place by pinning it to the boards we were able to match up the edges of the tear fairly well,” Olly said. With the wind forecast to build again, the Visit Finland team went for a combination of Sikaflex (waterproof sealant) and strips of sailcloth to close the tear quickly before the daylight faded. “This system worked quite well and although the Sikaflex seemed to get just about everywhere, we were able to lay the strips on quite accurately, With the whole watch battling against the pressure of the wind we managed to roll up the loose sail and tie it in place to see us through the night and to allow the repair to harden. The wind built further throughout the night but when the dawn broke the repair was still intact,” Olly said. During the afternoon with the wind easing again we ran the main back into the mast track and hoisted it to it’s full height It was a great relief to see that the repair had worked, and even looked pretty robust,” he said. “The focus for us will now be to regain our racing spirit, and claw our way back up the leader board,” he added. 

 

 Positions at 0900 UTC, Friday 14 October Boat DTF*

1 Gold Coast Australia 3,105nm

2 New York 3,194nm (+89nm DTL*)

 3 De Lage Landen 3,209nm (+104nm)

Welcome to Yorkshire 3,257nm (+152nm)

5 Qingdao 3,257nm (+153nm)

6 Geraldton Western Australia 3,272nm (+167nm)

7 Singapore 3,334nm (+229nm)

8 Derry-Londonderry 3,390nm (+285nm)

9 Edinburgh Inspiring Capital 3,395nm (+290nm)

10 Visit Finland 3,422nm (+317nm)

 

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Whether or not you’re superstitious, a christening remains a compulsory and symbolic moment in the life of a boat. At 1400 GMT this Saturday 11 June, the traditional bottle of champagne was smashed across the bow of Groupama 4, the new monohull aboard which Franck Cammas and his international crew will take part in the next Volvo Ocean Race. The history of this crewed round the world with stopovers has been marked by a great French sailor: Eric Tabarly. It is his right arm, the sailor and offshore race organiser Gérard Petipas, who was selected to be patron to the first Volvo Open 70 built in France.

 
The public was out in force for this historic moment in sailing: the christening of the monohull Groupama sailing team, crewed by the first French team to participate in the Volvo Ocean Race since 1993, with Éric Tabarly. Over 3,000 spectators packed around the Keroman submarine base in Lorient to discover those faces who will carry Groupama’s colours around the world for eight months across ten countries.
Jean Azéma, CEO of Groupama: “We’re now switching from the technical to the human face of the project. The big crowds testify to the attachment the local people have for the Groupama project and the Volvo Ocean Race. Various colleagues from Groupama have come here today from right across France and Europe to provide their support for Franck Cammas and his team”.

Open to the public, the christening village played host to a wealth of visitors and entertained the children throughout the day. At 1500 hours local time, all eyes were on the pontoons where the sixty members of Groupama sailing team formed a guard of honour for the crew of Groupama 4. The ‘son et lumières’ show and the releasing of balloons delighted the public, with everyone seemingly holding their breath as the specially rigged up champagne bottle was hurled against the bow. Franck Cammas: “I’m not superstitious but I was relieved when the bottle broke first time. I’m happy to have been able to share this christening ceremony with all my team as well as my sponsor, Groupama, for what will soon be 14 years”.

Memories of the great French sailor Éric Tabarly were all around the port of Lorient this Saturday. Pen Duick VI, which participated in the first edition of the Whitbread (predecessor to the Volvo Ocean Race) was on the water next to the new monohull Groupama. Gérard Petipas*, a loyal friend of Éric Tabarly and an acclaimed sailor on the various Pen Duick craft, was chosen by Franck Cammas to be patron to Groupama 4. The christening was synonymous with handing on the torch, as Gérard Petipas explains: “I’m honoured and touched to have been chosen by Franck to be the patron to Groupama 4. 38 years ago, Éric and I christened another boat, Pen Duick VI, the first French boat to race the Whitbread. I find in Franck the same qualities that I appreciated in Éric: Franck is a great skipper and a leader of men. He has designed this boat and has battled to do it. The fact that he’s been with Groupama for 13 years is prodigious. He has succeeded in putting together a fabulous team. He is a remarkable man.”

Franck Cammas: “For the past 18 years, the race hasn’t seen a French crew. Éric Tabarly took part in the Whitbread five times without ever winning it. With Groupama sailing team, we’re taking back the torch. It was a link I held very dear and I wanted to be present to see.”

The town of Lorient, a stopover in the Volvo Ocean Race in June 2012, benefited from Groupama 4′s christening to launch its volunteer recruitment campaign. Lorient and its surrounding area are actively preparing to play host, nearly a year to the day, to the six boats competing in the crewed round the world with stopovers. To achieve this, it is counting on the motivation and enthusiasm of 700 volunteers from all over France.

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VELUX 5 OCEANS skipper Gutek battles it out with Chris Stanmore-Major, finishing 40 seconds ahead of him in Punta del Este, Uruguay, after racing thousands of miles across the Southern Ocean from New Zealand. (Photo by Ainhoa Sanchez/w-w-i.com)

Three boats arrive in Punta del Este within 80 minutes

The third ocean sprint of the VELUX 5 OCEANS came to the most incredibly thrilling climax today with Polish ocean racer Zbigniew Gutkowski beating British rival Chris Stanmore-Major to second place by just 40 seconds. It is the closest ever finish in solo ocean racing history. After nearly four weeks at sea and more than 6,700 miles of racing through the Southern Ocean and the South Atlantic from New Zealand to Uruguay, the fight for second place came down to a nail-biting drag race to the finish line. As a flotilla of boats took to the waters off Punta del Este to witness the finale and welcome in the  kippers they were greeted by two unmistakable shapes on the horizon – Operon Racing
and Spartan neck and neck, separated by less than a mile. With around a mile to the finish line it was CSM who had the slight advantage but after taking a course too close to the shore he was forced to gybe twice to lay the line, allowing Gutek to capitalise.

In an amazing photo finish it was Gutek who emerged the victor, sneaking in front of CSM right at the last moment to clinch second place by less than a minute. Gutek crossed the finish line at 4.40pm local time (1840 UTC) after 25 days, 17 hours and ten minutes. Forty seconds later, CSM crossed.
And in an exhilarating conclusion to the leg, Canadian Derek Hatfield blasted across the line just over an hour later after 25 days, 18 hours and 22 minutes. Following Brad Van Liew’s win on Tuesday afternoon, all four boats arrived in just over 48 hours of each other. “It was a fight to the end and I won,” Gutek said after stepping on to the dockside to rapturous applause from the waiting crowds. “This second place is the best of all of them, much better than in Wellington and Cape Town. I am really proud.”

Moments later it was CSM’s turn to join his fellow skippers on dry land. “This sprint has proven I have a fast boat and I have taken the handbrake off now and I think we have a good chance for the next leg,” he said. “We have lost out on second place and that’s a great pity, I wish we were parked one boat closer to Brad, but I think we have made our point – we know what we’re doing now and we can go fast.”

“Never in a 6,000-mile leg have I seen a finish this close,” Derek added. “It was incredible. All I  can say is wow, what a race. It was so close, I loved it.”
Ocean sprint three has by no means been easy going for any of the VELUX 5 OCEANS
skippers. In the middle of the Southern Ocean, thousands of miles from anywhere, CSM’s
mainsail ripped and he was forced to spend 30 hours stitching it in horrendous weather
conditions. He also had to contend with rips in one of his foresails as well as a major water leak onboard Spartan.

The challenge began in October, www.velux5oceans.com
Gutek faced a nervous rounding of the mighty Cape Horn when keel problems developed
onboard Operon Racing. After a composite part on the yacht’s keel pins broke, the keel started to move several millimetres, making a dull knocking sound. Gutek was forced to fully cant the keel for the remainder of the race, affecting his performance.

Onboard Active House Derek was dealing with an engine oil leak which meant he could only charge his batteries when on port tack. After holding on to second place until just two days from Punta del Este, it was low power to his wind instruments that was Derek’s eventual downfall. “The results of this leg really bode well for the future of the Eco 60 class,” Derek concluded. “Here we have recycled older boats that are so competitive and level – it makes for great racing.”

Ocean sprint four will see the fleet sprint 5,800 nautical miles to Charleston, starting on March 27.

FINAL POSITIONS:
1ST Brad Van Liew – 23 days, 17 hours and 46 minutes
2nd Zbigniew Gutkowski – 25 days, 17 hours and 10 minutes
3rd Chris Stanmore-Major – 25 days, 17 hours and 10 minutes 40 seconds
4th Derek Hatfield – 25 days, 18 hours and 22 minutes.

SKIPPER QUOTES:
Gutek: “The end to my sprint three story is amazing. This second is the best of all of them,
much better than in Wellington and Cape Town. I am really proud. For the last 48 hours I worked so hard to get every last bit of speed out of my boat. Six miles from the finish I was leading Chris, and then more wind came and he went past me. I hoisted my gennaker and wewe re neck and neck. It was a fight to the end and I won.”

CSM: “It’s been a very interesting day. This morning I got a position update saying Gutek was only one mile behind me. I was hoping that the tack I was about to do would put me ahead of him but I saw him about 11am pass in front of me about a mile ahead. He is sailing that boat out of his skin. I just couldn’t catch him going upwind. Then the wind clocked round so we were on a reach and that’s what Spartan does best. Suddenly we were doing 13 or 14 knots and we chased Gutek down pretty quickly. Coming into Punta I had about a fix-boat lead on him and everything was looking really good. Then, coming towards the line I got too close to a patch of rocks which was an error on my part. I had been on deck concentrating on the sailing. I had topu t two gybes in to get to the finish line and that allowed Gutek to pass me in the dying moments. I ended up finishing 40 seconds behind him rather than 40 seconds ahead, but that’s racing, that’s what it’s all about. This sprint has proven I have a fast boat and I have taken the handbrake off now and I think we have a good chance for the next leg. We have lost out on second place and that’s a great pity, I wish we were parked one boat closer to Brad, but I think we have made our point – we know what we’re doing now and we can go fast.”

Derek: “All I can say is ‘wow, what a race’. It was so close, I loved it. It was a lot of work but not as much effort as sprint two. It was a good leg, a fun leg. We had a really fast passage to Cape Horn and then an amazing rounding of the Horn within a mile of the coast. The second part from Cape Horn, the last 1,000 miles, was the most difficult part. Not that long ago I was in second place but all I can say is in the last few days the wheels really fell off. Because of the oil leak in my engine my power got so low that my wind instruments wouldn’t work. In the dark I was going back and forth trying to get upwind, and that’s when Gutek got away. It was mine to lose. The results of this leg really bode well for the future of the Eco 60 class – here we have recycled older boats that are so competitive and so level. It makes for great racing. Never in a 6,000-mile leg have I seen a finish this close, it was incredible.”

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American veteran singlehander finishes first in 6,000-mile sprint to Punta
del Este

BRAD Van Liew added yet another notch to his belt today to claim victory in the third sprint of the VELUX 5 OCEANS. The 43-year-old American crossed the finish line in Punta del Este, Uruguay, in his Eco 60 Le Pingouin at 5.16pm local time (1916 UTC) to make it three wins out of three legs so far in the 30,000-mile circumnavigation billed as The Ultimate Solo Challenge. Unlike his other race wins, Brad was not met on the dock by his wife and children – but instead the people of Punta del Este gave a warm welcome to one of their favourite ocean racers. It is the second time Brad has sailed into in Punta del Este with the VELUX 5 OCEANS, having competed in the 1998 edition of the race, then known as the Around Alone.

Sprint three took the VELUX 5 OCEANS fleet more than 6,000 nautical miles from Wellington in New Zealand to Punta del Este via Cape Horn, for sailors one of the most respected and feared landfalls in the world. It was Brad’s third solo rounding of Cape Horn, making him the only American to have raced round the famous  andmark three times singlehanded.
“Three legs won and three times round Cape Horn safely – those are two very important facts for me, two massive hurdles,” Brad said as he stepped off the dock after 23 days at sea. “It’s nice to have a nice point lead now and it’s nice to be here in Punta. It’s a fantastic place here and I have missed it. It’s great to be back.”
Brad sailed 6,530 nautical miles in an impressive 23 days, 17 hours and 46 minutes at an average speed of 11.5 knots. After setting sail from Wellington on February 6, he reached Cape Horn in just 16 days. After a frightening experience at Cape Horn in 1998 during which his yacht was smashed by hurricane-force winds and seas over 20 metres high, Brad knew all too well the potential danger of the Horn.

“Cape Horn is always nerve-wracking and there’s nothing you can do about that,” he said. “The reality is when you head down south to Cape Horn there is a point where you jump off the cliff and there is nothing you can do about it – you have to deal with whatever is thrown at you.  Fortunately I got pretty lucky rounding the Horn; I think we all did. We know that because we all made it. If you get unlucky, you don’t make it. It was a very special experience for me this time round. It was really exciting as much as nerve-wracking.”
Brad is awarded the maximum 12 points for his leg win, cementing his lead at the top of the VELUX 5 OCEANS rankings on 43 points. Just a few hundred miles from the finish line a battle is raging between Derek Hatfield, Zbigniew ‘Gutek’ Gutkowski and Chris Stanmore-Major, all fighting for second place. At the 1800 UTC position report just ten miles separated the three skippers. All three are currently expected to arrive in Punta del Este on Thursday.
POSITIONS AT 1800 UTC:
The challenge began in October,  for more information about the race go to www.velux5oceans.com 
Skipper / distance to finish (nm) / distance covered in last 24 hours (nm) / average speed in last
24 hours (kts)
Brad Van Liew, Le Pingouin: Finished Tuesday March 1 2011, after 23 days, 17 hours and 46
minutes having sailed 6,530 nautical miles
Derek Hatfield, Active House: 323.3 / 159.9 / 6.7
Zbigniew Gutkowski, Operon Racing: 328.1 / 156.8 / 6.5
Chris Stanmore-Major, Spartan: 332.9 / 187.5 / 7.8

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