Barcelona World Race 2007-2008

Barcelona World Race 2007
www.barcelonaworldrace.com - Übersicht

20 January 2008 Barcelona World Race Summary 9: One more for Cape Horn as the game closes up

Four of five boats in the Barcelona World Race are back in the Atlantic Ocean as this weekend first Temenos II and then, just hours later, Mutua Madrileña rounded the famed Cape Horn. They join race leader Paprec-Virbac 2 and second-placed Hugo Boss in the Atlantic Ocean.

That leaves just Educación sin Fronteras still in the Southern Ocean. On Sunday afternoon skippers Albert Bargués and Servane Escoffier were roaring towards the Cape at 15 knots, knocking off another 350-mile day. With the Cape less than 700 miles away, Educación sin Fronteras should join the others in the Atlantic Ocean by early Tuesday (GMT) at the latest.

"Physically we are well but psychologically we are really looking forward to getting to Cape Horn because it is really seeming like a long time," Albert said earlier this week. "Right now we are sailing well at 16-17 knots of boat speed, so we are getting there but really looking forward to that point. We are trying to rest as much as possible and having longer shifts each - sleeping more, there isn't that much to do for manoeuvres, the odd gybe or sail change - from spinnaker to genoa to solent, but they are short manoeuvres so we both rest well."

Paprec-Virbac 2 see a double rainbow!
© Paprec-Virbac 2 http://media.barcelonaworldrace.com

On Saturday, it was first Temenos II and then Mutua Madrileña who turned their backs on the Southern Ocean. For Mutua Madrileña, it was a momentous occasion; not only had they rounded Cape Horn, but they were the fastest boat in the fleet over this long stage from Wellington, New Zealand to Cape Horn.

"It feels absolutely fantastic to round Cape Horn," said Pachi Rivero from on board Mutua Madrileña just hours after passing the famous landmark. "We have been waiting for this moment for days.we have pushed hard to catch Temenos II, and now we are seeing the fruit of all that hard work, The risks have been taken and they are paying off - things are going really well and right now we are in our element!"

By sailing so quickly on the sixth stage of the race, Mutua Madrileña has closed up significantly on Temenos II, finishing the week just 89 miles behind. That means the Atlantic Ocean will almost certainly be the decider for third place and a podium position. And the change of oceans means other differences as well.

"Yes the atmosphere on board is now different: we really feel closer to civilisation, and in case of any problems, we'll all be much closer to a cargo ship for example," said Dominique Wavre. "Today (Sunday) is sunny, but still cold as we're still below 50-degrees south latitude. The albatross are still with us but we can feel that things are getting better and better."

The battle at the front has closed significantly over the week as well, although Paprec-Virbac 2 still commands a 542 mile margin. But Hugo Boss has taken advantage of the fickle conditions off the coast of South America to close up to the race leader by more than 300 miles over the course of the week. Nevertheless, Damian Foxall, at the front of the fleet, thinks the worst is over.

"We are back into nice sailing conditions and the boat is moving forward nicely - we have managed to hold off this gap with Hugo Boss, not just the miles but we're in a different weather system now and they still have to get through all that crap that we were working through in the last couple of days," Damian said on Saturday.

Indeed, on Sunday, Hugo Boss skipper Alex Thomson spoke of the same phenomenon, saying they were blocked by a front that was keeping them from making more inroads. Unless and until they can knock through it, there isn't much he and co-skipper Andrew Cape can do to attack.

"We just want to get to the other side of this front and start sailing upwind in more favourable conditions," he said. "A day or two ago we sat down and said we should do whatever we can to get through this front, no matter what the routing says, but we can't do it, so we just carry on doing what we can."

Day 71 - January 20, 14:00 GMT - Position report with distance to leader
1. PAPREC-VIRBAC 2 - Jean Pierre DICK / Damian FOXALL - 4373 to finish
2. HUGO BOSS - Alex THOMSON / Andrew CAPE - 542
3. TEMENOS 2 - Dominique Wavre / Michele PARET- 2069
4. MUTUA MADRILENA - Javier SANSO / Pachi RIVERO - 2158
5. EDUCACION SIN FRONTERAS - Servane ESCOFFIER / Albert BARGUES - 3192

Abandoned - VEOLIA ENVIRONNEMENT - Roland JOURDAIN / Jean Luc NELIAS
Abandoned - ESTRELLA DAMM - Guillermo ALTADILL / JONATHAN MCKEE
Abandoned - DELTA DORE - Jérémie BEYOU / Sidney GAVIGNET
Abandoned - PRB - Vincent Riou / Sebastien JOSSE

In Quotes - Alex Thomson, Hugo Boss: "The boat is taking a bit of a hammering in all of this stuff as well. In a couple of days in the 50 knots we had, we got some damage and a day and a half later we discovered that half of our rudder was missing. The boat is going hard now, and we have to look after it."
Be sure to see the new video race update - it will be live on the website, www.barcelonaworldrace.org, on Monday morning.
And check the featured news story http://www.barcelonaworldrace.com/default.asp?section=0&sid=12531 on television to find out where you can watch 'The Barcelona World Race' a six-part weekly series that will be shown internationally by over 20 broadcasters.
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Lou Newlands
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