Oceanracing

Clipperrace Race4 11.12.2017

RACE 4 DAY 9: LIGHT AIRS AHEAD OF SCORING GATE
11 DECEMBER 2017

It has been a day of contrasts for the fleet on Day 9 of Race 4: The ClipperTelemed+ Tasman Test. After surfing down waves at 20 knots in the Southern Ocean, and rounding Waypoint Mitchell (the race mark that took the fleet South of Tasmania) to head north, the fleet now faces a patch of light winds which is hindering progress towards the Scoring Gate.

With Qingdao, Sanya Serenity Coast and Garmin in Stealth Mode, Visit Seattle holds first place this morning and on board, Skipper Nikki Henderson is getting to grips with the contrasting conditions: “Life onboard couldn’t be further from what it was a day ago – from 20 knot surfs, big winds, spray, rain and clouds to flat calm seas, bright sunshine, barely any wind (naturally again coming from the wrong direction) and about a million sail changes.”

Whist on board Qingdao, Skipper Chris Kobusch explains why the team chose this moment to activate Stealth Mode: “Previous races have shown that the first few boats get stuck in light or no wind and the rest of the fleet sees them on AIS (Automatic Identification System) or the position reports and then sails around those poor guys.

“So, we thought by going into Stealth Mode we might get stuck (which we did for most of the day), but hopefully everyone else behind us is following us into the light patch of wind. Sanya Serenity Coast seemed to have a similar idea and was off the radar shortly after us.”

Unicef is in second place this morning with PSP Logistics in third and Dare To Lead just two nautical miles behind in fourth. Tactics remain at the forefront of the Skippers’ minds with PSP Logistics Skipper, Matt Mitchell, saying: “There could be more tactical decisions coming up as we decide how to play the last few hundred miles.”

Dale Smyth, Skipper of Dare To Lead, adds: “It’s going to be very tricky working clear of this windless area and then an upwind slog to Sydney so the game is far from over.”

In fifth place is GREAT Britain and HotelPlanner.com following in sixth place after rounding Waypoint Mitchell. Conall Morrison, Skipper of HotelPlanner.com, talks about the shift in mindset on board as the team claws up the miles towards the Scoring Gate: “With Waypoint Mitchell out of the way, the focus on board is getting to Sydney.”

On board Liverpool 2018, currently in seventh place, the crew is welcoming the change in conditions and using the calmer sea state to its advantage as they recover from a busy eighth day of racing. On board Nasdaq, currently in eighth, the team continues to work hard to make up some miles on the fleet despite spending some time dealing with a rip in its Code 2 (mediumweight spinnaker) and Skipper Rob Graham commented: “The big lesson learned today is that when stuff happens, you have to find a way to deal with it.”

Looking ahead, the Scoring Gate will offer the next opportunity for teams to score extra race points and it will be interesting to watch which teams decide to head for the Scoring Gate and which decide to press on towards Sydney in hope of reaching some stronger winds which are forecast to help boost them through the Bass Strait.

To keep up to date on the latest positions check out the Clipper Race Viewer with hourly updates. For an idea of when the fleet is expected to cross the Finish Line into Sydney, please see the Estimated Arrival Times on the Clipper Race website, which are subject to change.

The first episode of the Clipper 2017-18 Race’s official documentary series, Race of Their Lives 3, is airing tonight on Sky Sports Arena in the UK. Click here for all episode timings.

To read the Skipper Blogs in full, or to hear the latest from the crew, visit the Team Pages on the Clipper Race website.

All positions were correct at time of publishing.

Volvo Ocean Race Leg3 11.12.2017

Volvo Ocean Race Leg3 11.12.2017
Respite after a furious start
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After a fast and furious opening 24 hours of Leg 3, the Volvo Ocean Race fleet were today enjoying a brief moment of respite as they cross a high-pressure ridge.

A spectacular start to the 6,500 nautical mile leg from Cape Town in South Africa to Melbourne, Australia, on Sunday saw the city’s famed ‚Cape Doctor‘ breeze send the fleet on its way yesterday with 20 to 25 knots and huge seas. As evening approached, some boats saw gusts near 40 knots.

After two weeks ashore in Cape Town recovering from the rigours of Leg 2, the first 24 hours of Leg 3 has proved a stark reminder to the crews of what life at the extreme is like.

Over the coming two weeks the 63 sailors and seven embedded onboard reporters will face some of the world’s worst weather as they charge east through the Southern Ocean, the only ocean in the world uninhibited by land.

It is notorious for its monstrous waves and howling winds, brought about by an endless stream of violent depressions that circle the bottom of the planet without restriction.

Feared and respected in equal measure, the Southern Ocean is also an intrinsic part of the Volvo Ocean Race, having featured heavily in each of its 12 editions thus far.

The 2017-18 race, the 13th, boasts three times more Southern Ocean miles than recent editions in a clear nod to the pioneers of the event.

At 1300 UTC Team Sun Hung Kai/Scallywag topped the rankings due to their position slightly further east, but it may be MAPFRE, Dongfeng Race Team and team AkzoNobel are better positioned tactically to get south more quickly.

Speeds throughout the fleet had dropped to around 10 knots as the ridge of lighter breeze impeded their path south.

“We have to cross a ridge, and they’re always difficult to cross because it’s a transition between two areas of wind in a high pressure system,” Dongfeng skipper Charles Caudrelier said. “We’re trying to leave the high pressure at its southern end to catch the low pressure below but these conditions are always difficult. The wind is very shifty, very light. We are lucky though because the system is moving in the opposite direction to us.”

The lighter winds are a welcome relief to the crews after an exhausting first day to Leg 3, allowing them to check over their boats for damage, dry their soaked wet weather gear – and prepare mentally and physically for what lies ahead.

An enormous low pressure system is currently developing to the west of the fleet, and in a few days will engulf the teams with winds of up to 60 knots.

“There’s a lot of hype about what’s going to happen in a few days‘ time,” said Bleddyn Mon, making his debut for Turn the Tide on Plastic in this leg. “We’re all waiting for that to happen, basically. I’m looking forward to a bit of breeze and some big waves.”

Juan Vila, navigator on MAPFRE, added: “Short term we’re expecting the breeze to build to around 20 knots but the big one will be on Thursday or Friday when the first front comes through. The current forecast has winds of well over 40 knots. The main goal will be keeping the boat in one piece.”

Leg 3 is expected to take the fleet around 14 days to complete, giving an ETA of between December 24 and 26.

The tracker has shifted into updating with the six-hourly position reports plus additional updates from the @RaceExperts

Leg 3 – Position Report – Monday 11 December (Day 2) – 13:00 UTC

1. Sun Hun Kai / Scallywag — distance to finish – 5,542.5 nautical miles
2. team AkzoNobel +1.2 nautical miles
3. MAPFRE +2.5
4. Dongfeng Race Team +3.5
5. Team Brunel +4.0
6. Vestas 11th Hour Racing +6.4
7. Turn the Tide on Plastic +6.9

RORC Transatlanik Race 12.12.2017

Atlantic Anniversary Regatta
incorporating the RORC Transatlantic Race

Calero Marinas – Marina Lanzarote, Arrecife, Canary Islands to Camper & Nicholsons Port Louis Marina, Grenada

Monday rush hour in the RORC Transatlantic Race

On the 17th day of the RORC Transatlantic Race five teams completed the 3,000 nautical mile race within a 10 hour period and 11 yachts are still at sea. Monday’s finishers included four young German teams and Gerald Bibot’s Belgian catamaran Zed 6. Mathias Mueller von Blumencron’s Red was the winner of the Class40 Division for the RORC Transatlantic Race.

Red completed the race in an elapsed time of 15 days 17 hours 25 mins 25 secs to take a hard-earned victory from Berthold and Tobias Brinkmann’s MarieJo, which was just under nine hours behind. The Class40 lead had changed hands at least three times during the race, but it was Red with a young but very experienced crew that has been together for many years and raced thousands of miles, that took the Class win.

„For three of us this is our second transatlantic race in this boat. It is a great team and we have fun together,“ commented von Blumencron. „This was a very tactical race. Right from the start we were upwind for almost 500 miles. We did make a big tactical mistake mid-Atlantic when we went south too early to try to cross ‚Death Valley‘ as we called it. MarieJo got 70 miles ahead of us so we had to catch them. Eventually the easterly breeze arrived and the downwind slide began. 48 hours from the finish we had a really squally night with tough racing in 35 knots of wind. In contrast, the last night was so peaceful – a wonderful way to end a great race.“

German J/V53 Bank von Bremen finished the race in an elapsed time of 15 days 21 hours 29 mins 57 secs. The offshore training boat is owned by Segelkameradschaft Das Wappen von Bremen and skippered by 29-year old Alexander Beilken with a crew with an average age of 31. The Bremen-based yacht will be taking part in the whole of the Atlantic Anniversary Regatta as friends of the Hamburg-based NRV, celebrating their 150th anniversary, but there is fierce but friendly competition between Bremen-based yachts and those from Hamburg.

„We are delighted to have beaten the Hamburg boats to Grenada,“ smiled Alexander Beilken, tasting a cold beer. This boat has sailed over 160,000 miles and we feel very privileged to write another chapter in her history. Unfortunately for us we have to go straight to Antigua as we have a new crew member from our club coming out to sail on the boat, so after breakfast, we will sail north to Antigua. We will be back racing in the RORC Caribbean 600 in February.“

German JV52 Haspa Hamburg, owned by another youth sailing initiative, Hamburgischer Verein Seefahrt, finished the race in an elapsed time of 16 days 03 hours 20 mins 50 secs. The crew are nearly all in their 20s and skipper Max Gaertner and nearly the entire crew went for a swim in the marina on arrival. For the last part of the race Haspa Hamburg was locked into a personal duel with Gerald Bibot’s Belgian catamaran Zed 6.

„We destroyed both of our spinnakers which really reduced our speed and Haspa Hamburg came from 100 miles behind to beat us to the line by just over 10 minutes,“ explained Zed 6 skipper Gerald Bibot, „But, we were happy for them, not sad for us. It is fantastic to see young talented sailors making their way in our sport and I am sure many of them will go on to do great things in the future.“

Follow the remainder of the fleet still racing:
https://rorctransatlantic.rorc.org/

YB Race Tracker: https://rorctransatlantic.rorc.org/tracking/2017-fleet-tracking.html

Individual yachts, classes or the whole fleet can be tracked throughout the race

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RORC Transatlantic Race 11.12.2017

11.12.2017
Atlantic Anniversary Regatta
incorporating the RORC Transatlantic Race

Calero Marinas – Marina Lanzarote, Arrecife, Canary Islands to Camper & Nicholsons Port Louis Marina, Grenada

Monster Project proud to be in Grenada
Day 16 1400 UTC 10 December.

Roman Guerra’s Volvo 70 Monster Project finished the 2017 RORC Transatlantic Race on Sunday 10 December 2017 in an elapsed time of 14 days 21 hrs 39 mins 46 secs. Sixteen yachts are still racing across the Atlantic Ocean and a number of teams will finish the 3,000 nautical mile race over the next 48 hours.

Monster Project safely moored at Camper & Nicholsons Port Louis Marina and the team cracked open the cold beers: „None of this team has raced across the Atlantic before and it all got pretty emotional when we finished. All of us got a bit teary,“ commented Monster Project skipper, Roman Guerra. „There are so many memorable moments, but racing at over 30 knots of boat speed two nights before the finish, was really special. The crew described it as awesome, scary, wonderful and just unreal. Any serious sailor wants to race across the Atlantic in a Volvo 70 and we are proud to have done it. A big thank you to the RORC for running such a great race.“

Five teams are within 200 miles of the finish in Grenada and two German teams are likely to have a photo-finish. Mathias Mueller von Blumencron’s Class40 Red leads the charge with 121 miles to go, just three miles ahead of Alexander Beilken’s JV53 Bank von Bremen.

„Everybody on board Red is in fighting mode and pushing hard with very little sleep. The infamous squalls of the Caribbean are powerful eruptions of nature and in between is our tiny little boat, screaming down thewaves. However, the concert is not over yet; we still have over a hundred miles to go – just a small sprint from Kiel to Anholt. No big clouds are visible at the moment and it’s an almost clear sky. What a difference 24 hours makes. Spirits are up and Red is flying,“ says Mueller in his race blog.

Gerald Bibot’s Belgian catamaran Zed 6 is 176 miles from the finish, just ahead of two German teams, Berthold and Tobias Brinkmann’s Class40 MarieJo and Max Gaertner’s JV52 Haspa Hamburg. Provisional IRC One leader, Bjoern Woge’s Andrews 56 Broader View Hamburg is 346 miles from Grenada, and expected to finish the race on Monday evening.

In IRC Two, the provisional leader is Richard Palmer’s British JPK 10.10 Jangada which is racing Two Handed with Rupert Holmes. Here is a summary of their blog:

„Our spell in stereotypical tradewind conditions a few days ago didn’t last long; a succession of squalls brought gusts into the upper 20s. After some spirited surfing that saw Jangada hitting 14 knots, the sea state became such that it was no longer feasible two-handed to continue with a spinnaker set. We then spent 24 hours running with a poled out No4 jib, or reaching with the jib and one reef in the mainsail, still hitting boat speeds well above 10 knots.
„However, the wind speed dropped to less than four knots. Unfortunately, the larger boats got past that point well before the high became established, so we’ve lost out compared to them. Nevertheless, we have a few in our sights that we can realistically overhaul on corrected time between now and the finish, and we’re still leading both our own class and the two-handed division by a comfortable margin. In terms of distance, we’re only halfway through this 3,000 mile race after 13 days at sea. That’s certainly frustrating, but the second half should be much faster with a prospect of consecutive 200 plus mile days.“
Follow the fleet and watch the 2017 RORC Transatlantic Race unfold: Minisite: https://rorctransatlantic.rorc.org/

YB Race Tracker: https://rorctransatlantic.rorc.org/tracking/2017-fleet-tracking.html
Individual yachts, classes or the whole fleet can be tracked throughout the race

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Social media – How to follow the race:-

Twitter: @rorcracing
Regular updates on the race Twitter feed
Facebook: @RoyalOceanRacingClub
Photo albums and news stories

Instagram: @rorcracing
A selection of the best photographs to bring the race alive

Official RTR Hashtag: #rorctransatlanticrace

Volvo Ocean Race Leg3 10.12.2017

10.12.2017
Dongfeng leads the way to the Southern Ocean from Table Bay

EPIC HELI SHOTS IN CAPE OF GOOG HOPE: Click here

Dongfeng Race Team skippered by Charles Caudrelier of France led the way around a short inshore course at the start of Leg 3 of the Volvo Ocean Race from Cape Town to Melbourne today.

The red and white Volvo Ocean 65 sponsored by Dongfeng Motor Corporation of China, which is lying in third place overall in the race, quickly found her stride in classic Table Bay conditions – flat water, 20-25 knots of wind from the southeast and a cloudless sky.

In front of a sizeable spectator fleet of yachts and small craft, Caudrelier at the wheel, and with Carolijn Brouwer of the Netherlands and Marie Riou of France trimming, coaxed Dongfeng into the lead on the first inshore leg.

Dongfeng Race Team then held the initiative throughout the short inshore phase before rivals MAPFRE, skippered by Xabi Fernandez, sneaked ahead in the lee of Signal Hill as the boats headed off into the south Atlantic.

Ahead lies one of the toughest stages of this race, 6,500-nautical miles of the southern Indian Ocean on the route to Melbourne. To start with the crews will face some very rough, wet and cold conditions as they hammer their way south around the tip of South Africa into a gusty headwind.

The next phase will be crucial to sorting out the early running order as the fleet tackles a large area of light winds before them crews hook into the first of the big depressions rumbling around the bottom of the world towards Australia.

The forecast for this double-points scoring leg suggests that in around three days time Dongfeng Race Team and their rivals will be sailing downwind in 40-50 knots of breeze and seas of 7-11 metres.

Boatspeeds will be high but Caudrelier has made it clear that he will be conscious at all times of the need to preserve the boat from major damage as the Volvo Ocean Race returns to the Southern Indian Ocean after detouring further north at this stage in previous editions.

A big factor in this leg will be the Antarctic Ice Exclusion zone which sets a hard border on the southern fringes of the racecourse. This reaches well north of where the navigators might otherwise want to place their boats at some points during the leg, an indication of just how far north ice bergs are currently drifting.

The Dongfeng Race Team crew for this leg has three new faces. Kevin Escoffier of France is on board instead of fellow Frenchman Jeremie Beyou and Chinese sailor Xue Liu, also known as Black, is on for his fellow countryman Chen Jinhao/Horace in a planned rotation.

Not planned is the replacement of watch captain Daryl Wislang of New Zealand by French Dongfeng reserve sailor and team Performance Analyst Fabien Delahaye, after Wislang suffered a back injury just hours before the Cape Town re-start.

Dongfeng Race Team finished Leg 1 of the race from Alicante to Lisbon in third place and was second in Leg 2 from Lisbon to Cape Town. It currently lies in third place on the overall scoreboard, three points behind the leader MAPFRE, and two points behind second-placed Vestas 11th Hour Racing, skippered by Charlie Enright.

This is Dongfeng Motor Corporation’s second campaign in the Volvo Ocean Race. On debut in 2014-15 Caudrelier’s team finished third overall.

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Clipperrace Race4 10.12.2017

RACE 4 DAY 8: TACTICS AT PLAY AS TEAMS ROUND TASMANIA
10 DECEMBER 2017

Following a week of close racing in the Southern Ocean, Clipper Race teams are getting more tactical as the race leaders approach Waypoint Mitchell, south of Tasmania, and prepare to head north to Sydney.

The eighth day of Race 4: The ClipperTelemed+ Tasman Test has seen no change at the top of the leaderboard with both of the Chinese teams continuing to lead the pack. Retaining its advantage on the rest of the fleet, Qingdao enjoys its second consecutive day in first place, some thirteen nautical miles ahead of second placed Sanya Serenity Coast.

For Sanya Serenity Coast’s Australian Skipper, Wendy Tuck, approaching the significant race milestone of Waypoint Mitchell is met with mixed feelings, as she says: “The corner [of Tasmania] is getting closer, it will be such a boost to finally hit the home run towards Sydney, the excitement is growing.

“Even though we are looking forward to going north, it’s always a tad sad to be leaving an ocean behind, however there will be enough challenges sailing up along the coasts.”

Visit Seattle holds onto third place despite a challenging day for Skipper Nikki Henderson who, with support from the crew, led repairs to the mainsail after one of the top battens broke. She explains: “The crew hoisted the tri-sail (tiny bullet proof storm mainsail) and we proceeded to sail under it and the Yankee 1 all night in the right direction so it actually didn’t hurt us so much.

“I just have to say how brilliant it was to have such an excellent shore support team. Thank you also Mark (Clipper Race Director) for including Tri-sail training in the Level 4 syllabus – it definitely came in handy that everyone knew exactly how to hoist it.”

Despite little change in the leading positions, places continue to change throughout the rest of the fleet with Unicef now in fourth place, Dare To Lead in fifth and PSP Logistics racing its way up to sixth from ninth place yesterday.

Pleased with progress, PSP Logistics Skipper Matt Mitchell says: “We are really putting some pressure on the guys in front now, the team, including the boat, has been working super hard making sure that we get every ounce of speed out of her.”

Dare To Lead Skipper, Dale Smyth, adds: “The weather on the eastern side of the island [Tasmania] is going to be interesting and the race positions are by no means defined at this stage.

“It feels strange to actually be leaving the Southern Ocean, it has been our constant companion since Punta del Este, Uruguay.“

Towards the back of the fleet, racing remains competitive for Garmin, which has slipped down to seventh from fourth yesterday, GREAT Britain in eighth and Liverpool 2018 in ninth. GREAT Britain Skipper Andy Burns reports: “I am encouraging everyone onboard, including myself, to work as hard as we possibly can to make this happen.”

HotelPlanner.com follows in tenth with Nasdaq, which has been struggling to determine which gybe will be most efficient for the Tasman waypoint, in eleventh.

Looking ahead, once teams round Tasmania focus will shift to the Scoring Gate with race points and positions expected to change frequently as tactics amidst the close racing play out up the coast.

According to Simon Rowell, Clipper Race Meteorologist, weather conditions will also begin to change as the fleet rounds Tasmania. He says: “As teams head for the Bass Strait, wind will have dropped off as the middle of the high goes over the fleet. I expect that by Tuesday the fleet will be going upwind, probably all the way to Sydney.”

To keep up to date on the latest positions check out the Clipper Race Viewer with hourly updates.

The first episode of the Clipper 2017-18 Race’s official documentary series, Race of Their Lives 3, is airing tonight and Monday on Sky Sports Arena in the UK. Click here for all episode timings.

To read the Skipper Blogs in full, or to hear the latest from the crew, visit the Team Pages on the Clipper Race website.

All positions were correct at time of publishing.

Transatplanticrace 09.12.2017

Teasing Machine Sets the Pace
Day 15 1000 UTC 9 December 2017

Eric de Turckheim’s French Nivelt-Muratet 54 Teasing Machine finished the 2017 RORC Transatlantic Race on Friday 8 December in an elapsed time of 13 days 19 hrs 29 mins 08 secs. The French team lead the race overall after IRC time correction. Canadian Southern Wind 96 Sorceress, skippered by Daniel Stump and Tilmar Hansen’s German Elliot 52 Outsider have also finished the RORC Transatlantic Race. 17 yachts are still at sea, vying for the finish line outside Camper & Nicholsons Port Louis Marina in Grenada.

Teasing Machine arrived at sunset on the 14th day of the race and has one hand on the RORC Transatlantic Race Trophy. The team cheered for joy as they crossed the finish line. „We are very happy to be here in Grenada,“ smiled Eric de Turckheim. „This is my first transatlantic race and it has been fantastic. Every time I finish any race, be it a running marathon or a yacht race, you feel emotional, but also relaxed. Your mind, body and soul is released from that concentration. For me a memorable moment was passing through the transition zone after the start. We had been upwind for a long time and we had a short passage of very light winds before we got into the tradewinds. One night it was so beautiful, flying the Code Zero, doing just four knots. There was no noise, nothing and the moon almost full. It was just magnificent!“

The stunning Canadian Southern Wind 96 Sorceress, skippered by Daniel Stump with a crew of just nine, finished the race 35 minutes ahead of Tilmar Hansen’s German Elliott 52 Outsider. Eleven German teams are taking part in this year’s race, the first part of the Atlantic Anniversary Regatta, celebrating the 150th anniversary of the NRV (Norddeutsche Regatta Verein). NRV member Tilmar Hansen was delighted to be the first all-German team to finish the 2017 RORC Transatlantic Race.

„We are thrilled to be here! It is great to be the first German team!“ commented an elated Tilmar Hansen. „It is amazing and we can’t have enough of that, but we would have liked to have beaten the boats in front of us as well. We were trying hard, but it is very nice to be the first from Germany to finish this race.“
At 1000 UTC on the 9th September, 17 yachts are still racing and provisional class leaders are as follows.

IRC One, Bjorn Woge’s German Andrews 56 Broader View Hamburg is 625 miles from the finish and leading after time correction in a highly competitive class. Broader View Hamburg is the most southerly of the class, defending a narrow lead from Friedrich Boehnert’s German Xp50 Lunatix, and Kai Weeks‘ French Class40 Sensation, racing under IRC. Johann von Eicken’s German Swan 56 Latona is far to the north and challenging the class leaders. On estimated corrected time, just four hours separate the trio.

In IRC Two, Richard Palmer’s British JPK 10.10 Jangada, racing Two Handed with Rupert Holmes, leads on the water, and the class. The battling German Class 40s are less than 500 miles from the finish. Mathias Mueller von Blumencron’s Red has opened up a 45 mile lead. Berthold and Tobias Brinkmann’s MarieJo has reported a steering problem, but continues towards Grenada in the wake of their close competition. Gerald Bibot’s Belgian Catamaran Zed 6 is 280 miles from the finish.

Follow the fleet and watch the 2017 RORC Transatlantic Race unfold:
Minisite: https://rorctransatlantic.rorc.org/

YB Race Tracker: https://rorctransatlantic.rorc.org/tracking/2017-fleet-tracking.html
Individual yachts, classes or the whole fleet can be tracked throughout the race

Embed code for Teasing Machine Video:
<iframe width=“560″ height=“315″ src=“https://www.youtube.com/embed/P15cWjczfOw“ frameborder=“0″ gesture=“media“ allow=“encrypted-media“ allowfullscreen></iframe>

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Clipperrace 09.12.2017

RACE 4 DAY 7: CLOSE RACING CONTINUES
09 DECEMBER 2017

As the close racing continues in the Southern Ocean, the leaderboard positions continue to change with Qingdao retaking the lead on day seven of the The ClipperTelemed+ Tasman Test. With less than 20 nautical miles separating the top three teams, the next 24 hours are set to be just as thrilling as the fleet converges on the race mark at the south of Tasmania before heading north to Sydney.

This follows an excitingly close Elliot Brown Ocean Sprint conclusion yesterday, which saw Sanya Serenity Coast, Visit Seattle and Qingdao claim the bonus points with less than four minutes between their elapsed times.

On Day 7, it is Qingdao which takes the lead but on board the team is highly aware of how close the racing is with Skipper Chris Kobusch reporting: “Since the team sailed into first position everyone is keen to stay there and every time I come on deck, or someone comes to the nav station, the first question is: where is Sanya Serenity Coast? How far are they away?

“It is really exciting racing with all the boats so close together. It is still a long way to go and the slightest mistake can cost you a position or more.”

Currently in second place, Sanya Serenity Coast has been enjoying the fast and furious downwind sailing conditions. Skipper Wendy Tuck said: “We came down south and its windy and fun. This breeze will start easing over the next 24 hours so we are making the most of the surfing, everyone is getting a go on the wheel of fortune and lots of new top speeds are happening.”

Visit Seattle, currently in third having opted for the most southerly route of the podium teams, is already looking ahead to Sydney. But with the race mark to the south of Tasmania signalling that time in the Southern Ocean is nearly over, Skipper Nikki Henderson reflects: “So, the exciting news though is that we ARE nearly at the south of Tasmania. Around a day or so and we will be turning left and turning north. It’s so crazy to think that this is the last Southern Ocean sailing we will be doing. Even stranger to think we will be heading north!“

On board fourth placed Garmin, Skipper Gaetan Thomas is also thinking about the tactics of rounding the southerly mark and the remaining decisions to be made as they route heads north to Sydney saying: “Zigzagging towards Tasmania for our next waypoint called ‘Mitchell’ were things tactically will be very interesting, lots of currents, an option for scoring gate and some light winds to avoid.”

Positions are tight and continue to vary with Unicef slipping to fifth place with GREAT Britain, which moved into sixth, closely crossing its path. Unicef Skipper Bob Beggs said: “The race tempo is exciting with all the yachts cross-tacking each other, one such meeting was with GREAT Britain a couple of hours ago it was good to talk with skipper Andy although he wasn’t keen to share his tactics with me as he headed south trying to reach waypoint Michell south of Tasmania before me.”

Dare To Lead has enjoyed another fast night towards Tasmania moving up to seventh position and managing to keep PSP Logistics, currently ninth, and Liverpool 2018, tenth, at bay. Skipper Dale Smyth said: “Another good fast night towards Tasmania, still trying to decide which gybe is best.

“We hoisted our spinnaker this morning as we are having a little tussle with Liverpool 2018 and had a couple of fast hours. We eventually ran out of space with our ice limit of 45 degrees south and had to gybe north once more.”

PSP Logistics has also been enjoying the fast spinnaker sailing conditions benefiting from a wind shift which, for skipper Matt Mitchell, came as a relief as it meant that PSP Logistics could now point exactly where he wants to go: “We continue to chip away the miles to the guys ahead and we are starting to make good gains…finally!

“With just over 24 hours to the corner it really feels like the fleet has bunched up again meaning it’s still wide open for the section up to Sydney.”

After a tough night with strong gusting winds, HotelPlanner.com choose a more northerly route to avoid some of the strongest winds but in turn sacrificed some leaderboard positions slipping from sixth to eighth place. However, Skipper Conall Morrison is hopeful that the team today will have good conditions and nice speeds back under spinnaker.

For Nasdaq, currently in eleventh place, thoughts have also turned to Tasmania after reaching the milestone of around 1000 nautical miles to go until Sydney.

Simon Rowell, Clipper Race Meteorologist and weather guru, reports that as fleet converges to Tasmania, the conditions are looking good to get around quickly. He added that it is looking very tactical from there on in with what looks to be a very close upwind finish in Sydney.

Which team will round the mark first? Stay tuned to the Clipper Race Viewer, with its hourly position updates, to see how the changing weather conditions will affect the fleet. All positions were correct at time of publishing.

To read the Skipper Blogs in full, or to hear the latest from the crew, visit the Team Pages.

Clipperrace Race 4, 08.12.2017

RACE 4 DAY 6: THIRTEEN SECONDS SEPARATES OCEAN SPRINT WINNERS
08 DECEMBER 2017

Following an intense day of racing on the sixth day of Race 4: The ClipperTelemed+ Tasman Test, it can be revealed that an incredible thirteen seconds separated the top two teams, and just three minutes 16 seconds separated top three teams, in what has certainly been the closest and most thrilling Elliot Brown Ocean Sprint battle of the 2017-18 edition.

Current Race 4 leader Sanya Serenity Coast edged Visit Seattle, to the fastest time in the sprint (26hrs:17mins:31secs) by the miniscule margin, to take three and two bonus points respectively.

Claiming second place in the Elliot Brown Ocean Sprint for the second consecutive race, Skipper Nikki Henderson reported: “The crew worked super hard to keep the boat moving. I was particularly impressed by a fantastic gybe just at the end.”

Qingdao completed the sprint in the third fastest time of the fleet and will claim one bonus race point.

With the top nine teams separated by just 55 nautical miles, racing remains incredibly intense behind leaders Sanya Serenity Coast, Qingdao, and Visit Seattle, after almost a week at sea.

Unicef is currently in fourth place. followed by Garmin in fifth and HotelPlanner.com which is maintaining sixth place, just three nautical miles behind. HotelPlanner.com Skipper Conall Morrison commented: “A grey sky and lots of wind is helping us to fly along towards the bottom of Tasmania, and it seems Garmin is experiencing the same as we see them on the AIS (Automatic Identification System).”

Seventh place is maintained by GREAT Britain today, with Liverpool 2018 in eighth after completing the Elliot Brown Ocean Sprint overnight. However, as Liverpool 2018 Skipper Lance Shepherd observes, racing remains just as competitive: “With the Elliot Brown Ocean Sprint now finished, we are back to good old fashioned regular sailing which to be honest is not much different from ocean sprinting.”

Although Dare To Lead didn’t have the quick Elliot Brown Ocean Sprint it was hoping for, racing remains fast on board the ninth placed team, with Skipper Dayle Smyth reporting: “I took a stint at the helm this morning and hit 24.7 knots, the record of the day, and we continue to have nice big surfs.”

Towards the back of the fleet, PSP Logistics is still fighting to regain positions following its bold decision to take the most southerly route of the fleet earlier in the race with Nasdaq following in eleventh. PSP Logistics Skipper Matt Mitchell explains: “We are currently setting ourselves up for the next south of west wind shift which I hope that we can hold all the way down to the virtual beach.”

Looking ahead, teams are now setting their sights fully on Tasmania, the next race waypoint, and are currently in the strongest part of the front which should ease over the next 24 hours.

Clipper Race Meteorologist Simon Rowell explains: “By this time tomorrow the wind should have backed and then veered a little again ahead of the next front coming in. This should give the fleet a strong push south of Tasmania.”

Stay tuned to the Clipper Race Viewer, with its hourly position updates, to see how the changing weather conditions will affect the fleet. All positions were correct at time of publishing.

To read the Skipper Blogs in full, or to hear the latest from the crew, visit the Team Pages.

Atlantic Anniversary Regatta 07.12.2017

07.12.2017
Atlantic Anniversary Regatta
incorporating the RORC Transatlantic Race

Calero Marinas – Marina Lanzarote, Arrecife, Canary Islands to Camper & Nicholsons Port Louis Marina, Grenada. Start: Saturday 25 November

Battles in the RORC Transatlantic Race
Day 13 0800 UTC 07 December 2017

21 yachts are still racing in the RORC Transatlantic Race. At 0800 UTC on the 13th day, Jochen Bovenkamps’s Marten 72 Aragon was 273 miles from the finish and estimated to arrive at Camper & Nicholsons Port Louis Marina around midnight local time on Thursday 7th December. The ETA for Teasing Machine, Sorceress and Outsider is Friday 8th December.

Line Honours winner, Ludde Ingvall’s Australian Maxi CQS will be awarded the International Maxi Association (IMA) Transatlantic Trophy later today. CQS has also set the IRC corrected time to beat for the RORC Transatlantic Race Trophy. In IRC Zero, Eric de Turckheim’s French Nivelt-Muratet 54 Teasing Machine is expected to finish well inside the required time to lead the race overall.

In IRC One, three German yachts, just over 1,000 miles from the finish in Grenada, are vying for the class win: Björn Woge’s Andrews 56 Broader View Hamburg, Friedrich Boehnert’s Xp50 Lunatix, and von Eicken and Brockhausen’s Swan 56 Latona. All three yachts have fathers and sons on board; Latona has three generations of the von Eicken Family. Father and son, Bene and Björn Woge on Broader View Hamburg, contacted the media team via satellite:

„A few days ago we saw whales really close by (a little scary to be honest) and every now and then some dolphins kept us company. Night sailing is really impressive as we are chased by a trail of glowing plankton which looks beautiful. During the night we have a light that shines into our sails for us to see, but it also attracts flying fish. We have to clear our boat regularly from dead fish on deck. It’s hard to describe just how enormous the Atlantic really is. The surrounding is pretty much the same now as it was on the second day – water! But never the less, we are we looking forward to sailing well and maybe even leading the father-son challenge. We are looking good right now.“

An area of high pressure has effected all boats racing in IRC Two. Richard Palmer’s JPK 10.10 Jangada racing Two-Handed with Rupert Holmes, has built a formidable class lead after time correction. However, Jangada has a gentlemen’s wager with Gemervescence, skippered by RORC Commodore Steven Anderson and co-skipper Jane Anderson. The wager for a bottle of rum will be won by the first to finish the race. Currently Jangada leads on the water, but Gemervescence looks to have taken a better line through the high pressure and is closing the gap. In the Multihull Class, Gerald Bibot’s Belgian Catamaran Zed 6 gybed northwest yesterday morning and is now less than 1,000 miles from Grenada.

In the Class40 Division, Mathias Mueller von Blumencron’s Red has regained the lead from Berthold and Tobias Brinkmann’s MarieJo. The two German yachts have been enjoying an intense battle with the lead changing hands on at least three occasions. Red is now just 5 miles ahead of MarieJo. Both yachts are expected to continue a high-speed match race right to the finish.

Here is a summary of Red’s blog sent via satellite, depicting life on board:

„A zone of squalls approached from the east and we tried to avoid the worst clouds with gybes. Heavy wind shifts too. We were managing to go further south, on port with amazing favourite compass readings for us. Very tactical sailing. These clouds can be very, very ugly. The Maxi CQS experienced 40 knots of breeze; we know that mode too. On the other side, the clouds can bring fortunate breezes if you approach them from the correct angle. Now we see how all this influences our position in the competition. Unfortunately, we have little room to gybe further south again as we are almost on the layline to the finish. Grenada is 940 miles ahead – one and a half Fastnet races away – with the difference that it’s a downhill slide only. The last day was easy sailing, 16 to 20 knots of breeze, a relaxing ride with our big spi. Today should evolve similarly. From tomorrow afternoon the sprint to the finish begins. Wind will increase up to 22 knots, the deck will be wet again, the noise under deck is like on a motorboat at full speed. At night it will be pitch black as the moon rises now at midnight and in two days, not even that.“

Follow the fleet and watch the 2017 RORC Transatlantic Race unfold:
Minisite: https://rorctransatlantic.rorc.org/

YB Race Tracker: https://rorctransatlantic.rorc.org/tracking/2017-fleet-tracking.html
Individual yachts, classes or the whole fleet can be tracked throughout the race

ENDS

RORC Transatlanic Regatta 08.12.2017

08.12.2017

Atlantic Anniversary Regatta
incorporating the RORC Transatlantic Race

Calero Marinas – Marina Lanzarote, Arrecife, Canary Islands to Camper & Nicholsons Port Louis Marina, Grenada. Start: Saturday 25 November

Aragon Finish in Style
Day 14 0800 UTC 8 December 2017

The second boat to finish the 2017 RORC Transatlantic Race was Jochen Bovenkamp’s Marten 72 Aragon, crossing the finish line in Grenada at 07 hrs 49 mins 37 secs UTC on Friday 8 December. Completing the race in an elapsed time of 12 days 19 hrs 49 mins 37 secs, the powerful Maxi showed a tremendous turn of speed in the last 24 hours to power ahead of their close rivals. Aragon now takes the overall lead after IRC time correction for the RORC Transatlantic Race Trophy.

RORC Admiral, Andrew McIrvine and Port Louis Marina General Manager, Glynn Thomas welcomed Aragon and her team on arrival at Camper & Nicholsons Port Louis Marina. Once safely docked, the crew enjoyed an ice-cold beer for the first time in nearly two weeks.

„It was a very enjoyable race with a real racing boat and a great crew. I have learnt so much,“ said Jochen Bovenkamp who had chartered the Marten 72 for the 4th edition of the race. „There are so many memorable moments from the race, especially sailing at 23 knots downwind with a wake like a speedboat at the stern – just incredible! Back in Germany it is very cold now, but we have had such a warm welcome in Grenada.“

„This year we always had wind to sail into. The only barrier was the high pressure shortly after the start,“ explained Aragon’s Boat Captain Nico Lecarpentier. „Aragon was chartered for this race, so we had some crew that were completely new to this type of boat. This is a real race for sure and in the last five days we pushed the hardest. The crew became a great unit and it was really tight racing with Outsider, Sorceress and Teasing Machine. We spent most of the race battling with them on the water. It is fantastic to arrive in Port Louis, surrounded by some of the world’s largest superyachts, which is a little different to last year.“

Aragon is the provisional overall leader for the RORC Transatlantic Race, completing the 3,000 nautical mile race over three hours quicker than their overall win in 2016. However, Eric de Turckheim’s French Teasing Machine is currently 113 miles from the finish and is estimated to be on track to finish the race well ahead of Aragon’s corrected time. Will Apold’s Canadian Southern Wind 96 Sorceress and Tilmar Hansen’s German Elliott 52 Outsider are all expected to finish the race later today.

Follow the fleet and watch the 2017 RORC Transatlantic Race unfold:
Minisite: https://rorctransatlantic.rorc.org/

YB Race Tracker: https://rorctransatlantic.rorc.org/tracking/2017-fleet-tracking.html
Individual yachts, classes or the whole fleet can be tracked throughout the race

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RORC Transatlantic Race 06.12.2017

06.12.2017

CQS takes Line Honours in the RORC Transatlantic Race

Ludde Ingvall’s Australian Maxi CQS finished the 2017 RORC Transatlantic Race on Wednesday 6th December taking Monohull Line Honours in an elapsed time of 11 days 00 hrs 03 mins 08 secs. CQS committed to a southerly route for the 3,000 nautical mile race and despite sustaining sail damage in a vicious 40 knot squall, the canting keel 98ft Maxi led from start to finish. Ingvall is no stranger to taking line honours in prestigious offshore races, twice taking the honour in both the Rolex Fastnet Race and the Rolex Sydney Hobart Yacht Race. This was Ludde Ingvall’s 16th transatlantic.

Once dockside at Camper & Nicholsons Port Louis Marina, Ingvall was full of enthusiasm for the RORC Transatlantic Race and his team:

„We have had a fantastic trip, even though the slow start meant we didn’t have a fast race, but I love it. It is great to be back in the Atlantic and especially nice to be first. Much more fun than being last! We have a young crew on board and it is especially rewarding to give them this chance and ‚pass it on‘. Sailing is an amazing sport, but big boat opportunities for young sailors are few and they did really well. Just think, we have eight nationalities on one boat and everybody was focused on the same finish line. We worked as a team, looked after each other and it was tough at times.“

CQS Crew: Skipper Ludde Ingvall; Co-Skipper Kenneth Thelen; Logan Andresen; Martyn Baker; Philip Barnard; Hans-Christoph Brumberg; Charles Egerton-Warburton; Robin Elsey; James Espey; Liam Gardner; Paul Heyrman; David Kenefick; Rokas Milevicius; James Oxenham; Malcolm Paine and James Tomlinson.

After the Australian Maxi had safely moored at the impressive Superyacht Dock, CQS received a warm welcome from RORC Race Officer Steve Cole and Glynn Thomas, General Manager at Camper & Nicholsons Port Louis Marina. Patricia Maher, Chief Executive Officer at Grenada Tourism Authority presented Ludde Ingvall and his team with a basket of Grenadian produce.

CQS has now set the bar for the best corrected time under IRC for the RORC Transatlantic Race Trophy. The defending champion, Marten 72 Aragon, skippered by Jochen Bovenkamp and Canadian Southern Wind 96 Sorceress, skippered by Daniel Stump are likely to be the next yachts to finish. The Maxis have close company from two high-performance offshore racing yachts, Tilmar Hansen’s German Elliott 52 Outsider and the provisional overall leader, Eric de Turckheim’s French Nivelt-Muratet 54 Teasing Machine. All four yachts are expected to finish the 2017 RORC Transatlantic Race on Friday 8th December.

Follow the fleet and watch the 2017 RORC Transatlantic Race unfold:
Minisite: https://rorctransatlantic.rorc.org/

YB Race Tracker: https://rorctransatlantic.rorc.org/tracking/2017-fleet-tracking.html
Individual yachts, classes or the whole fleet can be tracked throughout the race

ENDS/…

Social media – How to follow the race:-

Twitter: @rorcracing
Regular updates on the race Twitter feed
Facebook: @RoyalOceanRacingClub
Photo albums and news stories

Instagram: @rorcracing
A selection of the best photographs to bring the race alive

Official RTR Hashtag: #rorctransatlanticrace
Atlantic Anniversary Regatta: #AAR

Virtual Regatta: Sign up to race online:
https://click.virtualregatta.com/?li=4852

Media Requests:
Trish Jenkins – Press Officer
RORC Transatlantic Race
M: +44 (0)7880 518689
E: trish@j2pr.co.uk

Start images & High Resolution Press Images:
High resolution images are available copyright free for editorial use with a credit:
RORC/James Mitchell
https://gallery.rorc.org/v/2017/rorc-transatlantic-race/

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