Ericsson Racing Team

[Source: Volvo Ocean Race] Skipper of Ericsson’s Nordic crew Anders Lewander will miss the fourth leg of the Volvo Ocean Race due to a serious knee injury that has required surgery during the Singapore stopover.

Lewander, 45, is expected to return for the fifth leg after he has fully recuperated and his place will be taken by watch leader Magnus Olsson, with Ericsson 3’s other watch leader Richard Mason taking on additional responsibilities for the leg.

The Swedish skipper injured the knee during a sail change a few days out of India when he was on the bow helping to move a sail bag. It slammed into his left knee, pushing it sideways causing agonizing pain and a weakening of the joint.

“I’ll be very disappointed to miss the leg,” said Lewander, who has guided Ericsson 3 to fourth place in the standings after three legs with 23.5 points.

“It is a great crew with a great bunch of guys. It will be hard to stay on the dock when they leave but I know that they will continue to fight for the best results during Leg 4.”

“Anders suffered a tear of his medial meniscus in his left knee, and after an MRI and consultation with an orthopedic surgeon we decided to perform an arthroscopy,” said Dr. Antonio Zoido, Ericsson Racing Team physician. The operation was performed at Gleneagles Hospital, Singapore on Saturday, January 3.

Olsson and Mason between them have completed seven Volvo Ocean Races and have been with Ericsson 3 since training in the Canary Islands, together with fellow crew Thomas Johanson, Martin Krite, Martin Strömberg, Anders Dahlsjö, Axel Magdahl and Jens Dolmer.

“Ericsson 3 and the crew have performed beyond our expectations and it is a tough blow for Anders not to be on board the boat for Leg 4. We anticipate that he will make a full recovery and will be able to rejoin the team for Leg 5,” said Richard Brisius, Ericsson Racing Team’s Managing Director.

“The Volvo Ocean Race is physically tough, both on the boats and the crews. Anders’ knee injury is a testament to how demanding it is out there, and we, like all teams, have contingency plans in case of injury. Magnus has an unmatched experience from the Whitbread and Volvo Ocean Race and has been an important part of the campaign since the start. We are fortunate to be able to draw on his support at this time,” he concluded.

Ericsson 3 will also see one planned change to the crew lineup. Norwegian Eivind Melleby will miss the fourth leg due to personal commitments but is expected to rejoin for leg five and is planned to sail most, but not all, of the remaining legs and In-Port races.

Race veteran Klas “Klabbe” Nylöf (Stockholm, Sweden) will join the crew for Leg 4 to Qingdao, China. Nylöf, 41, competed in 1997-’98 onboard race winner EF Language and 2001-02 onboard second-placed Assa Abloy.

“I’m very excited to join the crew of Ericsson 3, and to rejoin the Volvo Ocean Race,” said Nylöf, who will fill the role of helmsman. “With three third-place finishes, the Nordic crew has done a very commendable job. I’m also looking forward to sailing the Volvo Open 70. The boats weren’t this fast or as physically demanding the last time I did the race.”

Jann Neergaard (Copenhagen, Denmark) will also join the crew for Leg 4, completing the crew line-up. Neergaard is already a member of Ericsson Racing Team as a grinder for the In-Port races.

The Volvo Ocean Race resumes on January 10 with the Singapore In-Port Race. The race heads offshore on January 18 for Leg 4 to Qingdao, China, a total distance of 2,500 nautical miles.

Original post by noreply@blogger.com (Valencia Sailing) and software by Elliott Back

[Source: Ericsson Racing Team] Ericsson Racing Team strengthened its overall lead in the Volvo Ocean Race today when Ericsson 4 claimed 4 points for being first boat past the Leg 3 scoring gate north of the island Pulau We.

The International crew, skippered by Brazilian Olympic medalist Torben Grael, passed the gate at 1409:30 GMT. The feat increased their total to 30 points, but it didn’t come easily.

“It’s taken a while to get here,” said Ericsson 4 media crewman Guy Salter. “My media desk sounds like a box of Lego every time we go over a wave, but it’s still working so I won’t open it, just Incase it acts like a jack in the box when I get the lid off.”

A couple later, teammate Ericsson 3 cleared the gate in third place. Last night Anders Lewander’s Nordic crew consolidated their position by sailing down and in front of Puma, and then covering their every move. Ericsson 3 cleared the gate within sight of Puma.

This past week has illustrated the competitiveness of the fleet. Although this is a circumnavigation race, the close boat-for-boat tactics resemble an inshore race among one-designs.

The fleet is very evenly matched in terms of boatspeed but, more importantly, the skippers and navigators plotting the courses also seem evenly matched.

Ericsson 4 moved into the lead last night when it pulled even with Telefónica Blue in terms of longitude, but was placed about 14 nautical miles to windward.

“Ericsson 4 grabbed the lead over Telefónica Blue in convincing fashion. This has been possible by hard and skilled sailing, superior management of the racecourse geometry and, to be truthful, a little help from the weather gods,” said team meteorologist Chris Bedford.

With the scoring gate behind them, the finish line in Singapore is some 500 nautical miles ahead. But the passage through Malacca Strait won’t be easy.

“Although reasonably good moderate east/northeasterly pressure is expected to hold for about 170 nautical miles or so beyond the gate, the wind will eventually ease off and much more variable conditions are expected,” Bedford said.

“Just this morning, there was a nice batch of thunderstorms over the central Malacca Strait. Similar storms are there at some point nearly every day. There is little doubt clouds and squalls will be a randomizing factor on the final approach to the finish. Because the final 300+nm of Leg 3 has the potential of being so very random, it makes the scoring gate points to be won tonight and tomorrow morning even more important,” said the meteorologist.

VOLVO OCEAN RACE LEG 3 LEADERBOARD
(Dec. 19, 2008, 1859 GMT)
1. Ericsson 4, 553 nautical miles to finish
2. Telefónica Blue, +8 NM
3. Ericsson 3, +15 NM
4. Puma, +17 NM
5. Telefónica Black, +33 NM
6. Green Dragon, +40 NM
7. Kosatka, +71 NM
8. Delta Lloyd, +160 NM

Original post by noreply@blogger.com (Valencia Sailing) and software by Elliott Back

[Source: Chris Bedford, Ericsson Team meteorologist] Ericsson 4 has grabbed the lead over Telefonica Blue in convincing fashion. This has been possible by hard and skilled sailing, superior management of the race course geometry, and to be truthful, a little help from the weather gods. Likewise, Ericsson 3 is also now threatening Blue thanks to a more northerly position, faster boat speed and similarly high quality course management. Puma is close behind Ericsson 3 which is no doubt giving them extra inspiration to sail hard and fast.

Overnight, the wind has been relatively even on Ericsson 4 and Telefonica Blue. It seems that Ericsson 4 has a hair better boat speed and/or height in these tight upwind sailing conditions. There may have been slightly more breeze on Ericsson 4, but more likely it has been a case of Telefonica Blue squeezing into a lower apparent wind angle (and thereby slowing) to try and get further north and minimize the gauge against the boats to the north. As if to help out Ericsson Racing Team, the wind has been backed slightly left of what the models have been forecasting. This is likely due to the NE Monsson breeze wrapping around the northern tip of Sumatra. The backed wind has enabled the Ericsson 3 and Ericsson 4 to sail more directly toward the mark, making Blue’s more southerly position even more tenuous.

Ericsson 4 tries to dodge a large storm cloud on the way to Singapore. It could bring good winds, but the crew is being careful. 18 December 2008. Video copyright Ericsson Racing Team

Neither Ericsson 4 nor Telefonica Blue should be able to lay Pulau We Island at the northern end of Sumatra. They will be forced to tack north to get around it and clear the scoring gate. For that reason, Ericsson 4’s lead is actually even great than what the scoreboard shows since they have northerly leverage on this coming tack. The wind will continue to hold around 20 knots and may veer right slightly, becoming more ENE before reaching the scoring gate. Unfortunately for Telefonica Blue, the veer is not expected to be enough to erase any advantage.

Elsewhere on the track, Puma is well and truly in the mix right on the heels of Ericsson 3. Telefonica Black and even Green Dragon must be watched very closely as they are certainly within striking distance. All these boats will need to make the same tacks and maneuvers to get through the scoring gate and therefore, their options are limited. Watch the Russians up to the north. While they are not a threat to the top four, they will be able to lay through the scoring gate and could close up considerably by later today.

Best ETA to the scoring gate is between 1700 and 1800 GMT tonight (Friday evening). For those of you already in Singapore, you might want to set the clock for a 0200 local time Saturday morning check of the positions.

After the scoring gate, there is still 600nm of mind melting sailing to go. Although reasonably good moderate ENE pressure is expected to hold for about 170nm or so beyond the gate, winds will eventually ease off and much more variable conditions are expected. Just this morning, there was a nice batch of thunderstorms over the central Malacca Strait. Similar storms are there at some point nearly every day. There is little doubt clouds and squalls will be a randomizing factor on the final approach to the finish. Because the final 300+nm of Leg 3 has the potential of being so very random, it makes the scoring gate points to be won tonight and tomorrow morning even more important.

Ericsson 4 navigator Jules Salter talks about the approach to the scoring gate. 18 December 2008. Video copyright Ericsson Racing Team

Original post by noreply@blogger.com (Valencia Sailing) and software by Elliott Back

[Source: Chris Bedford, Ericsson Meteorologist] The big split is on with all but the current leg leader, Telefonica Blue, heading toward the north or “high road” toward the scoring gate. Could this be the moment of truth for Blue’s strategy? Well, let’s just say that on this leg, it is “a” moment of truth, with many more likely to come!

There is more wind to the north and Ericsson 4 and the rest of the more northerly positioned boats are able to take advantage of that today. Indeed Blues lead has been up and down by a few miles each sked, though essentially unchanged. Things could get a little exciting in the north today as a fairly strong tropical wave is forecast to move over the fleet today with some large squalls likely to effect all the northern boats in the next 6-12 hours (see the attached image). Telefonica Blue is in the clear on this one, and looks to have steadier sailing conditions, though their average wind speed will be less than the boats to the north and tending to ease.

Ericsson 4 struggles in very light winds and crew has to ration food and oil. 17 December 2008. Video copyright Ericsson Racing Team

As I mentioned yesterday, the northerly position looked better in the medium to long term, and its clear that Ericsson 4 bought into this idea sometime ago. Ericsson 3 has also joined the ranks in the north, though not quite to the extent of international crew and is now essentially the middle boat. Unfortunately, that forecast trend is slightly less optimistic today.

Today’s forecast and modeling shows that the time to the scoring gate is approximately equal for Ericsson 4 and Telefonica Blue. But, one thing the computer does not take into account is sea state. The waves are going to be rougher in the north around Ericsson 4, and this could have a negative effect on their performance relatively to Telefonica Blue. Blue will eventually have to come north, but the longer they can stay south in less seaway, the more miles they may be able to put between themselves and the rest of the fleet.

Still there is a long way to go and there will be many more hurdles. Ericsson 4 is now more likely to adopt a strategy to keep them in second place, in hopes that Telefonica Blue’s position falters in the separation. Meanwhile Ericsson 3 will be looking for the slightest bit of leverage – and luck – to allow them to sail up the fleet to a better position.

Half lunches aboard Ericsson 4!!! 17 December 2008. Video copyright Ericsson Racing Team

Original post by noreply@blogger.com (Valencia Sailing) and software by Elliott Back

[Source: Ericsson Racing Team] Light headwinds have seen diverging tactics on the third night of Leg 3. The conditions have caused a decided split with some boats – Ericsson 4 and Puma – heading north and others – the Telefónica Blue and Telefónica Black – going south.

Regardless of placement, nearly every boat went through a lot of maneuvers the past 12 hours as they wrestled with the light headwinds south of Sri Lanka. Late tonight, however, it looks like that heavy maneuvering may have come to an end.

The 0100 GMT position report listed Ericsson 4 as the fleet leader, 1,416 nautical miles from the finish in Singapore. Telefónica Blue was second, 3 miles behind, Puma third, 8 miles back, and Telefónica Black fourth, 11 miles off. The top four were separated north to south by about 20 miles. Ericsson 3 was running in seventh, 32 miles off the pace.

Ericsson 4 chases clouds to gain some speed. 16 December 2008. Video copyright Ericsson Racing Team

Not only are the light headwinds to blame for the many tacks put in the past 12 hours by each boat, but also an adverse tide. Race data at 0100 showed Ericsson 4 with 3.5 knots of current pushing it to the southwest, 231 degrees. Ericsson 3 also had a 3.5 knot adverse current.

“A rather quiet and uneventful day today,” said Ericsson 4 bowman Ryan Godfrey. “We are experiencing very light breezes as we slowly sail across the southern coast of Sri Lanka. While we have generally been able to maintain a reasonable boatspeed though the water, adverse currents of up to 3 knots are really putting a halt to the distance we are covering over the ground.”

Ericsson 4 was about 840 nautical miles from the island of Pulau We off the northern end of Sumatra. Pulau We marks the southern end of the scoring gate.

Original post by noreply@blogger.com (Valencia Sailing) and software by Elliott Back

[Source: Ericsson Racing Team] Ericsson Racing Team today furthered is preparation for Leg 3 of the Volvo Ocean Race with the launching of its two yachts, Ericsson 3 and Ericsson 4.

The near sisterships were hauled from the water about 10 days ago after completing Leg 2 for their routine maintenance. Two more days of preparation are planned before the Saturday start of the leg that will take the team and its 22 sailors to Singapore.

“The boats are in the water, the rigs are in the boats and the boats are ready to rock-n-roll,” said planning manager Anthony “Spillers” Spillebeen. “They go sailing tomorrow, get loaded Thursday, and have an easy day Friday before the start on Saturday at 2:00 pm.”

The best of Leg 2 on Ericsson 4 (part 1). 9 October 2008. Video copyright Ericsson Racing Team

Ericsson 4, skippered by Brazilian Torben Grael, leads the fleet with 26 points after having won the first two legs. Anders Lewander’s Ericsson 3 is fifth, 11.5 points behind, after a workmanlike third-place finish on Leg 2.

The next leg leads the fleet to another heretofore unseen port in the Volvo race. Singapore, an island state at the southern tip of the Malay Peninsula, will host the fleet through the upcoming holiday season. The 1,950-nautical mile leg is expected to take between nine and 11 days.

“This is a tricky leg,” said team meteorologist Chris Bedford. “I’m going to rate its difficulty between six and seven on the weather side, but a 10 on the navigation side.”

After the start off Cochin, the fleet will work its way southwards down the India coastline battling the light seabreeze and land breeze that marked the finish of Leg 2. Following on the strategies employed approaching the previous finish, expect the boats to stay close to the shoreline on Saturday night as they look for the slightest of zephyrs.

Once south of the tip of India and Sri Lanka, the fleet turns easterly towards Sumatra. The upwind route is a precipitous balance between avoiding the southern edge of the northeasterly monsoon, and the northern edge of the equatorial Doldrums.

Leg 3 has a scoring gate, but Stealth Play is not an option. The scoring gate is approximately 1,275 nautical miles from the start between the northern end of Sumatra and the southern end of Great Nicobar Island, two areas ravaged by the 2004 tsunami.

“The gate is similar to Leg 2 where it is spread out,” said Ericsson 4 navigator Jules Salter. “It’s about 100 miles wide, and the northern end is 10 percent closer to the start than the southern end. So you’ll have to make a decision to go towards the north end for the points, which means a longer distance to the finish, or the southern end, which is a shorter distance to the finish but might take longer to reach.”

The best of Leg 2 on Ericsson 4 (part 2). 9 October 2008. Video copyright Ericsson Racing Team

Stealth Play isn’t an option because each boat is required to activate its data transponder once in the Strait of Malacca, a highly active shipping lane. Super-tankers, container ships and cargo ships ply the waters once every five minutes or more.

“It’ll get hectic once again,” Salter said. “There’s quite a lot of shallow water, fishing boats, stakes and traps. The middle of the channel is one of biggest shipping thoroughfares in world.”

To avoid both the shipping traffic and the possibility of being stopped, the race committee has put in place a series of exclusionary waypoints designed to keep the fleet closer to the Malay Peninsula. Even still, Salter sees another potential problem.

“In the strait you need to pick a side,” said Salter. “You’re away from the monsoon and back in the regime of thunderstorms. There are thunderstorms there like 175 days a year. I think there’s a good chance a boat may get struck by lightning.

“We’re confident in our boat and our sailors, as we always are,” Salter continued. “With these legs you don’t know what’s around the corner. We had quite good fortune in past leg. We’re just hoping for the best and hope our luck continues.”

Original post by noreply@blogger.com (Valencia Sailing) and software by Elliott Back

[Source: Ericsson Racing Team] Ericsson Racing Team won Leg 2 of the Volvo Ocean Race today when Ericsson 4, skippered by Olympic gold medalist Torben Grael of Brazil, crossed the finish line at 04:22:30 local time, 2252:30 GMT on Nov. 29.

Ericsson 4 completed the 4,450-nautical-mile leg from Cape Town, South Africa, in 14 days, 11 hours, 32 minutes and 30 seconds. The crew earned 12 points on the leg - 8 points for the leg win and 4 points for first at the scoring gate. Ericsson 4 now has 26 points total and retains the fleet lead.

“Everybody’s very happy. It was a very tough leg with so many different conditions,” said Grael. “It’s just the beginning of the race, and there are some difficult legs ahead of us. A lot of unexpected things can happen, it’s good to be in the position we’re in.”

Ericsson 4 arrives in Cochin victorious. Cochin, 29 November 2008. Video copyright Ericsson Racing Team

Ericsson 4 had an adventurous leg, one that navigator Jules Salter described as beginning like a lion and ending like a lamb.

The first week was spent in rough conditions just north of 40S latitude, and the weather took a toll on both crew and gear. Sails were damaged and the crew suffered from lack of sleep, but Ericsson 4, a second generation Volvo Open 70 from designer Juan Kouyoumdjian, didn’t suffer any significant damage.

“We learned a lot from Juan K last time, and have taken that forward to this generation. We have a lot of confidence in the structure,” said David Endean, Ericsson 4 pit man and boat captain. “This generation of boat is stronger than the last.”

The International crew led the fleet past the scoring gate on Nov. 20, and then sprinted up the Indian Ocean to the Doldrums, swapping the lead with teammate Ericsson 3. Ericsson 4 made its break from the fleet on Thursday when it scampered through the Doldrums and then benefited from strong westerlies on the Equator.

Ericsson 4 arrives in Cochin victorious. Cochin, 29 November 2008. Video copyright Ericsson Racing Team

In the end, Ericsson 4 was made to wait painfully for this victory. It took nearly nine hours to complete the final 65 nautical miles, a snail’s pace for the speedy VO 70s. While they were drifting to the finish, the fleet was closing up from behind.

“We’re very happy to be here. Very relieved and very satisfied. Relief is a common emotion after how light it got at the end,” said watch captain Stu Bannatyne. “There’s always a risk to get overtaken when you park up. The others can see where you’re parked and it can all disappear very quickly. Fortunately we had enough.”

Original post by noreply@blogger.com (Valencia Sailing) and software by Elliott Back

[Source: Volvo Ocean Race] The advantage, at 1300 GMT today, belonged to Ericsson 4, who had made a massive gain thanks to a well-positioned rain shower. She disappeared as if in ‘stealth’ mode earlier this morning, and when she emerged from her early bath, she had made a gain of around 45 nautical miles.

Torben Grael/BRA and his men are now sailing almost twice as fast as their nearest opponents who are clumped together in the middle group of the fleet as they race towards the finish of leg two of the Volvo Ocean Race in Cochin, India.

But, this is the Doldrums and to play poker with them is at your peril and the serious contenders in the leg have not placed any bets. They are sticking firmly, in a formation, which will ensure they will all benefit from, roughly, the same weather.

At daybreak this morning, the group of Ericsson 4, Ericsson 3 (Anders Lewander/SWE), PUMA (Ken Read/USA) and Green Dragon (Ian Walker/GBR) were all close together. Ericsson 4 was just a few miles ahead of Ericsson 3 (Anders Lewander/SWE) and PUMA (Ken Read).

Now, with Ericsson 4 long gone, Ericsson 3 reports being at almost a standstill. The sea temperature is 31 degrees and the wind speed is 1.3 knots from every direction. The chasing pack wallows helplessly in the wake of Ericsson 4.

On the outer flanks of the group are the two Telefónica boats 68 nm to the west of PUMA, and Kosatka Team Russia (Andreas Hanakamp/AUT) 60 nm east of Green Dragon.

Onboard Telefónica Black (Fernando Echávarri/ESP), MCM Mikel Pasabant says that the constant stream of breakages is wearing thin. “The breakages are so many that we spend too much of our energy solving them, instead of proper sailing,” he said.

In the last 24 hours, the order of the fleet has changed. Green Dragon moves up to third place and Team Russia and Telefónica Black have swapped places. All the boats in the fleet except Delta Lloyd and Team Russia have lost miles to the leader in the past three hours.

Leg Two Day 12: 1300 GMT Volvo Ocean Race Positions
(boat name/country/skipper/nationality/distance to finish)

Ericsson 4 SWE (Torben Grael/BRA) DTF 821 nm
Ericsson 3 SWE (Anders Lewander/SWE) +48
Green Dragon IRL/CHN (Ian Walker/GBR) +58
PUMA Racing Team USA (Ken Read/USA) +60
Telefónica Blue ESP (Bouwe Bekking/NED) +64
Delta Lloyd IRL (Roberto Bermudez/ESP) +75
Team Russia RUS (Andreas Hanakamp/AUT) +114
Telefónica Black ESP (Fernando Echávarri/ESP) +122

Original post by noreply@blogger.com (Valencia Sailing) and software by Elliott Back

[Source: Ericsson Racing Team] The fleet on Leg 2 of the Volvo Ocean Race has seen some compression from the back of the fleet forward over the past 12 hours. Where there was a 214-nautical-mile gap between first and eighth yesterday afternoon, at 0100 GMT this morning that gap was down to 180 miles.

The International crew on Ericsson 4 continued to lead the fleet, 1,230 nautical miles from the finish. Their teammates on Ericsson 3 were virtually in sight, just 3 miles behind on their starboard, windward, quarter.

The two Ericsson crews have been at the head of the fleet since clearing the scoring gate last Thursday, and since Saturday they’ve rarely been separated by more than 8 nautical miles.

“It’s been a pretty wet 24 hours aboard the good ship Ericsson 4!” bowman Phil “Blood” Jameson said yesterday afternoon. “We’ve been sailing along making a very high average boatspeed. Not quite record pace, but very close. We have a wind angle of roughly 100 degrees. Anything in that sort of region means some serious fire hosing on deck!”

Besides being occupied with each other, the Ericsson crews also have a charging fleet to fend off. At the 0100 position report, Puma was 27 nautical miles behind, having gained 17 miles in the past 12 hours. Telefónica Blue was 35 miles behind, a gain of 16 miles. Green Dragon, in fifth, halved its 72-mile deficit to 36.

Boatspeeds had slowed to an average around 17 knots, down from the 20-knot power reaching of the past two days. The next hurdle for the fleet is the Doldrums, roughly positioned betgween 03S and 05S latitude. At 0100, fleet leader Ericsson 4 was approximately 325 nautical miles away at 10S.

“The fleet will start to compress a bit overnight, and we may awake (Tuesday) with a much closer, but slower race in progress,” said team meteorologist Chris Bedford. “The lead of Ericsson 4 and Ericsson 3 over the competition is not big. The next two days will be critical.”

VOLVO OCEAN RACE LEG 2 LEADERBOARD
(Nov. 25, 2008, 0100 GMT)
1. Ericsson 4, 1,230 nautical miles to finish
2. Ericsson 3, 3 NM to leader
3. Puma, 27 NM to leader
4. Telefónica Blue, 35 NM to leader
5. Green Dragon, 36 NM to leader
6. Telefónica Black, 94 NM to leader
7. Delta Lloyd, 149 NM to leader
8. Kosatka, 180 NM to leader

Original post by noreply@blogger.com (Valencia Sailing) and software by Elliott Back

[Source: Chris Bedford, Ericsson Team Meteorologist] The racing remains close but the Ericsson Racing Team seems to be holding their own today and making small gains on the rest of the fleet. Ericsson 4 made some gains overnight by taking on a more aggressive and slightly deeper reaching angle, pulling back even or slightly ahead of Ericsson 3. This change could also be – in part – due to a more backed wind for a time on Ericsson 4, but by now the two boats are close enough so that they should be in about the same wind direction and speed.

Meanwhile, the closest rivals Puma and Telefonica Blue are sailing slower in slightly less breeze and bruised from their rough trip so far.

As highlighted yesterday, the weather for today appears to favor fast reaching conditions with wind speeds averaging around 20 knots from the E through this afternoon. Things will start to change later this afternoon and especially overnight as the strongest trades are left behind to the south and the winds start to decrease foreshadowing the lighter winds expected with the approaching doldrums.

There have not been any significant changes to note in the Doldrums. A crossing east of Diego Garcia is expected. In fact, hedging course even slightly more to the east now appears to be favored and we might see that trend in the coming position updates. The shift from the E/SE trade winds to the westerly component winds that blow across the equator is expected to take place over a period of about 24 hours from Tuesday afternoon through Wednesday evening as the boats cross from about latitude 5S to latitude 3S. Expect to hear complaints of very light winds from the boats by tomorrow morning.

The fleet will start to compress a bit overnight, and we may awake tomorrow with a much closer, but slower race in progress. The lead of Ericsson 4 and Ericsson 3 over the competition is not big. The next two days will be critical.

Once through the doldrums by late Wednesday or early Thursday morning, moderate WSW winds will continue to offer fine reaching conditions until late Friday. But, from late Friday through the finish on Saturday the winds will be lightest and most variable.

Current ETA predictions bring the boats into Cochin during the late evening on Saturday, November 29th. However, you are cautioned that this ETA could change significantly depending on the winds that are found off the SW coast of India. Changes in ETA are possible, especially if the winds are lighter than currently forecast.

NOTE: I will be in transit to India for the next two days. If I can get a connection when connecting in Hong Kong, I will try to update. Otherwise, you will next hear from me from Cohin on Thursday.

Original post by noreply@blogger.com (Valencia Sailing) and software by Elliott Back

[Source: Chris Bedford, Ericsson meteorologist:] This morning, the two Ericsson Racing Team boats will start to appreciate the fact that they are well and truly making progress north toward the finish in Cochin. After a minor slow down today and early tomorrow, Ericsson 3 and Ericsson 4 will accelerate north in the SE trade winds of the southern Indian Ocean beginning tomorrow afternoon/evening.

Today, a NW wind ahead of a strong Southern Ocean cold front is pushing the boats on a course toward the north – northeast and they have made excellent progress to outrun a high pressure area which had been chasing them down from the west. They should continue north with the front which is expected to run over them somewhere around 30S this evening and about the time they cross into the sub-tropical high pressure ridge and eventually into the SE trades tomorrow. This crossing could get a little awkward with some wind holes and isolated showers popping up, but they should be in the SE trades sometime later tomorrow morning.

Crazy conditions aboard Ericsson 3. Southern Indian Ocean, 20 November 2008. Video copyright Ericsson Racing Team

At present, the trade winds look relatively strong and consistent. I am expecting themto hold 20 knots of reaching SE’ly breeze in the trades all the way to the southern boundary of doldrums which is now at about 9S. There may even be an area of 25+ knot SE’ly around 15S just before the early easing begins at 12-13S. At present, the doldrums crossing looks a little easier east of Diego Garcia rather than west.

It is not easy to discern advantages/disadvantages in the positioning of Ericsson 4 in the east vs Ericsson 3 in the northwest at the moment. Certainly, Ericsson 3 is in a more commanding position which might allow covering. This will become less possible once the boats are locked into the trade winds.

At the moment, the computer routing has a slight edge in the routing calculation going to Ericsson 4… but only in the long term. In the short-term, Ericsson 3 has the best advantage and should start closing miles on the finish more quickly. Given the way the doldrums are presently shaping up, there is now a very good chance that the fleet will shift further east and may actually get east of the longitude of Cochin as they search for a quick passage of the Indian Ocean doldrums. We saw such a solution in our historical record about 40% of the time, so there is precedence for the expected long term routing. Unfortunately, these doldrums can be pretty difficult to forecast much more than 3 days out, so any routing solution using forecasts today has at best a 60/40 probability.

Ryan Godfrey and Phil Jameson, Ericsson 4 bowmen. Southern Indian Ocean, 20 November 2008. Video copyright Ericsson Racing Team

Ericsson 3 does not have their radar working after an incident shortly after the start. In addition to tracking competitors and possible obstructions, the radar can be an important piece of equipment for monitoring the position and movement of rain squalls in the upcoming trade winds and doldrums. I spent a bit of time reviewing squall/wind management and radar tracking with skipper Anders Lewander and navigator Aksel Magdahl before the start of Leg 2. I hope a lack of the radar will not hamper them significantly in squally trade winds ahead.

Original post by noreply@blogger.com (Valencia Sailing) and software by Elliott Back

[Source: Chris Bedford, Ericsson Racing meteorologist] Good news came twice for Ericsson Race Team this morning, with Ericsson 4 across the scoring line first and Ericsson 3 a not too distant second. As a small gift, the timing of the approaching front was a bit faster than forecast, causing winds to veer from SW to W requiring a gybe north BEFORE the wayline. This could have been slightly threatening to the 1st and 2nd placings at 58E if it wasn’t for the damage slowing the trailing boats and if it the shift had occurred a little earlier. Instead, it was nearly perfect and allowed Ericsson 3 and 4 to start their long-awaited climb on a more northerly course toward Cochin.

The weather map shows a cold front to the southwest and west of most of the fleet and a high pressure area to the northwest. As mentioned above, the approaching front has had the affect of easing and veering the winds. Meanwhile, further toward the northwest where Puma are located, the high pressure is more dominant and wind speeds are lower. No doubt Puma is in need of theses calmer conditions to allow them to effect repairs on their internal structures while keeping the pressure off.

Phil Jameson, bowman on Ericsson 4, talks after crossing the scoring gate ahead of he fleet. South Indian Ocean, 20 November 2008. Video copyright Ericsson Racing Team

Wind speeds will likely increase for a time this afternoon through tonight on the Ericsson boats as the cold front brushes close by. Then, during the day tomorrow, some easing is likely, with some of the lightest wind since the first night out of Cape Town possible. The cold front is likely to catch up with them early Saturday, but Ericsson 3 and 4 will be far enough north so that the frontal passage will be relatively quiet.

At the moment, I don’t see any significant differences in the relative positioning between Ericsson 3 and 4. Ericsson 3 is in a slightly better covering position than Ericsson 4, and this may allow the Nordic Crew the opportunity to limit the options open to the International Crew in the short term. At this point, it is really a case of sailing fast with the wind that you have. There are few tactical options available given the wind direction and course toward Cochin. The early options in the leg have been used up and it is now a case of getting north as quickly as possible.

Late on Saturday or early Sunday, the fleet will finally enter the southeasterly trade winds. These winds will be very effective in carrying the boats north quickly on a long-awaited intersection with the doldrums. At the moment, the trades look like they will be relatively strong – 20 to 25 knots and should offer a fast right north. As an added bit of good news, the doldrums look quite benign at the moment and possibilities of a quick crossing are good. We are watching a Tropical Storm located out at 9S/84E, but it is forecast to move east and remain clear of the fleet.

Original post by noreply@blogger.com (Valencia Sailing) and software by Elliott Back

[Source: Volvo Ocean Race] Ericsson 4, skippered by Torben Grael, was the first boat to the scoring gate at longitudinal 58 degrees east on the second leg of the Volvo Ocean Race 2008-09.

Grael and his men crossed the line at 03:45 GMT to collect their four points. Once across Grael pointed the bow north for the 3,000-mile home stretch to Cochin.

Anders Lewander’s Ericsson 3 followed her sister ship and crossed the waypoint at 06:51 to pick up 3.5 points.

Among the pursuing pack, Green Dragon, Team Russia and the Telefonica twins are squabbling over the remaining podium positions.

Bouwe Bekking on Telefonica Blue, likes his chances of decent points, noting as he did that the ailing PUMA has slowed over the past 12 hours due to structural damage.

“Looks like PUMA is having some issues, sailing very slow,” he observed in an email earlier this morning. “Hopefully their issue are not too big and that they are not forced to stop on their way.

“But it might mean that we can catch them and gain a valuable half point. The same said for our mates on the (Telefonica) black boat. They got the better of us some days back, but now we are catching them again, also that will be a close call for the points.”

According to Race Meteorologist, Jennifer Lilly, as the fleet heads north-east ovet the 24-48 hours “they will be looking forward to a few days of trade wind sailing”.

A blessed relief from the mauling they have taken in the Roaring Forties.

Highlights for Leg 1
Here’s an interesting couple of videos from the first leg, won by Ericsson 4.

Original post by noreply@blogger.com (Valencia Sailing) and software by Elliott Back

Better than any press release, Chris Bedford’s concise reports provide an excellent overview of the general situation in this second leg of the Volvo Ocean Race. According to Chris the 2 Ericsson boats follow their southerly strategy while it appears that the Telefonica squad has chosen to go further north, probably sacrificing the points at the scoring gate in order to finish first.

[Source: Chris Bedford, Ericsson Team meteorologist] This morning, we start to see the effects of differing strategies. Both Ericsson 3 and Ericsson 4 have invested hard in the south to gain maximum distance east and speed toward the scoring Gate. Even still, they are not the southern-most boats – Puma has gone even farther south.

Both Ericsson Racing Team boats are firmly placed in the south westerly breeze now and they are expected to hold this for the next few days – pretty much all the way to 58E before gybing north and making for Cochin. Wind speeds will be 20-30 knots with some gusts and squalls to 35 knots very likely through to Wednesday, then a slow easing trend is forecast.

As I mentioned in yesterday’s update, the southerly course was what our plan dictated. We also anticipated that some boats — most likely the Telefonica boats — may very well go for a long-term plan, placing an emphasis on trying to go for finishing first – sacrificing the scoring gate points for improved placing on the Leg 2 finish. On this morning’s update, the Telefonica Black and Blue boats are about 2 deg latitude further north and behind Ericsson Racing Team. That puts them further from the scoring line, but closer to the finish, and therefore they will look good on the leader board. Expect big variations from time to time on the leader board reflecting the geometry of the race course and the eastern progress of the fleet.

It looks like a 4-way race between Ericsson 3, Ericsson 4, Puma and Green Dragon to the scoring gate. What the future holds for the overall leg positioning, it’s too early to tell. There will be some nervous times onboard the boats as they watch the Telefonica boats climb gradually north toward the finish. The expectation is that the lighter winds encountered by Telefonica in their northern position will be offset by the stronger winds further south. Time will tell

Original post by noreply@blogger.com (Valencia Sailing) and software by Elliott Back

[Source: Chris Bedford, Ericsson Meteorologist] Just a reminder to everyone to please ignore the Volvo leaderboard for the next 7 days or so. The race office is calculating the places on the leg based upon distance to the finish. But this leg is unusual with the scoring line at 58E and the need to sail east for several days prior to turning north. The boats that are behind (on a east to west position) will, at times, calculate to be closer to the finish (on a more northeast to southwest position). In fact, we envisioned cases where the boat in last place to the finish actually won the scoring gate AND the leg; such is the complex nature of the leg geometry and weather. Anyway, it should all become obvious soon, and there will be a time sometime about halfway through the leg (and after the scoring gate) when the leaderboard will start to make sense once again.

Over the last week, we ran tens of thousands routing simulations on approximately 1,500 different computer model forecasts. All of that led to the development of our overall leg plan. The details of that plan are complex, but in short, that plan was to get south across a ridge of high pressure and light winds south of Cape Town, then scream east on a 20- to 30-knot, gusting 35-knot, west-to-southwest wind field developing around a deepening low pressure south of the area. This will carry the boat quickly toward the scoring way line at 58E. From there (or even a little before that), the weather will dictate a turn to the north where they will cross the sub-tropical high pressure ridge once more and head into the firm southeasterly trades south of the Equator and Indian Ocean doldrums.

Ericsson 4 at the start of the 2nd leg. Cape Town, 15 November 2008. Photo copyright Rick Tomlinson / Volvo Ocean Race

So far, Ericsson 4 has followed the plan very effectively - in part due to their excellent sail out of Table Bay and around the Cape of Good Hope yesterday afternoon and evening. Ericsson 3 is also following the basic plan very closely. Both boats are already through the ridge and starting to feel increasing west and eventually southwest winds, which will accelerate quickly today through tomorrow. Their slow boatspeeds this morning will soon be a thing of the past, and they could very well be making 20+ knot speeds toward the east by tonight.

So, some very exciting days coming up, with fast sailing, rough conditions, and very fast boat speeds. Will the record be broken again? I don’t think so, but it could be close!

Original post by noreply@blogger.com (Valencia Sailing) and software by Elliott Back

[Source: Volvo Ocean Race] It’s a win for Torben Grael and his international crew from Ericsson 4 as they crossed the finish line at 0554 GMT (0754 local time) as dawn rose in Cape Town today. The team took 21 days, 17 minutes and 54 seconds to complete this, the first leg of the Volvo Ocean Race, which started from Alicante (Spain) on 11 October. At 6.500 nm, leg one is the second longest leg of the race.

The leg win is worth 8 points, which, when added to the points already on the board for Ericsson 4 from the Alicante in-port race (2.5) and 3.5 for passing the scoring gate at Fernando de Noronha in second place, brings their overall tally to 14 points. Ericsson 4 leads the race overall, just one point ahead of PUMA (Ken Read/USA) provided she finishes in second place.

On stepping ashore, Grael said: “It’s really fantastic to be here. It was a great trip with lots of speed and I am very happy with what we have achieved. I think we had PUMA in visual for about 70 per cent of the race and I am very glad that we were ahead at the scoring gate and at the finish. It feels great to win.”

Navigator, Jules Salter added, “It’s really good to be here. It is always good to be in Cape Town. It was an eventful race; I really can’t remember most of it, but it feels really great to be in the lead from the very beginning.”

Ericsson 4 wins leg 1 of the Volvo Ocean Race, crossing the finish line at 05.54 GMT. Skippered by Brazilian Torben Grael and with a crew of international sailors, they completed the 6,500 mile leg from Alicante, Spain to Cape Town, South Africa in 21 days, breaking the 24 hour monohull record on 29/10/08 with a distance of 602.66 miles. Cape Town, 2 November 2008. Photo copyright Rick Tomlinson/Volvo Ocean Race

It’s been an eventful and dramatic opening leg of the event for Ericsson 4, which included evacuating a crewman with an infected knee on day seven (17 October) and breaking through the 600 nm 24-hour barrier to record a new world record of 602 nm in 24-hours (subject to official ratification) on day 19 (29 October).

After leading the fleet at the start, Ericsson 4 made a detour to the Cape Verde islands to evacuate trimmer/helmsman, Tony Mutter/NZL, who had an infected knee. From that moment, the crew was a man down, sailing with a crew of nine men and missing the helming skills of Mutter.

Losing an estimated 50 nm to the fleet while the evacuation took place, Ericsson 4 then began the long haul back up the leaderboard and, by day 8, 18 October, they were back in third position, 56 nm behind PUMA. The vagaries of the Doldrums then caused havoc as the boats wildly oscillated up and down the leaderboard trying to make the most of squally conditions.

It wasn’t until they rounded the scoring gate at Fernando de Noronha, off the coast of Brazil, that Ericsson 4 pounced on PUMA and stole her lead, just momentarily, on the distance to finish data. Although Telefónica Black (Fernando Echávarri/ESP) went to the top of the table for a few moments based on their easterly heading, the real fight remained between Ericsson 4 and PUMA.

As the two leading boats sailed south, skirting the South Atlantic High, PUMA was clinging to Ericsson 4’s coat tails. The two racing yachts were often in sight of each other, even though over 3,000 nm of the course had already been sailed.

“We have had some interesting skirmishes with PUMA throughout this race and again we find ourselves within four miles of each other, with them in the ascendency,” wrote Ericsson’s British navigator, Jules Salter, on day 17.

As the depression in the South Atlantic aligned itself perfectly to fire Ericsson and PUMA towards Cape Town, records were clearly up for grabs, although Grael said at the time that his focus was on winning the leg, and not setting new records. PUMA was back in sight of Ericsson and neither team had any intention of backing off. “We knew they would be back,” said PUMA’s skipper Ken Read. “We will keep the pressure on,” he said.

By day 19, Ericsson 4 had broken loose, and PUMA was trailing them by 34 nm when Ericsson set the new 24-hour world record. As Ericsson rode the front, they extended away, displaying a foot perfect display.

Ericsson 4 continued her dominance at the head of field right into Cape Town where she finished 135 miles ahead of PUMA. Current estimates show a late afternoon (local time) finish for PUMA today, Sunday.

Original post by noreply@blogger.com (Valencia Sailing) and software by Elliott Back

[Source: Volvo Ocean Race] Ericsson 4 has the bit in her teeth and is still coming at speed towards Cape Town, now less than 200 miles away. Torben Grael and his record-breaking crew have looked like world beaters for the past week or so, and seem determined to keep the pedal down, all the way to the finishing line.

As Mark Chisnell explained in today’s TEN ZULU report, Cape Town’s Table Bay is notorious for having calm winds in the early morning hours and this could still slow down the leader. But with PUMA over 100 miles in arrears, Ericsson 4 appears to be have a solid grip on Leg One. Even the opposition is impressed.

“A huge congratulations to the Ericsson 4 team,” wrote Chris Nicolson, watch captain on PUMA. “To maintain that level of pace is a credit to their preparation and skill. Personally, it was a big reminder of the difficulty that comes with keeping everything together in those conditions. Will it (the record) fall again this race? Maybe, but it will take a very good set of conditions.”

Icy droplets on the boom of Telefonica Blue as they sail 39 degrees south, on leg 1 of the Volvo Ocean Race. Southern Atlantic Ocean, 31 October 2008. Photo copyright Gabriele Olivo/Equipo Telefonica/Volvo Ocean Race

With PUMA still looking safe on the shorter northerly track to Cape Town, there’s still a real battle brewing between Ericsson 3 and Green Dragon. Currently, the Nordic crew led by Anders Lewander on Ericsson appear to be in a strong position, but to see how strong, we’ll have to wait – the crew has just invoked its StealthPlay, lending an air of uncertainty to the boys on Green Dragon, who are feeling the effects of a tough watch system.

“The lads are pretty tired,” wrote skipper Ian Walker today. “For nearly a week now, we have been sailing a ‘double standby’ watch in strong wind. In simple terms, this means you only get two hours in your bunk every eight - which is not enough. It does mean that when it is rough we have seven people in kit ready to be on deck at a moment’s notice. We have needed them on several occasions.

“The other news is that we have gybed so we are now pointing pretty much at Cape Town. This is good for morale, not least as we are heading north again…It is frustrating knowing that we could be sailing so much faster and seeing ERT3 crossing us when we would have been so well clear of them but that’s yacht racing…We have about two days to go and we are starting to count down the miles in fifties.”

Casey Smith driving at 20 knots, on leg 1 of the Volvo Ocean Race. Southern Atlantic Ocean, 31 October 2008. Photo copyright Rick Deppe/PUMA Ocean Racing/Volvo Ocean Race

And further back, there’s still plenty to fight for. Telefonica Blue is looking over its shoulder at a hard charging Team Russia. Current weather routing software puts the boats within hours of each other at the finish. Bouwe Bekking’s men are about 40 miles north of the Russian boat, a healthy enough separation for the chasing crew to gain on any significant shift, or change in weather.

Finally, Delta Lloyd has also played its StealthPlay card, as skipper Ger O’Rourke works to fend off the wounded Telefonica Black, which is now within 900 miles of Cape Town.

Original post by noreply@blogger.com (Valencia Sailing) and software by Elliott Back

[Source: Volvo Ocean Race] Ericsson 4 broke through the 600-mile barrier as their historic run continued with the log reaching 602.66 nautical miles at 18:54 GMT.

The new mark established by Torben Grael’s men translates into an average speed of 25.11 knots, according to the telemetry received from the boat at Race Headquarters.

The record eclipsed the previous best 24-hour benchmark for a racing monohull of 562.96 miles set by Sebastian Josse and the crew of ABN AMRO TWO on the second leg of the 2005-06 race from Cape Town to Melbourne. Ericsson 4 added nearly 40 miles to that figure.

It must now be ratified by ISAF and the World Sailing Speed Record Council. That is likely to happen a week after the fleet’s arrival in Cape Town, which, at the going rate, is predicted as Monday 3rd November.

Grael and his crew had been pushing the boat hard for well over 24 hours, first toppling the previous mark at 03:55 GMT with a run of 566.57 miles. They raised the bar repeatedly and by 13:00 GMT, 593 miles were on the board as the magical 600-mark grew nearer. By 14:25, they had clocked 594.23 as they moved onwards and upwards. Then came Grael’s holy grail.

The achievement is all the more credible given that Ericsson 4 have been sailing a man down since dropping off Tony Mutter, one of their drivers, at the Cape Verde Islands.

Drained by the experience, Grael is not about to get too carried away with the record when the serious business of being first to Cape Town remains top of the to-do list.

The conditions were not ideal given the sea state overnight. Winds approaching 40 knots are one thing, boisterous seas of eight metres in pitch darkness quite another. Shattered records, shattered bodies it seems.

’We have been on the edge’

Torben Grael interview

“The record is a great achievement,” an audibly spent Grael said in an interview with Amanda Blackley earlier in the day (Check box above). “To be honest we were not really looking for records we were looking for a good ride on this weather system for as long as possible.

“Conditions were marginal, especially during the night. It was no fun at all. The problem was the waves, especially during the middle of the night as there is no moon and it is very difficult to read them so the boat has been jumping about.

“We have been very much on the edge, if we had an easier sea state we could have gone faster.”

Guy Salter, the Media Crew Member on board added: “It’s not everyday you get to have a ride as we have had over the past day or so, and to get a new 24-hour record has been superb.

“The reality of that feat out here hasn’t really sunk in, we know we have a record but what is more on our minds is getting to Cape Town and hopefully at the front of the pack, avoiding damage to ourselves and the yacht.

“All the boys look really drained - sleep is not the easiest on E4, I can only describe the motion as I would imagine re-entry on the Space shuttle is like. Everything is bouncing - including every cell in our bodies and the mundane tasks are near impossible.”

The Volvo Ocean Race mutual admiration society issued statements as news of Ericsson 4’s achievement went out on the bush telegraph.

Green Dragon’s Ian Walker said: “Hats off to ERT 4 for a storming 24 hours. We have just about been able to match them when we have had a steady three hours but sail changes, reefing and backing off at night has kept our 24 hour mileage in check.”

“The news of the day has been the new 24-hour new record established by Ericsson 4. Congratulations from Telefonica Negro. Good boat good sailors,” wrote Media Crew Member Mikel Pasabant.

“It has been a hard night, with rough seas and winds which exceeded 40 knots. In a pitch dark night, imagine the conditions to steer.”

Telefonica Blue’s Simon Fisher, the navigator on ABN AMRO TWO in 2005-06, said: “It has been hard not to smile a little when you see the pace that Ericsson 4 has laid down. Deeply, deeply impressive to say the least. It is a shame to see our old record from ABN AMRO TWO go but at the same time these things are made to be broken and those boys are certainly doing it with style.”

’They have been blasting’

Fisher’s skipper, Bouwe Bekking, was the first owner of the record for a Volvo Open 70 when his movistar clocked a relatively pedestrian 530 miles on the boat’s delivery run from Melbourne to Sanxenxo, Spain ahead of the previous race.

The Dutchman said: “Well done to the guys. They have been blasting. It’s really the first time that a lot of our guys have been sailing in big, big breeze so we’ve been taking it a bit easy and keeping the boat in one piece.

“But what Ericsson have done is impressive, congratulations to them. Its pretty hard to control the boats right now.”

Juan Kouyoumdjian, the designer of both Ericsson boats – and previous record holder ABN AMRO TWO, said: “I am very happy to receive this kind of satisfaction. As designers we provide the instrument that the crews have to play, but only that. This record belongs to the crew.”

Ericsson 4’s mighty effort has created breathing space to second-placed PUMA. By the 19:00 GMT Position Report, Ken Read’s men trailed by a Distance to Leader (DTL) of +46 despite getting to within a mile of ABN AMRO TWO’s record with a run of 561 miles.

Elsewhere, the pursuers are leaking miles to the leading pair. Green Dragon, following the tracks of the duo are +105 but peering over their shoulders as they prepare to fall out of the low pressure system.

“We are starting to see the effect of ’stepping off the train’ on Delta Lloyd and Team Russia and we want to delay that as long as we can. Sooner or later it will happen to us but the faster we go the later it will be. We are now directly East of our closest competitors for third place so they should suffer first.”

Ericsson 3, chasing the Dragon, are at (+138) while Bekking’s Telefonica Blue (+174) hold sway over sister ship Telefonica Black (+200). The black boat, who conceded nine miles to Bekking’s men since the last Position report, have had a torrid night which includes ripping two sails. Their first albatross sighting raised spirits only briefly.

At the tail, Delta Lloyd (+355) and Team Russia (+376) continue to scrap over the crumbs.

Original post by noreply@blogger.com (Valencia Sailing) and software by Elliott Back

[Source: Volvo Ocean Race] Subject to ratification, Torben Grael and his men on Ericsson 4 have shattered the 24-hour record set in the last race by ABN AMRO TWO.

At 03:55 GMT, Ericsson 4 had sailed 565 miles over the past day, to break the record. But in the hours since, Grael and his crew have kept pushing and have been adding to the total. At 07:10 GMT, the number was up to 585 miles. It had grown to 589 by 07:55.

At present, no other boats in the fleet have surpassed the old record.

The run has vaulted Ericsson 4 to the head of the pack with a lead of 27 miles over PUMA on the 07:00 GMT position report. What’s meaningful this morning is not just that the fleet is spreading out again in terms of distance to finish.

But of more significance, the boats immediately behind Ericsson 4 – PUMA and Green Dragon – are falling in line, sailing in the track of the lead boat. Green Dragon, for example, is just four miles south of Ericsson 4. That means the lead Ericsson 4 has built is more solid. The boats behind don’t have any leverage of them.

Ian Walker, skipper of Green Dragon, promised broken records, plenty of drama, or more likely a bit of both, in an email yesterday. Overnight, he was just as forceful in describing the conditions.

“This is insane - 35 knots of wind, pitch black, 1500 miles from land and we are desperately trying to squeeze more speed from a boat that feels and sounds like it is going to self destruct any second. We have to push hard to stay ahead of the (cold) front.”

The entire fleet is churning up the miles. At the 07:00 GMT report, everyone had posted 24 hour runs of over 450 miles, and both Ericsson boats, PUMA and Green Dragon have all breached the 500 miles barrier.

It’s interesting to note that on the 07:00 report, the Data Centre is showing average wind speeds in the 30 knot range, with gusts over 40 knots for all of the leading boats. And maximum wave height is now above 7-metres. That was recorded by Telefonica Blue.

Before the day is out, it’s likely the record number will rise further. Be sure to check Mark Chisnell’s TEN ZULU report for more information on the weather the fleet can expect to see over the coming day, and further ahead into Cape Town.

Original post by noreply@blogger.com (Valencia Sailing) and software by Elliott Back

[Source: Volvo Ocean Race] Subject to ratification, Torben Grael and his men on Ericsson 4 have shattered the 24-hour record set in the last race by ABN AMRO TWO.

At 03:55 GMT, Ericsson 4 had sailed 565 miles over the past day, to break the record. But in the hours since, Grael and his crew have kept pushing and have been adding to the total. At 07:10 GMT, the number was up to 585 miles. It had grown to 589 by 07:55.

At present, no other boats in the fleet have surpassed the old record.

The run has vaulted Ericsson 4 to the head of the pack with a lead of 27 miles over PUMA on the 07:00 GMT position report. What’s meaningful this morning is not just that the fleet is spreading out again in terms of distance to finish.

But of more significance, the boats immediately behind Ericsson 4 – PUMA and Green Dragon – are falling in line, sailing in the track of the lead boat. Green Dragon, for example, is just four miles south of Ericsson 4. That means the lead Ericsson 4 has built is more solid. The boats behind don’t have any leverage of them.

Ian Walker, skipper of Green Dragon, promised broken records, plenty of drama, or more likely a bit of both, in an email yesterday. Overnight, he was just as forceful in describing the conditions.

“This is insane - 35 knots of wind, pitch black, 1500 miles from land and we are desperately trying to squeeze more speed from a boat that feels and sounds like it is going to self destruct any second. We have to push hard to stay ahead of the (cold) front.”

The entire fleet is churning up the miles. At the 07:00 GMT report, everyone had posted 24 hour runs of over 450 miles, and both Ericsson boats, PUMA and Green Dragon have all breached the 500 miles barrier.

It’s interesting to note that on the 07:00 report, the Data Centre is showing average wind speeds in the 30 knot range, with gusts over 40 knots for all of the leading boats. And maximum wave height is now above 7-metres. That was recorded by Telefonica Blue.

Before the day is out, it’s likely the record number will rise further. Be sure to check Mark Chisnell’s TEN ZULU report for more information on the weather the fleet can expect to see over the coming day, and further ahead into Cape Town.

Original post by noreply@blogger.com (Valencia Sailing) and software by Elliott Back