Rotterdam, The Netherlands – June 14, 2006
Ultimate showdown for podium positions on final leg of Volvo Ocean Race 2005-06
The Volvo Ocean Race 2005-06 fleet will set sail tomorrow on the final leg of their epic 31,250 nautical mile journey around the world. Leg nine is a 470 mile sprint to Göteborg, Sweden.
ABN AMRO ONE (Mike Sanderson) may have won the overall trophy for the Volvo Ocean Race 2005-06 but leg nine will see a final showdown for the reindexing podium positions between Pirates of the Caribbean (Paul Cayard) and Brasil 1 (Torben Grael). Pirates of the Caribbean currently holds second place overall but with just four points separating the American team from Brasil 1 there is still all to play for.
A second battle for fourth place is also being waged, between ABN AMRO TWO (Sebastien Josse) and Ericsson Racing Team (Neal McDonald) who are currently separated by half a point. McDonald is looking forward to the sprint to Sweden and will be hoping to bring his Swedish boat and the only Swedish crew member in the race, Magnus Woxen, into their home port in first place. For the final leg Ericsson will be joined by Irishman Tom McWilliam who has replaced trimmer Richard Bouzaid.
For Brunel, who rejoined the race in America, this will be their final chance to shine. Matt Humphries (GBR) will again take on the role of skipper for the final offshore leg and will be hoping to bring Brunel into his home of Sweden in a strong position.
The original forecast was for a slow light wind sail but as of today the weather looks more positive and it is predicted that the fleet will take 48 hours to sail to Sweden.
Race Meteorologist Chris Bedford explains the prognosis: “Weather forecasts for leg nine are looking more and more positive. Earlier in the week, the forecasts were predicting another extremely slow leg with light upwind conditions and another possible drift-off as the fleet approached the Danish coast and rounded the northern dip of Denmark to make their final approach to the finish. But over the last 24 hours, the weather models have been suggesting gradually stronger winds – especially for first 12 hours or so of the race.”
The race course for leg nine is slightly different from the other legs, in the fact that it is a variable course in order to get the boats to arrive into Göteborgon time. The minimum length of the leg is approximately 470 nautical miles but if the fleet picks up the pace then the race committee has five different options to lengthen the course in between Skargen, on the northern tip of Denmark, and the Trubaduren lighthouse outside the Gothenburg archipelago.
The leg will produce some tricky conditions for the navigators as they decide whether to tack up the coastline or to head offshore seeking better breeze but the only thing that is guaranteed is that every move that Pirates of the Caribbean make will be closely watched by Brasil 1.
The Volvo Open 70’s will be depart from the Veerhaven, Rotterdam, at 0930 (local) and head out to an offshore startline outside the mouth of the River Maas.
The start is scheduled for 1300 (local) with full live commentary via VHF channel 31 and through the Volvo Ocean Race official website www.volvooceanrace.org http://www.volvooceanrace.org/.
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