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Volvo Ocean Race 2011/2012 - Leg 4 - Start 19.02.2012
www.volvooceanrace.com - Übersicht
Fotogalerie
March 8, 2012 - 1900 UTC Leg 4 Day 19
GROUPAMA LEAD THE WAY AS LEG 4 END NEARS
Leg 4 08/03/2012 19:01:36 UTC
&xnbsp; DTL DTLC BS DTF
1 GPMA 0.00 0 13.3 412.8 2 TELE 84.70 11 12.7 497.5 3 PUMA 93.80 11 12.4 506.6 4 CMPR 118.80 12 12.8 531.6 5 ADOR 198.00 9 11.7 610.8 6 SNYA 219.70 11 12.2 632.5
Groupama sailing team's 84.7-nautical mile lead could be unassailable, given that strong wind is forecast from Cape Reinga right through to the finish in Auckland, but the race for podium places reindexs a tight one among the careworn fleet after 19 days at sea.The pack is chasing hard, but concentrating on beating each other rather than mounting an assault on Groupama, who have just over 400 nm to go in Leg 4. This would only be possible should the French team sail into a windless hole after rounding the Cape, and while leg wins have been lost before in the final miles of the course, it looks unlikely this time.There will be some very tired crews celebrating in Auckland this weekend.
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Groupama mit Kurs auf Kap Reinga/NZ
Foto:Yann Riou
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PUMA Ocean Racing powered by BERG (Ken Read/USA) are particularly exhausted after three consecutive days and two consecutive nights of squalls, which resulted in some very stressful sailing.“It’s certainly wearing us down,” said media crew member Amory Ross. “Everybody is up on deck moving sails and those below are moving gear as the wind comes and goes. It has been all hands on deck for most of the day and we sleep when we can. A lot of people are sleeping still dressed in their foul weather gear,” he added in a radio interview, the tiredness in his voice clearly audible.At 1900 UTC, both second-placed Telefónica (Iker Martínez/ESP) and third-placed PUMA, separated by just nine nm, had closed to within 95 nm of the leg leader, as the entire fleet made gains. CAMPER with Emirates Team New Zealand (Chris Nicholson/AUS) are anxious to recoup miles whenever they can and PUMA is potentially their victim.
With only 25 nm between them, Nicholson aimed straight at the Cape with his foot hard down, hoping to make a gain.Abu Dhabi Ocean Racing (Ian Walker/GBR) have a contest with Team Sanya, who have Mike Sanderson as the only skipper from New Zealand in the race. With Sanya sailing faster and closing to within 21 nm, Ian Walker will have his team fully focused on the job in hand.
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March 8, 2012 - 1000 UTC Leg 4 Day 19
GROUPAMA IN ADRENALINE RUSH TO CAPE REINGA
Leg 4 08/03/2012 10:01:27 UTC
&xnbsp; DTL DTLC BS DTF 1 GPMA 0.00 0 13.5 493.7 2 TELE 108.90 11 12 602.6 3 PUMA 122.70 3 11.7 616.4 4 CMPR 147.70 4 12 641.3 5 ADOR 223.20 0 13.2 716.9 6 SNYA 252.20 5 15.1 745.9
Overnight, runaway leaders in Leg 4 of the Volvo Ocean Race Groupama sailing team (Franck Cammas/FRA) began their long beat up towards Cape Reinga on the northern tip of New Zealand’s North Island.
As the tacking frenzy continued, Groupama’s lead was slowly eroded by the chasing pack, who were still reaching, although at 1000 UTC today, the French team had improved their margin to 108 nautical miles, creating a safe enough buffer to protect their lead from Telefónica (Iker Martínez/ESP).The French team are now sailing in a building south-easterly breeze on the edge of an area of a high-pressure, which is slowly drifting east. This may play into the hands of the Abu Dhabi Ocean Racing (Ian Walker/GBR) and Sanya (Mike Sanderson/NZL), who now may sail less distance upwind but with a more unsettled breeze.
Cape Reinga is 315 nm upwind from Groupama’s current position and they are expected to make the turn in high winds later today or tonight.On board Groupama, the crew is tired but still focussed on the finish. Soon they will be running on adrenaline alone as the daily food bags run out on Friday and the finish is not expected until Saturday morning UTC.Telefónica, in second place, is around eight hours and 108 nm behind the leaders and will find themselves sailing upwind in the worst of the south-easterly breeze.Meanwhile, PUMA Ocean Racing powered by BERG (Ken Read) and Abu Dhabi Ocean Racing , the two easterly boats in the fleet, were badly affected by clouds and showers as they sailed closer to the low-pressure area. Their easterly position will allow them more straight-line sailing than Telefónica (Iker Martínez/ESP) and CAMPER with Emirates Team New Zealand (Chris Nicholson/AUS).CAMPER is currently transitioning across a light section, trying to break out of the north-east trades and into the new established south-easterly breeze.
Skipper Chris Nicholson has observed that PUMA has a lot of leverage over CAMPER, but it seems that it has been difficult for them to convert it into miles ahead. “Hopefully we will be in sight of each other once we get into new breeze, then it’s game on,” Nicholson said today.Abu Dhabi Ocean Racing is covering their lead over sixth placed Sanya &xnbsp;and hoping to take some miles out of CAMPER, but with 716 nm to run to the finish, the runway is shortening rapidly.
&xnbsp; For more information on the Volvo Ocean Race please visit: www.volvooceanrace.com &xnbsp;
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