18.11.2005
From: PIRATES OF THE CARIBBEAN
Sent: 18 November 2005
To:
The Damage to The Black Pearl-Cascais
After properly inspecting the Black Pearl, we are now in a position to
report on the damage.
1. Bulkhead C, midway from the bow to the mast, has broken. There was
shearing of the frame along with compression of the vertical beam.
2. The "bomber doors" which seal the Keel box at the hull, have been
ripped off.
3. A bolt that holds the keel pins in has sheared
That is the index damage. We also had a complete instrument blackout
earlier on Saturday night. This included our computers and therefore I could not
write any text so the information coming off our boat may have appeared slow
or non existent. I was in telephone communication with race officials.
My priority on Sunday was to get the boat back to land safely. This was
not easy as we were caught in a low pressure cell that had formed off the
coast of Portugal and we experienced gusts of 50 knots and very rough seas. We
sailed with Storm jib and trisail all day Sunday and Sunday night and at
times had to lower the storm jib as there was too much sail area up. It
was the windiest and roughest conditions I have been in at least 8 years.
As our true wind angle was about 80 degrees, we had breaking waves
crashing on the deck at times.
The reason why I don't want to sail the boat to Cape Town is that it is
unsafe to sail without the "bomber doors". To explain; the keel cants
40 degrees each side of center. The axis of this rotation is 150mm up
inside the boat. Therefore there is a hole in the bottom of these boats that is
about 400mm (1.5 ft) wide. This hole is the bottom of the keel box which
is "recessed" into the boat. The Bomber doors not only make the hull fair
as the keel swings from side to side, but they protect the inside of the
keel box from high pressure water force. Without them the lid to the keel box
and the rubber gaskets that seal the hydraulic ram arms, which actuate
the swinging of the keel, are exposed to high pressure water.
When we discovered the situation early Sunday morning, the lid to the box
was bulging upward and strained the fasteners while water was squirting
into the boat due to the 35 knots of water pressure and the rams seals were
bulging like ‘cows utters’. Not one to withdraw from racing easily, in
this case, I immediately called for the crew to take all sails down and
slow the boat to less than 10 knots.
So this particular damage is not one that can be band-aided. New parts
have to be made in the UK and flown to us. This will take over a week. Then
they have to be fitted which will take 3-4 days to do well. We might be
able to do this and then sail to Cape Town but we would arrive just
before the in-port race on the 26th, if all went well. If we had another issue
along the way we could well miss Leg 2. And why? To gather 2 points?
I have decided not to pursue that option but rather to transport the boat
to Cape Town and rejoin the race in an organized and prepared manner. I
need to turn this negative into a positive. With my team, we believe we have
devised a plan to do that.
The boat will stay here in Portugal until the 25th when it will go by
air cargo to Cape Town. We will be working on the boat in the time before
it flies and the time after it arrives. We hope to sail again around
December 12th for a few days of sea trials offshore.
PC
Pirates of the Caribbeans
For media information on the Volvo Ocean Race, please contact:
Lizzie Green Press Officer at race headquarters:
Tel: +44 1489 554 832, Mob: +44 7801 185 320
Email: lizzie.green@volvooceanrace.org
Sacha Oswald Press Officer
Mob: +44 7816 275 498 email: sacha.oswald@volvooceanrace.org
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