It’s been a lively 24 hours for the Clipper 09-10 fleet with some tough conditions for the crews on their final ocean crossing of this 35,000-mile race around the planet. The words of race founder and chairman, Sir Robin Knox-Johnston, at the pre-race crew briefing in Cape Breton Island, in which he warned against complacency have never rung truer.

For the crew of California, the conditions are proving reminiscent of the race across the Pacific in which their boat was rolled 120 degrees and dismasted.

“It’s been a wild night aboard California during which we were achieving some great boat speed,” reports skipper, Pete Rollason. “In fact we beat our previous race record and our top speed now stands at 25.8 knots. Unfortunately, with the rough sea state, some crew members were revisited by their memories of the North Pacific. With a few well placed words, the odd hug and a couple of jokes we as a crew pulled through and are charging as hard as we dare.

“The weather has calmed down a little and the sea state should follow over the coming hours which may enable us to get the kite up again. We have four boats around us and everyone is charging hard for the finish. With 650 miles to go the famous Fastnet Rock it should be a grandstand finish with all the boats converging on a small piece of ocean. It has been raining for the last two days and the crew are all hoping that the sun will make an appearance today to dry out some kit and warm things up a bit.”

Cork Clipper is still 100 miles ahead of the chasing pack and the crew are getting some great performances from their steel-hulled yacht which is a foot shorter and eight tonnes heavier than the Clipper 68s.

“After a frustrating 12 hours with a big sea state and only 25 knots of wind we are now up to a healthy gale producing some nice waves to play with,” says skipper, Hannah Jenner. “‘Fatty’ as our Challenge 67 has affectionately become known ‘don’t (usually) surf’ but yesterday just the right wave came along and off she went at 16.7 knots. Helm Kev (Kevlar) Austen was left looking a tad startled but none the less chuffed to have smashed the speed record quite handsomely and, to be fair, I think he is quite likely to keep it.

“So the fleet continue to chip away at our lead with Jamaica Lighting Bolt soon to be under 100 miles from us but we are pushing as hard as we can. The first reef we have put in since racing to Jamaica has just gone in the main now that we are seeing gusts of 40 knots. The physicality of this boat compared to the 68s is starting to take its toll with a lot of Deep Heat required to soothe the muscles strains associated with handling our boat.

“Still, not long to go and there is a distinct buzz of excitement as we close in on the Emerald Isle. Yesterday we switched over to the final paper chart for the crossing, The Western Approaches to the British Isles. We all know there is a long way to go yet but I don’t think any of us anticipated being within 600 miles of the finish after just eight days of racing. Long may the wind last.”

The conditions have taken their toll on a couple of the yachts and both Spirit of Australia and Jamaica Lightning Bolt have sustained damage to their spinnaker pole track in winds gusting up to Force 9 (41-47 knots).

Pete Stirling, Jamaica Lightning Bolt’s skipper, explained what happened in his daily report to the Race Office.

He says, “We were flying a second-reefed mainsail and poled out yankee 3 when the boat got skewed round by a particularly large wave. Despite the best efforts of the helm the yankee backed which in turn caused the spinnaker pole track on the front of the mast to rip off where the pole was attached to it. The crew once again sprang into action and the off watch were called to help on deck as well. The yankee was dropped and the flailing pole brought back under control. Remarkably both the pole and the sail appear completely undamaged. The track however is a different story and we will have to see what we can do to effect a workable repair. All the crew silently acknowledge that if we are to remain competitive in this race then we need to be able to use our spinnaker poles.”

Spirit of Australia’s crew are facing much the same task, according to skipper, Brendan Hall. “We found ourselves alongside our friends on Hull & Humber today, as both boats surfed the building swells with our poled-out headsails. Sadly, during our mid-ocean tussle that we sustained a small amount of damage to our spinnaker pole track, the device which lets you adjust the height of the spinnaker pole. We are repairing all the bits in the saloon at the moment, but we will need to wait for calmer conditions to send somebody up the mast to fit them back on. In the mean time, we sail on, with a less than ideal angle on the wind, but ready to get back to the fight as soon as the damage is fixed.”

While Spirit of Australia raced alongside Hull & Humber, the English boat was enduring challenges of her own.

“I tried to leave the boat last night on my back and head first after we had a mini knock down caused by a large wave,” reports skipper, Justin Taylor. “I heard its approach but didn’t see it. I was sitting by the helmsman with my back to the sea when a wave came in from the side and not from behind, as you would expect from a following sea. I can vouch for the effectiveness of the safety lines we use to clip on and I am also very glad Piers (Hull & Humber’s original skipper) decided to locate the emergency tiller on the starboard pushpit as this is what stopped me going for a swim.

“The conditions are far from the worst I have been through before but the sea state is quite confused with 40-knot winds. Luckily we had just dropped our poled out yankee headsail to slow us down a bit a get more control. I’m a bit stiff now with a couple of bruises. Helming is a real brute and we only have our experienced crew doing it. The rest of the crew are still super motivated. I would tell you more about our tactics and position but we are still in Stealth Mode.”

Hull & Humber and Team Finland, currently third in the overall race standings, have just emerged from their undercover period to find both have moved ahead of Spirit of Australia - but will it be enough to keep the Aussies from claiming an unassailable lead and clinching overall victory at the end of this race? Both the English and Finnish teams are pushing hard for a place on the podium when the fleet arrives back in Hull on Saturday 17 July.

Cape Breton Island is in a group with Spirit of Australia and Qingdao and being pushed further north than skipper Jan Ridd would like.

“After a night of heavy rain, strong winds and large seas I am sitting in the nav station, soaking wet and shivering as the Big Blue Canoe launches off another wave. We have been pushing hard for the last 24 hours to no avail. We have seen some small gains on the other two boats who stayed north close to the great circle route but unfortunately the boats to the south are still pulling away from us. I must admit I cannot see how they are making such gains when we have been hitting speeds of more than 20 knots on the surfs and have averaged ten knots. They must be making some great speeds!

“I am now feeling the weight of my decision to stay north, as it is looking like it is not going to give us any advantage as the weather system slips further south, keeping the other boats in strong wind with a better wind angle. I am sitting here with very tired eyes trying to see a pattern in the weather that can give us that crucial advantage.

“Unfortunately this weather system has deepened and overpowered the Azores high that was dominant in the eastern Atlantic and is not tracking north eastwards as I expected. We are now sailing a little north of our Great Circle route and, without an angle on the wind, will probably have to sail further north than I would like.

“It is a long way from over yet and we will be pushing Cape Breton Island to the max but I am hoping the weather will give us a little help!”

As they tear in towards the finish line Qingdao’s skipper, Chris Stanmore-Major has been reflecting on how far his crew has progressed.

“Nine months ago I seem to remember being not far from here. How very far we have come since then.

“Today was a relatively standard day to us - a bit windy perhaps blowing Force 8 through the afternoon but no great shakes. The helms did a fantastic job and tell me they enjoyed very much the excellent surfing conditions in the eight-metres swell - hitting 20 knots on a number of occasions and averaging eleven knots most of the day.

“We had to put in, and then later take out, a few reefs with the wind well behind the beam. Non-standard, it’s true, as we normally come up on the breeze to do this but that would have meant a change in course which would have slowed us down. Anyway, it’s possible with practise. I think that happened around three; I have to admit to being asleep at the time. One thing I did see was the afternoon watch sending Abdullah up the forestay to reconnect some yankee hanks that had come off to avoid having to drop the headsail to do it. He seemed relatively comfortable 70 feet up, bouncing around, performing his work as we surfed our way down wave after wave. When he came back down he got back on with leading the watch.

“33,000nm and counting but the changes I see each day place this crew light years ahead of what they knew last September - it truly is an unbelievable change.”

The fast conditions mean the arrival of the yachts in Kinsale, Co Cork, Ireland, is now anticipated earlier than originally estimated. The first boats are expected on Tuesday 29 June with the possibility of some arrivals on Monday 28 June.

Positions at 1200 GMT Friday 25 June

Boat DTF* DTL*
1 Cork 543nm
2 Jamaica Lightning Bolt 650nm 107nm
3 Team Finland 657nm 114nm
4 Hull & Humber 678nm 111nm
5 Spirit of Australia 682nm 138nm
6 Qingdao 683nm 140nm
7 Cape Breton Island 692nm 149nm
8 Edinburgh Inspiring Capital 695nm 152nm
9 Uniquely Singapore 720nm 177nm
10 California 752nm 209nm (position at 0600 GMT)

 

Owned and sailed by Rives Potts (Westbrook, CT) with a crew blending four families, Carina is the 46th winner of the race’s top trophy in the 104-year history of the race, which runs 635 miles from Newport, RI to St. David’s Light, Bermuda.
The 48-foot McCurdy & Rhodes designed sloop won on corrected time under the Offshore Racing Rule by the very large margin of 3 hours, 35 minutes over Gregory B. Manning’s Sarah  (Warwick, RI). Belle Aurore, a Cal 40 owned by R. Douglas Jurrius (Easton, MD) was third, seven minutes behind Sarah.

Carina’s chances for winning looked good but hardly certain when she finished the race at dawn Tuesday. Her chief challenge came from Belle Aurore and three other boats in Class 1, the small-boat class. Any of them could save their time and elbow Carina off the victory podium should she finish by about 7 PM. Many sailors at the Royal Bermuda Yacht Club and elsewhere spent much of Tuesday following the quartet’s progress on the online iBoattrack tracker. In the end, nobody was able to save their time on Carina.

Those four smaller boats still did well. Belle Aurore won Class 1 and took third place in the St. David’s Lighthouse Division. Two other Cal 40s, Peter Rebovich’s two-time defending champion Sinn Fein (Metuchen, NJ) and Bill Leroy’s Gone with the Wind (Tiburon, CA), took second in the class and seventh in the division, and third in class and eighth in the division, respectively.  The fourth boat, David G. Dickerson’s Peterson 38 Lindy, was fourth in class and 20th in the division.

Carina also won the North Rock Beacon Trophy as the top boat under the IRC Rule, with a margin of nearly four hours over Gracie, a custom 69-footer owned by Stephen and Simon Frank (Darien and Rowayton, CT). Gracie was also designed by McCurdy & Rhodes. Third under IRC was Arbella, a First 44.7 owned by James Shaughnessy (Greenwich, CT).

As of Noon ADT Wednesday, 9 boats in the 183-boat fleet were still on the race course. This is the third largest Newport Bermuda Race since it was founded in 1906. The St. David’s Lighthouse Division, for amateur crews, is the largest of the race’s five divisions, with 103 boats this year. 

  Invictus At Start (Photo by George Bekris)

FOR NEWPORT BERMUDA RACE START PHOTOS CLICK HERE

2010 Newport Bermuda Race

PROVISIONAL RESULTS

Place, Yacht, Owner, Origin, Results (ORR(Cls, Div) / IRC(Cls, Div))

Class 1 (11 Boats) - St. David’s Lighthouse Division 1. Belle Aurore, Cal 40, R Douglas Jurrius, Oxford, MD, 1, 3 / 1, 8 2. Sinn Fein, Cal 40, Peter S. Rebovich, Sr., Metuchen, NJ, 2, 7 / 2, 10 3. Gone With The Wind, Cal 40, William M. LeRoy, San Francisco, CA, 3, 8 / NA, NA 4. Lindy, Peterson 38, David G. Dickerson, Niantic Bay, 4, 20 / NA, NA 5. Aurora, Tartan 41, Andrew F. Kallfelz, Jamestown, RI, 5, 22 / 3, 26 6. Frolic, Sabre 362, Peter G. Brown, Greenwich, CT, 6, 26 / 4, 37 7. Hiro Maru, Swan 43 Classic, Hiroshi Nakajima, Stamford, CT, 7, 34 / 5, 40 8. Spirit, Baltic 38DP, A. John Gregg, Philadelphia, 8, 90 / 6, 98 Class 2 (15 Boats) - St. David’s Lighthouse Division 1. Cygnette, Swan 441, William J. Mayer, Jamestown RI, 1, 5 / 1, 19 2. Swift, Navy 44 MK1, US Naval Academy, US Naval Academy, 2, 13 / 2, 24 3. Avenir, C&C 41, Joseph T. Murray, Bristol, RI, 3, 16 / NA, NA 4. Jacqueline IV, Hinckley SW42, Robert S. Forman, Jr, West Islip, NY, 4, 28 / 3, 47 5. Akela III, Swan 43, Djoerd Hoekstra, Oxford, MD, 5, 36 / NA, NA 6. Flirt, Navy 44 MK1, US NAVAL ACADEMY, US Naval Academy, 6, 44 / 4, 60 7. Mojoe, Peterson 43, Joseph M. Naroski, Marblehead, MA, 7, 45 / 5, 65 8. Rainmaker, Swan 40, Kenneth P. Hylwa Mr., Jamestown, RI, 8, 58 / NA, NA 9. Misty, J-40 WK, Fred A. Allardyce, Watch Hill, RI, 9, 62 / 6, 69 10. Beausoleil, Beneteau 456SD, Richard A Parent, New Harbor, ME, 10, 64 / 7, 79 11. Zwerver, S&S 57′ Berm Cut, Frans van Schaik, Rotterdam (NLD), 11, 65 / 8, 83 12. Morgan Of Marietta, Centurion 42, Colin G Golder, Newport RI, 12, 85 / 10, 93 13. Greyghost, Zaal 38, Philip W. Parish, Georgetown, MD, 13, 89 / 9, 87 14. Zest, Hinckley SW42, Brian E. Swiggett, Jamestown, RI, 14, 93 / 12, 97 15. Regatta, Carter 41, Constantine G. Koste, Oxford, MD, 15, 97 / 11, 95 Class 3 (14 Boats) - St. David’s Lighthouse Division 1. Carina, Ctm 48, Rives Potts, Westbrook, CT, 1, 1 / 1, 1 2. Dolphin, J-42, Henry S. Morgan, Annapolis, MD, 2, 10 / 2, 13 3. Xenophon, Swan 44 MKII, Jeffrey V. Rabuffo, MD, Newport, RI, 3, 12 / 5, 27 4. Triple Lindy, Swan 44 MK II, Joseph Mele, New York, NY, 4, 15 / 6, 32 5. Finesse, J-42, Newton P.S. Merrill, St. George, ME, 5, 17 / 3, 21 6. Babe, Swan 46, Colin E. Couper MD, Newport, RI, 6, 18 / 4, 25 7. Amigo VI, J-42, Bernie P. Coyne, Marblehead, MA, 7, 33 / 7, 45 8. True, J-42 (mod), Howard B. Hodgson, Jr., Newport, RI, 8, 37 / NA, NA 9. Whisper, Canning 48, Sheldon Brotman, Martha’s Vineyard, 9, 43 / 9, 56 10. Kalevala II, Grand Soleil 37, Tapio O. Saavalainen, Annapolis, MD, 10, 49 / 8, 55 11. Apsara, J-109, Mike Sleightholme, New Rochelle, NY, 11, 76 / 10, 76 12. Jade, J-42, Robert W. Thuss, Jr., Atlantic Highlands, 12, 81 / 11, 90 13. Tiger, Swan 46, Thomas & Nancy Grieb, Newport, RI, 13, 82 / NA, NA 14. Sailor Bandido, Quest 33, Christopher A. Palabrica, Chicago, IL, 14, 96 / NA, NA Class 4 (13 Boats) - St. David’s Lighthouse Division 1. Windborn, J-120, Richard W. Born, Annapolis, MD, 1, 31 / NA, NA 2. Lapin, Benn Frst 40.7, Christopher Clark, Greenwich, CT, 2, 32 / 2, 41 3. Thejackal, Beneteau 40.7, John DeFilippo, Annapolis, MD, 3, 35 / 3, 43 4. Slide Rule, First 44.7, Scott Bearse, Barnstable, MA, 4, 46 / 1, 5 5. Hound, Ctm 60, Eberhart Frank, Vinalhaven, ME, 5, 50 / 9, 74 6. Shinnecock, J-120, James C. Praley, Annapolis, MD, 6, 51 / 4, 48 7. Valkyrie, First 44.7, David Andril, West River, MD, 7, 55 / 8, 72 8. Ricochet, J-120, USCGA, New London, CT, 8, 57 / 5, 61 9. Terrapin, Beneteau 40.7, Jonathan Litt, Riverside, CT, 9, 59 / 6, 62 10. Dogsled, Kaufman 47, Todd F. Barnard, Halifax, NS, 10, 60 / NA, NA 11. Ragana, Cape Fear 38R, Darius Peleda, Stmford, CT, 11, 71 / 10, 75 12. Star Chaser, Swan 51, Wijnand (Boogie) van den Boogaard, London, UK, 12, 74 / 7, 66 13. Rocket Science, J-120, Rick F. Oricchio, Black Rock, CT, 13, 84 / 11, 85 Class 5 (9 Boats) - St. David’s Lighthouse Division 1. Glory, J-44, Jack Neades/ USCGA, New London, CT, 1, 29 / 2, 36 2. Runaway, J-44, Lawrence R. Glenn, Oyster Bay, NY, 2, 40 / 3, 38 3. Vamp, J-44, Leonard J. Sitar, Atlantic Highlands, 3, 41 / 1, 34 4. Resolute, J-44 WK, Fred Madeira, Cumberland, ME, 4, 42 / 5, 53 5. Beagle, J-44, Philip H. Gutin, New York, NY, 5, 53 / 4, 46 6. Gold Digger, J-44, James D. Bishop, Jamestown, RI, 6, 73 / 6, 70 7. Charlie V, J-44, Norman H. Schulman MD, Glen Cove, NY, 7, 83 / 7, 80 8. Sirena Bella, J-44, Joe Murli, Mystic, CT, 8, 91 / 9, 94 9. Akubra, J-44, Reginald H. Goodday Dr., Halifax, NS, 9, 99 / 8, 91 Class 6 (13 Boats) - St. David’s Lighthouse Division 1. Sarah, X-41, Gregory B. Manning, Warwick, RI, 1, 2 / 2, 4 2. Arbella, First 44.7, James P. Shaughnesy, Greenwich, CT, 2, 9 / 1, 3 3. Relativity, Beneteau 53F5, Hall Palmer, St. Thomas, USVI, 3, 48 / 3, 42 4. Buzz, Sydney 38, Richard E. Stevenson, Jr, Falmouth, ME, 4, 54 / NA, NA 5. Sirensong, J-133, Thomas J Carroll, Larchmont, NY, 5, 61 / 4, 63 6. Cilista, J-130, Jeffrey L. Eberle, Manchester, MA, 6, 63 / 5, 64 7. Merlin, Swan 57, John H Duerden, Stonington, CT, 7, 68 / NA, NA 8. Avra, J-120 Mod, George Petrides, New York, NY, 8, 70 / 7, 77 9. Fearless, Farr 395 OD, Shaun J. Ensor, Branford, CT, 9, 75 / 6, 68 10. American Girl, King 40, Daniel Galyon, Stamford, CT, 10, 87 / 10, 92 11. Amadeus, IMX-40, Jack R. Yaissle, Royal Oak, MD, 11, 88 / NA, NA 12. Upgrade, Farr 395, Peter Gibbons-Neff, Annapolis, MD, 12, 94 / 8, 84 13. Bacci, Swan 53, Lorenzo Vascotto, Oyster Bay, NY, 13, 95 / 9, 88 Class 7 (16 Boats) - St. David’s Lighthouse Division 1. Temptation, Taylor 45, Arthur & Peter Santry, Newport, RI, 1, 4 / 2, 9 2. Barleycorn, NYYC Swan 42, Brendan J. Brownyard, Newport, RI, 2, 11 / 1, 6 3. Vortices, J-145, Christopher L Saxton, Plymouth, MI, 3, 21 / NA, NA 4. White Rhino, Swan 56, Todd Stuart, Wilmington, DE, 4, 23 / 3, 12 5. Bombardino, Santa Cruz 52, James W. Sykes, Rye,NY, 5, 25 / 4, 17 6. High Noon, Tripp 41, Colin Rath, Norwalk, CT, 6, 27 / 5, 33 7. Xcelsior, IMX-45, Alice O. Martin, Chicago, IL, 7, 38 / 7, 51 8. Reindeer, Morris 47, Peter/Tony Driscoll/Parker, Annapolis, MD, 8, 47 / 6, 50 9. Cybele, IMX-45, Richard M. Burnes, Jr, Boston, MA, 9, 52 / 9, 71 10. Jacknife, J-133, Andrew Hall, Caernarfon, 10, 56 / 8, 54 11. Nasty Medicine, Corby 41.5, Stephen J. Sherwin MD, Hamilton, BDA, 11, 66 / 12, 82 12. Threebeans, Santa Cruz 37, Christopher Rosow, Southport, CT, 12, 79 / 11, 81 13. Magic, Santa Cruz 52, Kenneth Laudon, Rye, NY, 13, 86 / 13, 86 14. Convictus Maximus, Farr IRC 42, Donald W. Nicholson, Perth Amboy, NJ, 14, 92 / 10, 78 15. Wazimo, Aerodyne 38, W. Barrett Holby, Jr., Barrington, RI, 15, 98 / NA, NA 16. Flying Goose, Ctm 56, Daniel C. van Starrenburg, New York, NY, 16, 100 / 14, 96 Class 8 (12 Boats) - St. David’s Lighthouse Division 1. Gracie, Ctm 69, Stephan A. & Simon W Frank, Newport, RI, 1, 6 / 1, 2 2. Aurora, Reichel/Pugh 66, Gus Carlson, New York, NY, 2, 14 / 5, 22 3. Brand New Day, J-65, James C. Madden, Newport Beach, CA, 3, 19 / 2, 11 4. Denali, Nelson Marek 70, Michael A. D’Amelio, Buzzards Bay, MA, 4, 24 / 3, 16 5. Sforzando, Ker 55, Clayton G. Deutsch, Newport, RI, 5, 30 / 4, 18 6. Kodiak, Swan 601, E. Llwyd Ecclestone, Newport, RI, 6, 39 / 6, 29 7. Vanquish, STP 65, Rego / Riker Lucas / USMMA, Kings Point, NY, 7, 67 / 7, 39 8. Mischievous, Ctm 65, Albert J. Fitzgibbons,III, Stonington, CT, 8, 69 / 12, 89 9. Donnybrook, Ctm Sloop, James P. Muldoon, Annapolis, MD, 9, 72 / 9, 57 10. Invictus, TP52, US Naval Academy, US Naval Academy, 10, 77 / 8, 52 11. Starlight, Simonis Voogd 56, Michael Dybvik, Kings Point, NY, 11, 78 / 11, 73 12. Big Booty, Lutra 42, Patrick Eudy, Charleston, SC, 12, 80 / 10, 67 Class 9 (8 Boats) - Gibbs Hill Lighthouse Division 1. Noonmark VI, Swan 56, Sir Geoffrey Mulcahy, Hamble, UK, 1, 1 / 1, 7 2. Snow Lion, Ker 50, Lawrence S. Huntington, New York, NY, 2, 2 / 2, 14 3. Hoi An, Ctm 50, Heilner Marc, London, UK, 3, 3 / 6, 44 4. Natalie J, TP52, Philip D. O’Niel III, D.D.S., Newport, RI, 4, 4 / 3, 15 5. Catapult Racing, SouthernCross 52, Marc Glimcher, Essex CT, 5, 5 / 5, 30 6. Vela Veloce, Southern Cross, Richard H Oland, RKYC, Saint John, NB, 6, 6 / 4, 23 7. Captivity, Farr 60, Samuel T. Byrne, Newport, RI, 7, 7 / 8, 59 8. Rima2, R/P 55, John Brim, Newport, RI, 8, 9 / 7, 49 Class 10 (5 Boats) - Gibbs Hill Lighthouse Division 1. Ran, JV 72, Niklas Zennstrom, Ramsey, Isle of Man, 1, 8 / 1, 20 2. Bella Mente, Mini Maxi, Hap Fauth, Newport, RI, 2, 10 / 2, 28 3. Beau Geste, Farr 80, Karl Kwok, BVI, 3, 11 / 4, 35 4. Titan Xv, Ctm 75, Tom Hill, Mr., Newport, RI., 4, 12 / 3, 31 5. Rambler, Ctm 90, George David, New York, NY, 5, 13 / 5, 58 Class 11 (7 Boats) - Cruiser Division 1. Shearwater, Morris 40, Conrad Hall, Norfolk, VA, 1, 2 / NA, NA 2. Bluebird, Migrant 45 Ketch, Harry Bird, Essex, CT, 2, 3 / NA, NA 3. Temptress, IMX-45, Arent H Kits van Heyningen, Newport, RI, 3, 8 / NA, NA 4. Eclipse, Hinckley 59, Barbara & Robert Cavanagh, Sakonnet Point, RI, 4, 17 / NA, NA 5. Restive, Alden 48 Ctm, George P Denny III, Saunderstown, RI, 5, 31 / NA, NA Class 12 (16 Boats) - Cruiser Division 1. Laura B, Isl. Packet 45, Joseph R. Triggs, Jr., Avalon, NJ, 1, 4 / NA, NA 2. Cadence, Apogee 50, R. David Warters, Houston, TX, 2, 5 / NA, NA 3. Poeske, First 42, Richard Donn, Thornwood, NY, 3, 6 / NA, NA 4. Bonspiel, Nordic 44, James J. Richter, East Boothbay, ME, 4, 9 / NA, NA 5. Nostos, Alden 44, Lorenzo D. Weisman, Sag Harbor, NY, 5, 11 / NA, NA 6. Bermuda Oyster, Oyster 435, Paul B. Hubbard, Hamilton, BDA, 6, 14 / NA, NA 7. Pilgrim, Alden 44, Mark Rice, Old Lyme, CT, 7, 20 / NA, NA 8. Shindig, Pearson 39-2, Kevin G. Flannery, Newport, RI, 8, 21 / NA, NA 9. Convergence, Jeanneau 43 DS, James Linsley, New York, NY, 9, 24 / NA, NA 10. Freedom, Sabre 452, Cary W. Thomson, Georgetown MD, 10, 25 / NA, NA 11. Liberty Call, HR 43, Matthew G. Pilon, Newport, RI, 11, 27 / NA, NA 12. Eagle, J-40, Dana Oviatt, Mystic, CT, 12, 29 / NA, NA 13. Misty, Little Harbor 54, Eric G. Thorkilsen, Pt. Judith, RI, 13, 32 / NA, NA 14. Haerlem, Swan 55, Hendrikus (Henk) P L Wisker, Newport, RI, 14, 33 / NA, NA Class 13 (15 Boats) - Cruiser Division 1. Clover III, Swan 56, Neal F. Finnegan, Newport, RI, 1, 1 / NA, NA 2. I’Ll Think About It, Beneteau 523, Marc Tandourjian, Baltimore, MD, 2, 7 / NA, NA 3. Cetacea, Hinckley 59, Christopher J. Culver, Newport, RI, 3, 10 / NA, NA 4. Nova, Swan 56, Mark DiStefano, Newport, RI., 4, 12 / NA, NA 5. Lilla, CNB 76, Simon M. De Pietro, Kingstown, SVG, 5, 13 / NA, NA 6. Whiskey Girl, Hinckley 70, Michael McAllister, Providence, RI, 6, 15 / NA, NA 7. Windwalker II, Lyman Morse 60, Daniel Levangie, Newport, RI, 7, 16 / NA, NA 8. Nirvana, Maxi 80, Charles F Kiefer III, Marblehead, MA, 8, 18 / NA, NA 9. Isola, Baltic 52, Howard M. Eisenberg, Newport, RI, 9, 19 / NA, NA 10. Fox, Swan 53, Ruth M. Pecherek, Chicago, IL, 10, 22 / NA, NA 11. Manana, Swan 48, Michhael V. Johnson, Nantucket, MA, 11, 23 / NA, NA 12. Angel, Ctm 84, Edward T. Anderson, George Town CI, 12, 26 / NA, NA 13. Sceptre’D Isle, Ctm 63, Rex G. Herbert, Newport RI, 13, 28 / NA, NA 14. Blue, C&C 51xl, Dan Epstein, Newport, RI, 14, 30 / NA, NA 15. Rutaine, C&C 37/40+, David P. McLoughlin, Wickford, RI, 15, 34 / NA, NA Class 14 (12 Boats) - Double-Handed Division 1. Paladin, J-35, Jason A Richter, Port Jefferson, NY, 1, 1 / NA, NA 2. Great Scot, J-35, Darren T Garnier, Marblehead, MA, 2, 2 / NA, NA 3. Lora Ann, Express 37, Richard T. du Moulin, Larchmont,NY, 3, 3 / NA, NA 4. Kiva, Hinkley SW51CB, Mark Stevens, New Castle, NH, 4, 4 / NA, NA 5. Dirigo, C&C 41, Eric M. Johnson, Annapolis, MD, 5, 8 / NA, NA 6. Esmeralde, Sabre 386, Bruce R. Beard, Jr., Newport, RI, 6, 9 / NA, NA 7. Choucas, Jeanneau SF36, Frederic Cosandey, City Island, NY, 7, 11 / NA, NA 8. Ocean Wanderer1, Montivideo 43, Erwin Wanderer, Halifax, NS, 8, 12 / NA, NA 9. Plum Crazy, Sabre MK II, Michael R. Berg, Stage Harbor, MA, 9, 14 / NA, NA 10. Whisper, Hinckley 48, Thomas J. Vander Salm, Salem, MA, 10, 16 / NA, NA Class 15 (14 Boats) - Double-Handed Division 1. Seabiscuit, J-46, Nathan C. Owen, Mount Desert, ME, 1, 5 / NA, NA 2. Alibi, J-120, Gardner L. Grant, Jr., Westport, CT, 2, 6 / NA, NA 3. Delawana, Swan 51, Hans F. Himmelman, Lunenburg, NS, 3, 7 / NA, NA 4. Heron, J-120, Greg R. Leonard, Annapolis, MD, 4, 10 / NA, NA 5. Mireille, J-120, Edwin Gaynor, Southport, CT, 5, 13 / NA, NA 6. Resolute, J-122, D. Scott Miller, Blue Hill, ME, 6, 15 / NA, NA 7. Dawn Treader, Swan 48 MK II, Lawrence G. Cohen, Gloucester, VA, 7, 17 / NA, NA 8. Next Boat, Morris 45, Mark Ellman, Mamaroneck, NY, 8, 18 / NA, NA 9. Sir Edmund, Ctm 49, Vince E. Todd, San Francisco, CA, 9, 19 / NA, NA 10. Bolands Mill, Class 40, John Ryan, Dublin, 10, 20 / NA, NA 11. Kamoa’E, Class 40, Eric Lecoq, Portsmouth, RI, 11, 21 / NA, NA 12. Dragon, Class 40, Michael S. Hennessy, Mystic, CT, 12, 22 / NA, NA 13. Cutlass, Class 40, Alex / Nick Mehran / Halmos, Newport, RI, 13, 23 / NA, NA 14. Toothface, Akilaria Class40, Michael W. Dreese, Boston, MA, 14, 24 / NA, NA Class 16 (3 Boats) - Open Division 1. Genuine Risk, Dubois 90, Mark E. Watson III - USMMA, Kings Point, NY, 1, 1 / NA, NA 2. Ilmostro, VOR70, Ken Read, Malta, 2, 2 / NA, NA 3. Speedboat, Maxi, Alex Jackson, Georgetown,GC, 3, 3 / NA, NA

The lead boats entered the Gulf Stream at around sunset Saturday, heading upwind into a moderate southwesterly wind with as much as 4 knots of favorable current in the long, hot meander that they have been steering for since the race start on Friday afternoon. Speedboat, at 100ft the largest yacht in the fleet, was making more than 12 knots over the bottom. The earlier “champagne conditions” were behind them as they pounded into big, square, confused seas.

iBoattrack  positions at 11 AM EDT Sunday showed Speedboat averaging almost 11 knots with 175 miles to the finish. At this rate she is behind the  48-hour elapsed time race record for cant-keel, Open Division boats - She has to average 13knots for the whole race to beat this time.

Rán was 38 miles back. Following close on the heels of this English boat in the Gibbs Hill Division were Titan XV, Beau Geste, Bella Mente, Rambler, Il Mostro, Vanquish, and Genuine Risk. This tightly bunched pack of eight has been separated by only a few miles since the start.

By this morning the ‘big boat’ leaders were clear of the Stream and entering the 250-mile stretch of often confused wind and currents between the Gulf Stream and Bermuda. Race veterans wryly call this “Happy Valley,” for it is where the race is often won and lost.              

Chris Museler, on Titan XV, filed this report just before midnight:
“Now this is what we came for! The boat is literally crashing into waves close reaching onto the Gulf Stream and the water temperature has leapt into the 80s. It’s getting darker and the Aramid rigging has been humming and groaning, and the deck bounces from each loud crack when a sheet or the traveler is eased. This wild ride comes from being in a positive eddy heading south, straight into it! (Wind and current collide to stack up the seas that the boats are crashing into.) This is getting to be fun after losing a bit to competitors this afternoon. The bright sun and the flat water sailing are gone. Can’t write anymore, quite hot and uncomfortable down here. So I’m on watch and will be seeing you in the morning. Knew I wouldn’t want to sail a Bermuda Race without a proper ‘thrash,’ as Mr. Rousmaniere calls it!”

The Smaller Boats

By dawn today, Rán was out of the Stream, and the team was speculating in their blog whether the smaller boats - a hundred miles astern, and just entering this zone - have had consistently more wind than the big ones.

In Class 1, the St. David’s Lighthouse Division class for boats of about 40 feet, Sinn Fein, the two-time defending St. David’s champion, has chosen a course well to the right of the fleet leaders, and her close class rivals sistership Gone with the Wind and the Tartan 41 Aurora, and charting a route 50 miles west of the rhumb line.   

In the Double-Handed Division, two of the light-displacement Class 40s, Dragon and KamoaE, have a healthy lead on elapsed time, but Richard du Moulin’s Lora Ann remains in contention. 

The Cruiser Division leader is the 56-foot Clover III, well ahead of the bigger boats in this Division.      

The Newport Bermuda Race fleet made their upwind starts in 16 classes over a period of more than two and a half hours on Friday afternoon. There now are 183 boats, after Avatar didn’t start. In addition, Blue sailed back to the shipyard to get her broken centerboard cable fixed; she’s expected to start again after the repair.

The start found some skippers were surprisingly aggressive. Apparently forgetting that this isn’t a day race but a 635-mile marathon running several days, they also seem to have experienced a touch of amnesia about the tide table.  As the new ebb tide ran with every great velocity out of Narragansett Bay, it pushed them inexorably toward Bermuda, but also over the starting line a little earlier than their tacticians had planned.

Of the 13 boats in Class 4 (St. David’s Light Division, 45-55 footers), four found themselves over early at the pin end, with Star Chaser getting what one of her crew called “the best start in the fleet” in an email to media@BermudaRace.com. “We were at the committee boat end of the line with some of the J-Boats but higher and faster. We all chose to be slightly late on the gun: no use being OCS  on a race of 635 nm!”

In Class 8 (St. David’s Light, 65-footers) two boats were premature. One was Aurora (with Gary Jobson in the afterguard), and she had to pick her way back to the line, losing at least three minutes in the process.

The current new on the Newport Bermuda Race  is that  Speedboat took the lead from Titan XV at sunset Friday night as the big 183-boat fleet raced toward Bermuda on a fast close reach in a flat sea, clear visibility, and a moderate southwest wind that gradually strengthened and clocked toward the west.  Two boats set Code Zeros.

For current boat positions click HERE

 Chris Museler reports from Titan XV:  a collision, a Code Zero, and a champagne wake

 Friday, 2045 EDT.  What an incredible day we’ve had! When I woke up to clear skies and glassy conditions, I knew the sea breeze was setting up nicely. After our delicious hot lunch aboard Tom and Dotty Hill’s Titan XIV, we set out in a relaxed mood, everyone smiling about the conditions. The spectators were all smiles and cheers. There were so many people camped out on the Castle Hill lawn that you couldn’t see any grass.

We started well to weather of the other mini maxis in Class 10 (Gibbs Hill Division) and from then until sunset (a few moments ago) it’s been champagne sailing conditions – sailing at 13-15 knots in a steady wind.   We’ve been the lead boat for a few hours, but now as it’s getting dark, Speedboat is passing us to leeward.  She started at 4:30, an hour after we did, and it’s now after 8.  Rán (in our class) isn’t far behind.

At about 5:30 we hit a large marine animal of some kind.  It may have been a basking shark, maybe as long as 20 feet. The hit was soft and we almost stopped. The fish made a few squiggles, spun off, and swam away in our wake.  The boat appears to be undamaged.

We’ve switched to a Code Zero, and as our grinders are getting busy they look a lot bigger than before. Mark Strube, who finished second at the Star Class Europeans two weeks ago, is 250 pounds of muscle.  The crew has just had dinner – hot rice and chicken with pineapple, which took an hour to cook in two large pots, plus the usual Snickers and Pringles for snacks . . . and apples, too.

Photos By George Bekris

More Photos Of The Newport Bermuda Race Start by George Bekris click HERE

 The leader for several hours was Titan XV, in the Gibbs Hill Lighthouse Division. She was caught by Speedboat (Open Division, which started an hour later) at about 8:45 pm.  Other positions have been changing in the extremely competitive group of mini maxis sailing in the Gibbs Hill Division, with Hap Fauth’s Bella Mente overtaking Niklas Zennstrom’s Rán soon after midnight, and Rán then catching Rambler and Beau Geste in parking-lot conditions. The wind slowly faded during the night, swung into the north for a while. After dawn, two boats reported a very light breeze from the southeast, which is the course to Bermuda.  Later on Saturday morning the wind filled in nicely with a report of 15-plus knots, whitecaps, and the first sighting of cumulus clouds over the Gulf Stream ahead.  There also were reports of U.S. Navy exercises in the area of some boats.

By John Rousmaniere

In a race which went right down to the wire, Uniquely Singapore has secured their first ever victory in Clipper 09-10, crossing the finish line at Ambrose Lighthouse at 12:18 local time (16:18GMT). The south east Asian team has been in a nip and tuck race with fellow competitors Cape Breton Island since departing Jamaica eight days ago on the tenth leg of the global series, but managed to pull ahead in the last few hours of racing.

Immediately after crossing the finish line, skipper of Uniquely Singapore, Jim Dobie, said, “The whole crew is fully stoked and after a very intense and hard race we are ecstatic to get a first. Cape Breton Island had us going all the way to the finish and we just managed to pull ahead of them. It’s an incredible feeling and we can’t wait to enter New York and see the sights. To our sponsors Keppel - well guys, in no better way could we show you how much we have taken the Keppel ‘can do’ attitude to heart.”

Cape Breton Island crossed the finish line at 13:10 local time (17:10GMT) in second place to claim their first red pennant of the race. The nine points they will receive for this result coupled with the three points they received for being the first team over the Scoring Gate means they could knock Jamaica Lightning Bolt off the third place position on the overall leaderboard.

The final podium position was also fiercely contested between Chinese entry Qingdao and English entry Hull & Humber with the Chinese dragon-emblazoned yacht just sneaking ahead to claim Qingdao’s fourth third place result in Clipper 09-10.

“Congratulations to Uniquely Singapore and Cape Breton Island from all on Qingdao,” writes Qingdao’s skipper, Chris Stanmore-Major. “Despite our greatest efforts we could never get close enough to join their fight for first and second. Thanks also to the crew of Hull and Humber for providing stiff opposition in the last 24 hours of this closely competed race. We had a terrible start to the race but experience has shown that nothing is certain in offshore yacht racing until everyone has crossed the finish line. Call it luck, call it skill, be assured it happened through the hard work and determination of this crew and their skipper’s unwavering belief in each one of them.”

Despite being in contention for a podium position until the last couple of days of racing and just missing out at the end, Edinburgh Inspiring Capital has had a great race and finishes in fifth place. This result added to their point they won at the Scoring Gate gives them a credible points tally of 7 for Race 10.

All five teams are making their way to North Cove Marina in Manhattan’s Financial District with Uniquely Singapore expected to arrive around 19:00 local time.

  

Today has brought some respite for the teams as the wind has filled in,
not only allowing steady progress north but also providing a cooling
breeze which has brought some relief from the tropical heat.

As the scoring gate fast approaches, Edinburgh Inspiring Capital is
looking for their first gate points of the race. But with the Chinese
dragon of Qingdao breathing down their necks they can’t afford to let up
for a second.

Skipper Matt Pike says, “We’re well clear of the islands and its fickle
wind patterns and now the focus is the scoring gate. A straight line
sprint north - only the wind has had other ideas! No sooner had we set
course on port tack and trimmed the wind started to head us. From a
tight fetch under spinnaker, to the Yankee 1, we were pushed east. Then
tacking through the northerly wind we started to make a better course
until eventually the wind settled as an easterly. This has left us to
head straight for the gate at nine knots!”

With only three miles separating the Chinese entry and Edinburgh
Inspiring Capital, Qingdao will be hoping to find that extra turn of
speed to deny the Scottish entry of that precious gate point. However, a
recent problem with their steering nearly put pay to their efforts as
skipper Chris Stanmore-Major explains.

“A minor disaster with our steering threatened to put a crimp on the
positive mood aboard Qingdao today. One of the bearings carrying the
shaft that holds the steering wheel in place and transfers the drive to
the rudder fell to pieces. With Edinburgh Inspiring Capital just ahead
along with the gate, gate point and a podium finish and Hull & Humber
looming large on the southern horizon we weren’t about to concede any
speed or distance. So we put Chris White, aka Captain Turbo, then Jeremy
Gordon-Smith, aka JGS, to work helming by hand via the emergency
steering gear and effectively turning our 68 foot Dubois Clipper into a
giant dinghy. Whilst they got to grips with ‘direct steering’, Peter
Guttridge, our engineering whiz, and I set to work fashioning a nylon
replacement for the bearing using material taken from the ships chopping
board. This was carefully shaped until we were able to fit it to the
shaft and tighten everything back up and voila! Steering fixed.

“No time was lost, nor distance and another team effort has saved the
Dragon’s hide. This kind of practical seamanship has characterised the
Dragon team during this race. I am reminded again that it is not just
sailing skills that this race engenders but a spirit of camaraderie and
ingenuity that modern life sometimes forgets.”

Ahead of the Chinese entry, both Uniquely Singapore and Cape Breton
Island are in a two-way battle for the maximum three gate points.

“With Cape Breton Island just ahead of us and very visible we are
constantly comparing speed and course on the AIS to make sure we are
doing our very best to close the gap,” reports Uniquely Singapore’s
skipper Jim Dobie. “With 100 miles to the gate, it will be a very close
battle and nothing yet is secure. So, concentration is high and once
again we have that Keppel ‘can do’ spirit on board.”

Meanwhile, skipper Jan Ridd and his crew are pushing Cape Breton Island
as hard as they can in an effort to keep her ahead of their Asian
rivals.

“We are enjoying close boat on boat racing with Uniquely Singapore, with
each boat taking turns to have the upper hand,” says Jan. “At the moment
the momentum is definitely with Uniquely Singapore as we desperately
trim the Big Blue Canoe, trying to match their speed, only to see them
speed up. This then requires another check of trim to see if we can milk
another fraction of a knot.”

As Cape Breton Island, Uniquely Singapore, Edinburgh Inspiring Capital
and Qingdao battle it out for gate points, time is running out for Hull
& Humber.

The English entry’s skipper, Justin Taylor, says, “It’s been 48 hours
since we were hit by that squall and it’s been a game of cat and mouse
with the wind ever since. The past few hours has seen the wind veer 180
degrees from west to east and we are making good speed toward the
scoring gate now. It will be difficult to pass the other yachts ahead
before the gate as we are now running out of race track. The shortest
route to the finish takes us directly through the gate, so we shall be
going through it regardless.”

As the wind has picked up, so has the mood on board the boats further
down the race track has lifted. None more so than on board Cork and
skipper Hannah Jenner is clearly relieved that her team’s steel hulled
Challenge 67 is on the move once more.

“Finally we have started to move again after what seems like an eternity
drifting through the Bahamas,” says Hannah, “Yesterday we battled it out
with numerous squalls and in the space of half an hour we changed from
lightweight kite to Yankee to medium weight kite as we threaded our way
cautiously between squall clouds. With brand new crispy spinnakers we
are loathe to sacrifice one to an oversized ugly grey cloud so it was a
nervous moment when we passed under the edge of such a cloud.

“The crew has worked tirelessly through sail changes, trimming and
tweaking, moving their weight to maximise the efficiency of the boat.
But alas, as the Clipper 68s are able to sail in approximately 3 to 4
knots of true wind we have found that we really need 6 knots to actually
move. The last few scheds have seen the rest of the Clipper fleet
produce six-hour runs that easily double what we have achieved but still
the Cork crew push on chipping away at the ETA to New York.

California’s skipper is equally relieved that the wind has filled in,
saying, “After the frustration of the very light winds we experienced
through the Crooked island passage, California is now sailing along
nicely in near perfect conditions, albeit a little more wind would be
nice. As a result of dropping back from the fleet due to the earlier
light winds, California is now definitely fired up and charging towards
New York and attempting to regain some of the lost ground.

“As we travel further north the temperature on board is being enjoyed by
all the crew as a respite from the sauna we have had to endure in recent
weeks. It is still very much shorts and t-shirt weather but a far more
pleasant climate.”

California is not the only team trying to regain lost ground and Jamaica
Lightning Bolt will also be using the freshening breeze to try and close
the gap between themselves and the leading pack.

“Finally the wind is blowing from the right direction and we are making
a good course for the finish line,” says the Caribbean team’s skipper,
Pete Stirling. “The only problem is there isn’t very much of it so we
are not making particularly good boat speed. However the forecast is for
the wind to start building over the next few hours so pretty soon we
should start eating up the miles and get back on schedule. The big
question is can the ‘comeback kids’ come back or is it too late?”

Team Finland will be asking themselves the same question as the crew
experiences another day of “cloud filled entertainment” according to
skipper Rob McInally.

“The light airs keep coming and the trimming is matching it,” says Rob.
“A very active day on team Finland has produced a hold on the rest of
the fleet. Although the fleet has had clouds to bring them more wind we
have had difficulties with the clouds sucking it away. Despite that, in
between the clouds it has been pretty much champagne sailing - minus the
champagne of course. Spirits are good and the team is putting in every
effort to pull back some miles.”

Positions at 0900 UTC, Saturday 29 May

Boat DTF* DTL*
1 Cape Breton Island 684nm
2 Uniquely Singapore 687nm 2nm
3 Edinburgh Inspiring Capital 697nm 13nm
4 Qingdao 701nm 16nm
5 Hull & Humber 709nm 24nm
6 Spirit of Australia 728nm 43nm
7 Team Finland 784nm 100nm
8 California 816nm 132nm
9 Jamaica Lightning Bolt 848nm 163nm
10 Cork 926nm 242nm

 

The significance of the day was not lost on those taking part in Clipper
09-10 as ten yachts lined up on the start line for the short sprint to
Jamaica, the crew of Cork, Ireland racing together again as a single
unit for the first time since their original boat ran aground in Race 5.

As the Irish team prepared to leave the marina this morning Noreen
Osborne, one of Cork’s round the world crew, said, “I haven’t slept a
wink. I think it’s going to be exciting to get Cork out on the water. It
was a very proud moment when we came into the marina yesterday and saw
her dead ahead of us.

“We’ve got a full fleet leaving Shelter Bay, which is going to be pretty
awesome. It’s been four months since everybody’s been together in this
way and I think Cork’s going to get a great reception out on the water.
I think everybody’ll be a bit emotional on board and the other crews as
well; I think they’re excited for us at the same time.

“It’s a very different boat, it’s going to take us a bit of time to get
used to the lay of the land and the way it works but we’ll do our very
best to get out there and sail hard and sail fast. Hannah (Jenner, the
skipper) is really motivated and determined and says a lot of people
start to tire and slacken off at this stage but she wants to keep full
throttle on so everybody, just man up and do whatever needs to be done.
So it’s going to be interesting!”

In addition, for the first race on the Atlantic side of the Panama Canal
there was a palpable feeling that the 35,000-mile race is on the home
strait. There are still six races, including this one, to be contested
and competition among the fleet for the coveted podium positions and the
valuable points that come with them is stronger than ever.

The teams left the marina in drenching tropical rain and zero wind and
the race start line was set 50 miles from the coast of Panama. At 1831
local time (2331 GMT) Race 9 got underway with a Le Mans start in 15
knots of breeze from the north east.

All ten boats lined up for a rolling Le Mans start where the crews race
to hoist their headsails in the fastest possible time.

Most of the fleet opted for their Yankee 1 with Hull & Humber, Team
Finland and Uniquely Singapore making cracking starts but it wasn’t long
before overall race leaders Spirit of Australia pushed their way through
to rival Hull & Humber at the front of the pack.

Spirit of Australia’s Jaime Stevens, who joined the team in San
Francisco and will race back to the July 17 finish on the Humber, said,
“It was a very exciting and nerve wracking way to start the race with
all the boats lined up next to each other. We hadn’t done a Le Mans
start since our training but thankfully we weren’t too rusty and got off
to a pretty good start. We are now looking forward to some exciting head
to head racing through the night with all the boats within spitting
distance.”

The 520-mile upwind sprint to Port Antonio on Jamaica’s north coast is
likely to be one of the closest of the Clipper 09-10 campaign.

Skipper of the overall race leader and winner of Race 8, Brendan Hall
said, “Securing another win is certainly our goal. It’s going to be a
different flavour of race to what we’re used to. We love the long races
- that fits our style - so we’re going to have to make some adjustments
to speed things up over a short distance but we’ve had plenty of Scoring
Gates so we’re confident we can keep the pace high on the short legs,
too. There’s no Scoring Gate on this one so all eyes are on the finish.”

For the crew of Jamaica Lightning Bolt this stage holds particular
significance as it is the race to their home port. Pete Stirling,
skipper of the yacht named after the fastest man on earth, said, “This
is the big one - I’m actually a little bit nervous about it because
there’s quite a lot of pressure on. It’s exciting but there’s probably
more pressure than any previous race. Expectations are higher than ever
before and we’re definitely looking for a win this time.

“We did very well downwind on the last race but we do seem to do very
well against the other boats upwind generally so we’re looking forward
to that and certainly nothing less than a podium will do but we want the
win, that’s for sure.”

With a smile, he added, “Spirit of Australia’s always a tough boat to
beat but hopefully we can see them into tenth place!”

The yachts passed through the Panama Canal to reach the Race 9 start
line and the experience gave those on board a moment of reflection, in
particular those who competing in the complete circumnavigation.

Jeremy Reed, a round the world crew member on Hull & Humber, said, “It
was quite surreal when the first gate you go into closes behind you and
you suddenly realise that that’s the end of the Pacific. That’s quite an
emotional moment.”

He continued, “Going through the final lock was again quite emotional,
when you realise that the last lock is opening on to the Atlantic and in
effect you’re on your way home. But I’ve had that feeling quite often
that you’re on your way home during the race - in Qingdao , that’s the
furthest point east you’re going to be, then you cross the 180 degree
meridian you go from the eastern hemisphere to the western hemisphere so
that’s another big moment, then half way in terms of time and then
distance, so there are several moments when you think you’re on your way
home but this is probably the most significant one, going from the
Pacific to the Atlantic.”

The race to Port Antonio, once home to Hollywood legend, Errol Flynn, is
expected to take three to four days and, after the short but busy pit
stop in Panama and a sprint even Jamaican hero Usain Bolt would be proud
of, the teams will be able to relax and enjoy all Jamaica’s vibrant
north coast has to offer.

Positions at 0900 UTC, Sunday 16 May

Boat DTF* DTL*
1 Cape Breton Island 451nm
2 Team Finland 452nm 2nm
3 Jamaica Lightning Bolt 452nm 2nm
4 Hull & Humber 453nm 2nm
5 Spirit of Australia 454nm 3nm
6 Edinburgh Inspiring Capital 455nm 4nm
7 Uniquely Singapore 456nm 5nm
8 Qingdao 458nm 7nm
9 California 459nm 8nm
10 Cork (at 0800 UTC) 471nm 21nm