04 February 2008

The majority of the Clipper 07-08 fleet have stayed in the middle of the course on this race from Singapore to Qingdao, China, following the shortest distance. However this morning’s positions indicate that both Liverpool 08 and Nova Scotia are trying to do something different. Because of the constant north easterly wind direction these tactical decisions are not necessarily the wrong thing to do.

Ben Galloway and the crew onboard Liverpool 08 have made the decision to make a more northerly course and have been on starboard tack for about 12 hours. Nova Scotia has done almost the opposite and been predominantly on port tack which has allowed them to make considerable progress to the east during the same period of time. Only time will tell whether it will give either of them the advantage.

Nova Scotia’s skipper, Rob McInally, says, “Qingdao is just so far away from here in both distance and climate. The water here is still 32 degrees and, despite the 20 knot true wind that we are heading into, hotter than anywhere we have been so far. I am led to believe Qingdao has arranged a fifty year record of snow and ice for us, which is very thoughtful of them.

“We have resolved our battery issue but are still unable to get full instruments so if you are thinking, ‘Why are they going that way?’ so are we. We have not found enough information to make a decision to do anything else. The fleet is still very close together in DTF but it has been days since we have seen another Clipper. Hopefully we will all be reunited on Valentines Day in Qingdao.”

Jamaica continues to lead the fleet but the dogged determination of Hannah Jenner and the crew of Glasgow: Scotland with style Clipper has seen their lead this morning cut down to just 47 nautical miles. The anxiety and stress that comes from being in the lead is difficult at any time but, having taken up pole position so early in the race, the pressures on the crew and skipper will be high at the moment.

Race Director, Joff Bailey, says, “The crew will be waiting with bated breath for each of the six- hourly schedules and will be scanning the horizon behind them for any sight of a sail. There are few big overtaking opportunities or major tactical decisions to be made at this point in Race 6 because of the constant upwind sailing the fleet are experiencing. It all comes down to who picks the correct sails, who tacks at the right time and who drives the boat through the waves more efficiently.”

Hull & Humber skipper, Danny Watson, summed up the conditions succinctly in his morning email to the Race Office: “The word that best describes this experience… relentless.”

Uniquely Singapore‘s skipper Mark Preedy, explained why he and his crew lost some ground to the rest of the fleet in the last 24 hours. “We had a squall develop around us last night and we got becalmed on the trailing edge of it. And we saw Hull & Humber just sail around us and off she went. Quite frustrating but the crew took it as one should. They shrugged and got on with a multitude of sail changes as the wind became variable for the following few hours. A real testament to the crew I thought. They had worked hard to get to where we were and were continuing to do so. But they have not let this slight hitch to the proceedings get them down. It is business as usual and we are fighting with New York for that third spot at the moment with the target Hull & Humber, just on the horizon.”

Approximately 400 nautical miles ahead of the fleet lies the opening between Taiwan and the Philippines which will see the teams exposed to the north Pacific Ocean for the first time. The race rules state that all teams must leave Taiwan to port and head out into the Pacific Ocean leaving behind them the confines of the South China Sea. As they reach this point of the race we may see some different tactics being played out as the winds become slightly more variable and the wind strength begins to increase.

The first of the yachts are due to arrive in Qingdao on 14 February where they will be berthed in the marina that has been constructed to host the sailing events of the Beijing 2008 Olympic Games later this year.

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