25 April 2012
Crunch time for the fleet leaders
For the two leading double-handed Class40s in the Global Ocean Race (GOR), a narrow highway 100 miles wide is developing as the fleet curves north-west around the Caribbean islands en route to Charleston. With Cessna Citation in first place and Financial Crisis in second slowing throughout Wednesday, there’s an opportunity for third placed Phesheya-Racing and Sec. Hayai in fourth to close the gap as they hold the breeze further south.
At 15:00 GMT on Wednesday, the Kiwi-Australian duo on Cessna Citation were 116 mile due north of Puerto Rico with speeds dwindling as Nannini and Frattaruolo grabbed another 30 miles from their lead in 24 hours with Financial Crisis. However, the Italian-Slovak duo are looking over their shoulders as the South Africans on Phesheya-Racing take 14 miles from their lead over the past day and the Dutch on Sec. Hayai – holding the breeze longest on Wednesday afternoon – wipe almost 30 miles from the lead held by Phesheya-Racing.
After 23 days of racing on board Cessna Citation, Conrad Colman and Scott Cavanough have their eyes glued to the GPS: “Today we get to open up the treats bag and share a small packet of Pringles crisps between Conrad and myself as we pass through the less-than-1,000-miles-to-the-finish mark,” explained Cavanough on Wednesday morning. “It doesn't sound like much, but it's enough to lift our game and spirits for the final few days on this long leg,” explains the 30-year-old Australian. “Why Pringles? The hard packet prevents them from getting damaged when thrown around the boat during stacking,” says Cavanough.
It seems the crisps have provided a major incentive since Cessna Citation rounded the eastern edge of Brazil 11 days ago and turned north-west: “Since Conrad put the waypoint of Charleston into the GPS at Recife some 3,000 miles back, we’ve been waiting for the mythical number on the screen of 999.9,” he continues. “So when it starts counting down later today, the Pringles get opened!” At 15:00 GMT on Wednesday, self-control was required as 80 miles still remained before the feeding frenzy could commence.
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