Oceanracing 2006 - VELUX 5 Oceans

Velux 5 Oceans - Alone-Round the World Yacht Race
www.velux5oceans.com - Übersicht

Wednesday, 29 November 2006
VELUX 5 OCEANS - Day 39 Report
BIRTHDAY BOY BERNARD STAMM SETS SIGHTS ON FREMANTLE

* Bernard Stamm (SUI) celebrates his birthday as a fast weather corridor opens up
* Sir Robin Knox-Johnston (GBR) bird spotting at the entrance to the Southern Ocean
* Graham Dalton (NZL) outpacing the 60s, despite some difficult conditions
* Mike Golding (GBR) and Alex Thomson (GBR) expected to arrive in Cape Town with ECOVER on Friday morning

Bernard Stamm, the defending champion at the head of the VELUX 5 OCEANS, celebrated his birthday today on CHEMINEES POUJOULAT.

Having passed over the Kerguelen Islands, a mandatory waypoint, Stamm, now 43, is on an easterly heading towards Fremantle. The Swiss skipper currently has 1,761 miles still to sail to the finish of leg one and is expected to arrive early next week. Responding to Kojiro Shiraishi's gains yesterday, Stamm is back on pace and again setting the fastest speeds within the fleet, clocking an average speed of close to 14 knots over the last 24 hours. The conditions and forecast look favourable for Stamm, who is hoping he can hitch a ride along the passage between the high pressure systems all the way to Fremantle.

850 miles behind the leader, the Japanese hero, Kojiro Shiraishi on SPIRIT OF YUKOH, has pushed through the fog he had yesterday and is now reaching to the east with a strong northerly wind. The young skipper is truly experiencing the harsh conditions of the Southern Ocean as he crashes through the icy waves, exposing any leaks, no matter how minor. Koji still has a day's sailing to reach the mark at the Kerguelen Islands. British duo, Mike Golding and Alex Thomson, have managed to secure the broken sections of mast on the deck of ECOVER. The pair are still 48 hours south east of the shelter of table Mountain and decision time for Golding in the VELUX 5 OCEANS.

SAGA INSURANCE, sailed by the British legend Sir Robin Knox-Johnston, continues south east towards the Roaring Forties and the race safety gate at Latitude 44°S. Knox-Johnston has been surfing up to 20 knots, whilst appreciating the effortless splendor and magic of the Albatross, one of the surest signs that one has reached the Southern Ocean. Graham Dalton on A SOUTHERN MAN AGD reported a tough days sailing yesterday, with squalls and damage to the leech of his solent foresail. However, the experienced yachtsman seems determined to get home quickly and has been sailing faster than both Knox-Johnston and Unai Basurko. The Basque skipper is still in last place as he nurses his damaged yacht PAKEA to Australia.

Bernard Stamm, CHEMINEES POUJOULAT:
"Yesterday I caught a north westerly wind. It will push me, I hope, all the way to Fremantle. The weather is a little warmer today and it is a little less wind than I expected. And today is a great day; it is Jacques Chirac's birthday!"

Graham Dalton, A SOUTHERN MAN AGD:
"A difficult day with a moderately large sea and a breeze that fluctuated in strength making it difficult to have the right amount of sail up. Anywhere from 15 to 40 knots. I got caught in a line-squall after dark and have blown the leech in my solent which could create quite a problem in the days ahead. Taking a bit of adjusting to the south after weeks of flat seas and little wind. Also starting to get quite cold and that's only going to get worse."

Kojiro Shiraishi, SPIRIT OF YUKOH:
"The fog has now completely cleared but the sky is still completely cloudy. The wind has turned around and is now a strong northerly wind. I don't really want to go south so I'm sailing almost completely abeam. The boat's speed is averaging 16 knots plus and the boat is regularly punching the waves. I feel like I'm riding a wooden rollercoaster."
"The waves are harshly cleaning the deck and there are a couple of leaks starting to show up. The chart table room is still dry but the room behind it is getting drowned! Even when I'm using the bilge pump, it's difficult to catch up with the water. I guess there's no other choice as the waves are this harsh. If the wind was to shift to a westerly direction I'm sure the boat would stabilize."

Sir Robin Knox-Johnston, SAGA INSURANCE:
"It is noticeably cooler. Every sailor tends to look at their top speeds, their surge or surfing speeds, as these are the exciting bits. In practice of course they are short lived and misleading. Yesterday we were having surfs up to 20 knots, but our average for the 24 hours was just over 10 knots."
"All sorts of things start to vibrate like the keel and rudders, and in view of what has happened recently to Alex and Mike, you begin to wonder whether these vibrations are possibly doing damage. Also there is always the danger that when surfing a wave will slew the boat as she is rushing forward and then a broach is quite likely and that can lead to a lot of damage."
"I had not seen a wandering Albatross until last night when one glided over. Its wingspan must have been a good 8 feet. They soar, hardly ever using their wings at all, just gliding a few feet above the waves. There are plenty of smaller sea birds about, what I think is a Sooty Albatross and various Petrels, or Mother Cary's Chickens as sailors used to call them. I cannot see what they feed on, but it must be fairly plenteous as otherwise how would all these birds survive? Not quite into the Southern Ocean yet, should enter it today."

Boat Positions as at 10:20 UTC 29 November 2006
Yacht Skipper Latitude Longitude Course (°) Speed (knot) DTL (nautical miles) DTF (nautical miles) Dist - last Pos (nautical miles) Dist - 24h (nautical miles) Average speed - 24h (knots) VMG - 24h (knots)
1 Cheminées Poujoulat Bernard Stamm 48° 51.60 S 083° 38.32 E 54 11.2 1761 80.9 334.7 13.95 13.64
2 Spirit of Yukoh Kojiro Shiraishi 48° 04.28 S 062° 13.96 E 54 15 851 2589 60.8 307.7 12.82 12.13
3 Ecover Mike Golding 38° 02.84 S 023° 46.84 E 359 8 2620 4359 27.3 143.9 6 -4.25
4 SAGA Insurance Sir Robin Knox-Johnston 39° 25.12 S 006° 51.04 W 98 9.2 3709 5511 44 232 9.67 9.52
5 A Southern Man-AGD Graham Dalton 38° 41.68 S 012° 04.16 W 145 11.3 3917 5747 49.9 252.3 10.51 10.51
6 PAKEA Unai Basurko 29° 35.89 S 008° 09.97 W 74 6.4 4163 5961 24.7 202.8 8.45 4.93

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About Fremantle (Western Australia)
At the mouth of the Swan River, the vibrant port town of Fremantle is located 20 minutes' drive southwest of Perth, Western Australia. Rich in heritage buildings and attractions, maritime history and culture, visitors are guaranteed to enjoy the relaxed outdoor lifestyle, some of the country's best beaches, bustling markets, nightlife, unrivalled sporting facilities and amazing marine adventures. The VELUX 5 Oceans Race Village will be at the picturesque Fremantle Sailing Club, where the race crews will be able to make use of the world class facilities used during the recent Clipper 05-06 round the world yacht race, and Whitbreads of the past.
www.westernaustralia.com