LE DEFI: TOUGH NIGHT ON TEAM COWES CHASING 3RD-PLACED VMI...
Absender: "Team Cowes"
Datum: 09. Dec 2003 12:55
LE DEFI: TOUGH NIGHT ON TEAM COWES CHASING 3RD-PLACED VMI...
TEAM COWES Le Défi Atlantique campaign is supported by Skandia and Cowes Waterfront
STB TACK UPWIND - 10 KNOTS NW - APPROX 200 MILES W CAPE VERDE ISLANDS - TEAM COWES 5TH - DISTANCE TO LEADER ECOVER 84 MILES
IN BRIEF:
* TOUGH NIGHT FOR MOLONEY AS HE PUSHES TEAM COWES HARD to make gains on third-placed VMI (Sébastien Josse): "I guess I changed sails too many times in an effort to stay on the pace and ended up laying on the cockpit floor just trashed physically...have strained a muscle in my back which is a little uncomfortable...these boats are people eaters!"
* TEAM COWES CURRENTLY IN 5TH POSITION...46 miles behind VMI in third and polled 3 miles behind Jean Pierre Dick on Virbac but over 120 miles separates the two boats from west-east...as front-runners pass Cape Verde Islands.
* GOLDING AND RIOU SPARRING AT THE FRONT OF THE FLEET...only 4 miles separating the two boats in distance and 46 miles in separation as front runners push north on a direct course past the Cape Verde Islands... Virbac has moved further across from the west as Alex Thomson on AT Racing keeps west but losing drops to 7th 224 miles behind Ecover.
EMAIL LOG FROM ON BOARD TEAM COWES - 0920GMT 9.12.03:
went a bit too hard last night was so keen to catch vmi that i pushed myself and the boat at times a bit too hard through the night. nothing broken just ended up exhausted...i mean really out of juice... got quite windy and were doing 18kts at one point with solent 1 reef deep inside a rain squall full of lightning. happy about the speed but i really don't like lightening...bad stuff. well, i guess i changed sails too many times in an effort to stay on the pace and ended up laying on the cockpit floor just trashed physically. i fell asleep for an hour and woke up to sails flapping...the wind disappeared and i was slogging along at 6 kts in rough left over sea. i went full index genoa and had another short nap to let the waves die a little before putting up the gennaker. the wind has headed again and i have just changed back to genoa. under gennaker i crammed food into me for fuel...i am lacking something. i thought i was pretty rested before last night but i am really out of it. i have just downed a few extreme endurance drinks to assist the replenishment of body reserves.
i am not in any trouble unless maybe i am getting sick ..its just that i busted my gut last night chasing vmi and with this morning positions i had actually lost out....bit of a lesson. have strained a muscle in my back which is a little uncomfortable...these boats are people eaters! need to rest today wind building this afternoon currently back up to 12kts boat speed in the right direction.
nick
team cowes
LE DEFI POSITIONS 9.12.03 0500GMT:
Pos/Skippers Name/Boat Name/Lat/Long/DTL/DTF
1st Mike Golding / Ecover / N182392 / W0281300 / 0 / 2178.3
2nd Vincent Riou / PRB / N184108 / W0285376 / 3.9 / 2182.2
3rd Sébastien Josse / VMI/ N173899 / W0281000 / 38.3 / 2216.6
4th Jean Pierre Dick / Virbac / N182180 / W0305980 / 81.3 / 2259.6
5th Nick Moloney / TEAM COWES / N170340 / W0284284 / 84.4 / 2262.7
6th Benoît LEQUIN / Wel.network / N144652 / W0291596 / 220.5 / 2398.8
7th Alex Thomson / AT Racing / N174400 / W0343399 / 224.2 / 2402.5
8th Joe Seeten / Arcelor-Dunkerque / N145176 / W0305220 / 259.4 / 2437.7
9th Benoît PARNAUDEAU / Colibri / N123240 / W0322780 / 426.2 / 2604.5
10th Anne LIARDE / Gonna Gitcha / N114068 / W0331032 / 491.5 / 2669.8
PERFORMANCE PARTNER OF THE DAY : NAUTIX
Official supplier of underwater finishings to the Offshore Challenges Sailing Team
http://www.offshorechallenges.com/nautix
For Race Information go to www.defi-atlantique.org
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