Clipper 2002 - 4th Clipper round the world race - zur Übersicht Race Office Report - The Stage is Set 08:00, 21 November 2002 It has been another busy day for the Clipper fleet as the eight, identical yachts make good runs towards the west. The different latitudes have now been selected and the boats have fanned out over a 450 mile front for their charge to the Old Bahama Channel, now some 2,400 miles away. London and _blank York favour the shorter northern route and are going well. 150 miles south Bristol Clipper has set the fashion by leading Liverpool, Glasgow and Hong Kong. Cape Town Clipper continues to dive south seeing that this is their best chance to get round those ahead - a policy that has worked in previous races. That leaves Jersey ... Apart from being known as a beautiful, sunny and independently minded island, Jersey also enjoys the most southerly aspect in the UK. Somehow it seems totally appropriate that Jersey Clipper should be guarding the southern flank and waiting for the others to fall on their swords. This is a sound tactic, but it is not good for the nerves of enthusiastic supporters from the Island who will be debating it endlessly over the next 10 days. In the last race it was the Scots in Glasgow Clipper that were accused of chasing penguins. The keen Clipper followers will know that Ed Green, the current acting Skipper of Jersey Clipper, drove Glasgow in the last race when in the end he abandoned his southern charge just when everyone got stuck in the north! Jersey Clipper has paid a price for going south; will they get better winds and currents to pick the others off? I think there is a good chance that Ed Green will be able to enjoy holidays in the lovely Channel Island of Jersey in the future. Liverpool Clipper, skippered by Adam Kyffin, report that they have finally managed to get past Glasgow AGAIN after days of trading positions. Rupert Parkhouse and his crew aboard Glasgow Clipper are currently using their heavy weight spinnaker (2.2 oz) while the sail repair team below put their All Purpose (1.5 oz) kite back together. They are not the only ones sewing! Weather forecasters, both amateur and professional, have never had so much fun since the internet has opened up unlimited information for them. The spin off is that everyone can access weather information and become interested in the developments of the weather systems. I have been attaching a variety of weather maps with the race Reports. One of my favourites that I would recommend is http://manati.wwb.noaa.gov/quikscat/ which gives the actual surface wind over the last few hours. This is constantly updated and worth a browse. - Submitted by Colin de Mowbray, Race Director. Copyright © 1996-2016 - SEGEL.DE