VELUX 5 OCEANS 2010/2011 - Leg 4

- Punta del Este - Charleston
http://www.velux5oceans.com/ - Gesamt-Übersicht

Fotogalerie

22.03.2011
CLOCK TICKING TO VELUX 5 OCEANS SPRINT FOUR START

The VELUX 5 OCEANS fleet in Punta del Este - credit Ainhoa Sanchez/ VELUX 5 OCEANS
Penultimate sprint from Punta del Este to Charleston sets sail on Sunday
THE countdown is on to the start of the fourth ocean sprint of the VELUX 5 OCEANS solo round the world race. With less than a week to go until the 5,700-mile sprint to Charleston in the US, excitement and tension is starting to mount in the Uruguayan port of Punta del Este.

Flotte in Punta del Este
credit Ainhoa Sanchez/ VELUX 5 OCEANS

At 1pm local time (1600 UTC) on Sunday the VELUX 5 OCEANS’ four solo skippers will blast out of Punta del Este Bay for the penultimate sprint of the 30,000-mile race. After an incredibly close sprint three, which saw Zbigniew ‘Gutek’ Gutkowski beat Chris Stanmore-Major by just 40 seconds and all four boats finish within 48 hours of each other, the pressure is now on for sprint four.

After spending the past two ocean sprints tackling the ferocious downwind sailing of the Southern Ocean, the skippers will have to adopt a more tactical approach for the lighter, upwind weather conditions which they now face as they head north through the Atlantic Ocean to the east coast port of Charleston in South Carolina.

For Charleston resident Brad Van Liew, overall race leader and winner of all three sprints, the leg holds special meaning. “I have a lot of incentives to get to Charleston first,” the skipper of Le Pingouin said. “My kids are there, my family is there and my home is there. The sooner I get there the longer I get to spend at home. Mentally that is a bit of a liability, and it will be important for me to keep my head straight and not get too excited about sailing home.

05.05.2011 - GUTEK TRIUMPHS OVER ADVERSITY

05.05.2011 - GUTKOWSKI FINISHES FOURTH

22.04.2011 - LAST MINUTE DRAMA FOR CSM

20.04.2011 - DEREK HATFIELD FINISHES SECOND VELUX 5 OCEANS SPRINT FOUR

19.04.2011 - BRAD VAN LIEW WINS VELUX 5 OCEANS SPRINT FOUR

11.04.2011 - DEREK HATFIELD ENDS BRAD VAN LIEW’S WINNING STREAK

08.04.2011 - GUTEK headING FOR PORT WITH BROKEN FORESTAY

07.04.2011 - D-DAY LOOMING FOR POLISH OCEAN RACER’S BOWSPRIT REPAIRS

04.04.2011 - 72 HOURS OF DRAMA ACROSS VELUX 5 OCEANS FLEET

01.04.2011 - TOUGH TIMES AT head FOR BRAD VAN LIEW

29.03.2011 - CHAMPAGNE SAILING FOR VELUX 5 OCEANS FLEET

27.03.2011 - GUTEK LEADS FLEET OUT OF PUNTA DEL ESTE

26.03.2011 - STEALTH MODE INTRODUCED FOR VELUX 5 OCEANS SPRINT FOUR

22.03.2011 - CLOCK TICKING TO VELUX 5 OCEANS SPRINT FOUR START