Fotogalerie
11.12.2013 / RACE 05/ Day 8
Albany, Western Australia - Sydney, New South Wales
Tension builds as the final sprint to Sydney, Australia gets underway
It’s set to be one of the closest finishes we’ve seen so far in the Clipper 2013-14 Race, with less than 200 miles left to Sydney, Australia the teams continue to battle it out for those coveted podium positions and those all important points.
With the top three teams continuing to close ranks, OneDLL is currently in the lead with Qingdao and Derry~Londonderry~Doire less than 3 miles behind as the the final sprint to Sydney, Australia begins. Skipper of OneDLL, Olly Cotterell reflects on the close match racing of Race 5.
“There are so many yachts close to us, it is all to play for. At the moment the winds are light and fickle further allowing the yachts behind to catch the front runners. This race is going to be incredibly close and at the moment anyone could have it.”
With Henri Lloyd reindexing in Stealth Mode until 12:00 UTC today, it’ll be all eyes on the Race Viewer this lunch time as the fleet eagerly anticipate the result of the team’s tactical decision; will the gamble have paid off, or not?
With the Ocean Sprint still underway OneDLL is currently the team to beat completing the challenge in an impressive 18 hours 03 minutes. Invest Africa, Team Garmin and GREAT Britain have all entered the Ocean Sprint in the last 24 hours. With a podium finish ruled out for the back of the fleet, the opportunity to win an extra point is still hot on everyone’s mind, including skipper of PSP Logistics, Chris Hollis following his team’s impressive track record, as he explained.
“We are close to the coast, the kite will go up, and we'll make course for the Tasmania light from Tasman Lighthouse very soon, and enter phase operation Ocean Sprint. We figure we need to better 18 hours to achieve the win. The forecast is good for this, and all sails are fully operational. Let’s hope team PSP Logistics can make it two sprints out of two and salvage some much needed point from this race.”
With just miles to the finish line Jamaica Get All Right and Switzerland have both elected to activate its Stealth Mode. Both teams positions will be hidden from the rest of the fleet and the Race Viewer from 06:00 UTC today until 06:00 UTC tomorrow (Thursday 12 December). Qingdao will activate its Stealth Mode from 12:00 UTC today and its position broadcast again tomorrow at 12:00 UTC.
latest boat standings
position / team
dTF
Onedll
175.5m
qingdao
176.6m
DERRY~LONDONDERRY~DOIRE
178.3m
henri lloyd
STEALTH
411.2M
switzerland
STEALTH
256m
jamaica get all right
269.5m
old pulteney
338.5m
mission performance
257.1m
invest africa
443.8M
team garmin
459.8m
GREAT BRITAIN
505.6m
PSP LOGISTICS
597.6m
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