The Transat Race 2004 Plymouth - Boston - Start 31.05.2004 www.thetransat.com - zur Übersicht 03.06.2004, 18:32 THE TRANSAT: SKIPPERS FACE SIGNIFICANT TACTICAL CHOICES TONIGHT... 'One man, one boat, the sea...The Transat established in 1960 as the OSTAR' IN BRIEF: * ORMA 60 MULTIHULL SKIPPERS TRACK BIG DEPRESSION AIMING FOR BULLS EYE... * THREAT OF ICE ON THE HORIZON... * OPEN 60 SKIPPERS TAKE STOCK FOR IMPENDING DEPRESSION... See the official Omega clock showing race time http://www.thetransat.com IN DETAIL: For the multihull skipper their choice of tactics tonight will prove to be one of the most significant moments in The Transat as they tackle their first major depression of the race. Some years ago competitors in this race would see an ugly sky ahead and the waves increasing and realising a gale and raging seas were approaching would be battening down hatches, preparing their storm sails and saying their prayers. Das Tief wandert schnell nach E Skippers of today's 60ft racing multihulls taking part in The Transat have been liasing with their shore-based meteorologists and routers to monitor the track and speed of this depression using a variety of sophisticated tools from GRIB weather files to satellite images since the start of the race. While the skippers could sail the shortest course down the great circle route this would have presented them with slow and potentially boat breaking strong headwinds. Instead for the last 48 hours they have been aiming for the bulls eye - the centre of the depression. The object of the exercise is to keep the wind at a favourable angle ie not from ahead, thus allowing the boats to sail fast without threatening their safety. Sailing towards the heart of the depression from the east the multihulls are currently experiencing southerly winds of 30-35 knots. Past the centre of the depression the wind will rapidly turn to the northwest providing them with a fast wind angle to sail south west out of the depression. In short, instead of surviving the gale, they are not merely racing through it - they are using it to their tactical advantage. The game in this particular scenario has been intercepting the depression. This has been no easy task as throughout today the depression's centre has been flying northwest at around 30 knots. At present race leader Michel Desjoyeaux may pass to its north early this evening. Meanwhile Karine Fauconnier on board Sergio Tacchini is trying another tactic and has turned left early in the hope that she can make gains not through sailing as fast but by sailing less miles. At present all the multihulls are well north of the great circle (and shortest) route to Boston. While the next 24 hours are looking rosy for the multihulls' speed, there is also considerable danger ahead as to the southeast of Newfoundland is a minefield of icebergs. In the area between 50 and 51degW and between two and three degrees due east of Newfoundland the latest charts show there to be 85 recorded icebergs currently resident. Bergs are reported as far east as 46degW and as far south as 46degN. This area is right on the track of the trimarans and is possible that the more prudent skippers may dive hard south to avoid this area. It requires little imagination to realise the prospects of colliding with an iceberg for a trimaran being sailed at night at 25 knots by a sleep deprived single-handed skipper. While big bergs can be spotted with some degree of reliability using radar (which all the trimarans have), the much smaller growlers or 'bergy bits' that barely appear above the surface cannot, and thus represent a greater hazard. Prior to the start of The Transat the icebergs appeared to represent no greater threat than they normally do - Ellen MacArthur for example saw a berg when she sailed this course in 2000. Offshore Challenges Events CEO Mark Turner sums up the scenario: "This race has never had an ice limit before, but for the first time we did allow ourselves in the Sailing Instrutions to set one in the course before the start. However, before the start the ice reports gave us no valid reason to set an ice gate due to the reported positions being relatively far north, but also the path of those icebergs not being predictable enough to make an ice gate of any particular value. Consequently, there has been an increase in the number of icebergs located to the east and southeast of Newfoundland but significantly the weather encountered by the multihulls in particular has forced their route very far north which means that skippers will have more difficult choices as to whether they take a more dangerous route or return more south to minimuse the risk of ice. Short of making the race via Bermuda the danger of ice will always be present and forms one of a number of challenges skippers expect to face on this race course." For the Open 60s monohulls, now some 500 miles astern of the multihulls, the threat of icebergs is greatly reduced as their track currently takes them along the present southerly limit of the iceberg field. In preparation for the depression and then the negotiation of iceberg alley the skippers are spending more time getting themselves prepared. Sailing what is probably the wettest boat in the race Yves Parlier commented: "With the heavy weather forecast I slept a lot last night and I have eaten. I have also prepared myself mentally. I have my head torch on, I have bailed out the boat so that it is dry and I will put on my dry suit." THE TRANSAT: FLEET head INTO FAST MOVING LOW... 'One man, one boat, the sea...The Transat established in 1960 as the OSTAR' IN BRIEF: * MULTIHULLS head STRAIGHT AT THE DEPRESSION... * IMOCA YACHTS TO FACE headWINDS... * FAR NORTH OF GREAT CIRCLE ROUTE See the official Omega clock showing race time http://www.thetransat.com IN DETAIL: Overnight tactics have revealed few surprises... With only a couple of exceptions, The Transat fleet are focused on the next depression, currently NW of the race yachts. The multihulls are now heading directly at the depression with the intention of passing through the middle - the shortest route into the system and the fastest route out. It is likely, though, that they will meet the southern border of the centre and face headwinds of around 40 knots before reaching south. The north/south spread of the ORMA 60 fleet is now 160 miles and it will be interesting to see how the most southerly yacht - Frenchwoman Karine Fauconnier on trimaran Sergio Tacchini - fares away from the pack. This will be the first heavy upwind conditions these boats have faced in a race since the 2002 Route du Rhum, when the majority of the ORMA 60 fleet were forced to abandon the race due to major damage and in some cases the boats were lost entirely. In contrast, the IMOCA 60 monohull fleet leaders have dramatically narrowed their spread - currently only 50 miles north/south - as front runner Virbac has moved across to cover the track of Ecover in second and Pindar AlphaGraphics lying third. They are followed by a knot of yachts following close behind - PRB, Temenos, and Cheminees Poujoulat-Armor Lux. The leading IMOCA monohull, Virbac, is 125 miles behind Geant, the leading trimaran, and will be unable to find the conditions that will meet the multihulls. It is likely that the 60ft yachts will encounter consistent headwinds, forcing them to tack through the weather spinning around the lower edge of the depression. This is the first time that the bulk of a Transat fleet have collectively sailed so far north of the Great Circle route. Temperatures are falling as the boats sail further north on port tack. POSITIONS: For latest positions go to http://www.thetransat.com and click on the 'Latest Race Data/Latest Positions' on the orange bar and then click on leaderboard. Positions are available daily every 2 hours from 0600BST-1800BST. 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