Leg 3

[Guest]

Heres the info on another sprint back to sharjah.

 

Abu Dhabi Ocean Racing have another chance to thrill home crowds and make up ground on the leaders in Saturday’s Leg 3 Stage 1 sprint.

 

“There’s another six points up for grabs in the sprint to Sharjah so we’ll be gunning for that again. We’re getting hungry for points” - Abu Dhabi Ocean Racing bowman Justin Slattery

Ian Walker’s team picked up six points from an outstanding performance under pressure in the Etihad Airways In-Port Race on home waters on Friday.

 

The fleet will sail a short inshore course in full view of thousands of spectators who will line the shores before racing to Sharjah.

 

Following their hometown success in Friday’s in-port race, Ian Walker’s Abu Dhabi Ocean Racing will favour themselves for a result. Their bowman Justin Slattery said it was onward and upward from here on for the team.

 

“We need to start climbing the ladder now,” the three-time Volvo Ocean Race competitor said. “There’s another six points up for grabs in the sprint to Sharjah so we’ll be gunning for that again. We’re getting hungry for points.”

 

After a disappointing day on the water, overall race leaders Team Telefónica said they would look to defend their position at the top of the standings in Leg 3.

 

“We are looking ahead to the start of the leg, which is difficult to concentrate on with so much work and with so many commitments and stories here and there,” skipper Iker Martínez said.

 

“But the conclusion is that having had a race that didn’t go well today, we were lucky because we only gave up two points.”

 

As with Leg 2 of the race, Leg 3 is being split into two parts to prevent the boats from sailing through dangerous waters off the coast of Africa. Early forecasts are tipping fresh northwest winds of 13 to 16 knots inshore, building to 18 to 22 knots offshore.

 

Leg 3 Stage 1 starts at 1400 local time (1000 GMT) with the boats racing a short sprint to the northern United Arab Emirates before being loaded onto a ship and transported to a safe haven port in the Indian Ocean.

 

Once the boats are unloaded, racing will resume to Sanya around January 23, and the first boats could reach Sanya by February 4.

[Guest]

Rounding mark 3 and 4 are going to hurt Camper on the reach, but this looks like it is going to be a great sprint race as the wind wont favour telefonica and allow the rest of the fleet to gain on them again. It will be interesting to see how Abu Dhabi go in this one as they have one both the light air races and could feature well in this 6 point race as well.

[Guest]

Another great finish and it helps make the points situation a little better for the fleet with Camper and Telefonica coming last.

 

 

Resurgent Abu Dhabi Ocean Racing made it two victories in two days on home waters on Saturday as they clinched first place in a thrilling Leg 3 Stage 1 sprint from Abu Dhabi up the coast of the United Arab Emirates.

 

Ian Walker’s men made an 11th hour charge for the Sharjah finish line at the end of a 106 nautical mile sprint from their home town, overhauling long-term leaders Team Telefónica and second-placed Groupama sailing team with less than three nautical miles to go to claim a maximum six points at 1629 UTC.

 

Victory, by a margin of just one minute 16 seconds, followed hot on the heels of their resounding success in Friday’s Etihad Airways In-Port Race and came in stark contrast to their disappointing fifth place arrival into their home port at the end of Leg 2.

 

“It was a very good two days for us,” said a jubilant Walker following the sprint from Abu Dhabi, the first Middle Eastern stopover in the Volvo Ocean Race’s 38-year history.

 

“I think what everybody is seeing here is what all the skippers have been saying all along, we have five very good boats and five very good teams and it’s easy to be last. Telefónica, you thought they would win that hands down with the lead they had and it’s just not that easy because you’ve got very good people behind you and you don’t need to do much wrong for people to come past.”

 

PUMA Ocean Racing also staged an impressive comeback rising through the fleet from fifth to second in the dying moments to claim five points. Skipper Ken Read said the result made up for the disappointing fourth-place finish in the in-port race.

 

“For sure we were going faster in the reaching conditions,” Read said. “The tweaks that we’ve done have obviously appear to have helped in those conditions, so we’re very pleased about that. We weren’t real stellar in that triangle out of the bay, but on the reach we were pretty quick. Tactically on the long run coming into here, we picked the correct side of the course so it was a nice comeback for the good guys.”

 

Franck Cammas’ Groupama took the final podium position and four points while Telefónica, led by Iker Martínez, had to settle for fourth place and three points after being reeled in on the home strait. Chris Nicholson’s CAMPER with Emirates Team New Zealand took fifth, scoring two points.

 

The buzz on the dock prior to the start was about the advantage of leading the fleet round the inshore course and out to sea. Telefónica appeared to have buried the demons that saw them relegated to the back of the fleet in yesterday’s in-port race, leading from the moment the starting gun fired.

 

Cricketers Alistair Cook and Graeme Swann sampled life on board a Volvo Open 70 ahead of England's first Test against Pakistan in Dubai next week as they joined Abu Dhabi Ocean Racing for the race start, before diving into the Gulf from the speeding yacht.

 

Some slick sailing from Abu Dhabi saw them jump from fifth to second around the inshore course, while PUMA skipper Ken Read locked horns with Franck Cammas on Groupama in an aggressive close-quarters combat.

 

After more than 100nm of racing it came down to the final 10-mile sprint to the finish line, with Telefónica leading the fleet around the final turning mark. But in a replay of the Leg 2 Stage 2 sprint Team Telefónica couldn’t defend their lead, and Martínez’s team were helpless to the attack of the chasing pack.

 

As with Leg 2 of the race, Leg 3 is split into two parts to prevent the boats from sailing through dangerous waters off the coast of Africa. The fleet will be loaded onto a ship in Sharjah and transported to a safe haven port in the Indian Ocean. Once the boats are unloaded, racing will resume to Sanya around January 23, and the first boats could reach Sanya by February 4.

 

Team Sanya, forced to retire from Leg 2 with rig damage, will meet the fleet at the safe haven port and rejoin racing for Leg 3 Stage 2. They can still score points for Leg 2 and the Etihad Airways Abu Dhabi In-Port Race if they complete Leg 2 Stage 1 under racing conditions.*

 

* If Team Sanya complete Leg 2 Stage 1 in racing conditions they will score the following points: 4pts for Leg 2 Stage 1, 1pt for Leg 2 Stage 2 and 2pts for Abu Dhabi In-Port Race (a total of 7pts).

[Guest]

From Groupama

 

This could be a great leg if the top 4 boats keep it close.

 

 

 

 

Leg 3 : Abu Dhabi - Sanya

An action-packed match

 

 

 

With the course initially forecast to be a long, lively reach, it came as some surprise that there were a number of upsets all the way to the finish line, piling an enormous amount of pressure on the crews for the six and half hours of racing… Vying over second and third place for a long while, Groupama 4 managed to overtake the Spanish leader over the final few miles, while her crew's defence of the leader in the overall standing left the way clear for Abu Dhabi to take victory ahead of Puma in Sharjah!

 

 

 

It was a superb spectacle off the port of Abu Dhabi as the Volvo fleet launched into a preliminary triangular course and then a beat of around ten miles prior to the sprint down the Arab Emirate coastline, which spanned over 80 miles. A great way to kick off the first part of the third leg then and the five pretenders to victory were especially fired up for this course, which will round off the first third of the Volvo Ocean Race. Nicely warmed up by the In-Port race the previous day, despite not scoring too well, the leaders in the overall ranking got off to the best start whilst Franck Cammas and his men opted for the pin end of the start line. Sailing with slightly eased sheets, the fleet quickly got into line behind the Spaniards and the New Zealanders, Groupama 4 hooking onto third place ahead of the Americans and the Emiratis. After another section of reaching, which didn't affect the hierarchy, the five VOR-70s set off on a first beat in what remained a rather light breeze of between 6 and 8 knots of NNW'ly.

 

Luffing match under spinnaker!

The distances separating the boats remained very small but Ian Walker demonstrated how familiar he was with the race zone: Azzam protected the right hand side of the race zone and came back into contact with the Spanish, just 23 seconds shy of Telefonica, whilst Groupama 4 fell back into fifth place in contact with Camper and Puma. On rounding this third mark Ken Read, seeing the danger, luffed up big time to try to force an error on Franck Cammas, but the latter responded perfectly and managed to outpace the Americans under spinnaker. Groupama 4 was then in a position to attack the New Zealanders whilst the two leaders were making a break for it…

 

Another section of reaching did little to alter the deficits as there was less than seven knots of breeze. It was a temporary lull however because as the five crews launched into a long beat to a mark moored around ten miles off the coast, the breeze picked up to about fifteen knots. The Spanish were very at ease in these conditions and rounded the mark with a lead of over a mile in relation to the trio comprising Camper, Groupama 4 and Abu Dhabi, Puma having dropped back slightly. With the preliminary course behind them, there were three sections left to cover (23 miles + 45 miles + 17 miles): two sections with eased sheets at 80° then 120° to the true wind, and one run, the breeze having shifted round to the NW, filling to over fifteen knots.

 

Pure speed

The very long sprint, running parallel to Emirati shores, saw a considerable increase in pace since the boats were bordering on 25 knots of boat speed in the gusts from the Shamal! The seas were relatively flat and the wind was backing more and more to the North-West. The passage around the intermediary mark didn't really affect the separation but it has to be admitted that the New Zealanders weren't very quick on this point of sail. Further down the track, once the crews were able to ease the sheets a little, the Americans on Puma put up an impressive performance: they initially devoured Camper, then closed in on Abu Dhabi, which had just been gobbled up by Groupama 4!

 

Approaching the final mark, which heralded the ultimate battle under spinnaker, the Spanish only had a half mile lead over Abu Dhabi, Groupama 4 and Puma… Franck Cammas and his men resisted the attack from Ken Read and then decided to be the first to put in a gybe to hunt down the finish line. They were then able to pile the pressure on Telefonica, while the rest of the fleet were sailing to leeward of them. Seeing the danger, Iker Martinez luffed but was unable to prevent the French boat from dipping to windward of them. The final sprint was extremely close as Ian Walker had been able to slip along straight towards the line with Ken Read on his tail, while Franck Cammas and the Spanish had to deal with a gybe to complete this 106 mile course. There were just a few hundred metres in it as Abu Dhabi was first to cross the finish line, ahead of the Americans on Puma, who'd made a great comeback on this spinnaker sprint, Groupama 4 finishing third.

 

Closing down the potential

This third place by Franck Cammas and his men isn't a satisfying one in terms of score and amassing points, but it does show that the crew now has a solid mastery of contact racing, as they proved when they were under attack from Puma and Telefonica and when they were defending Abu Dhabi. Indeed the French managed to demote the Spanish by three places… It is also worth highlighting the fact that her rivals have made considerable progress in terms of speed on a reach, as was indicated by Puma's comeback during the long breezy sprint, as well as the performance by Abu Dhabi in lively conditions with eased sheets. Without doubt the potential of the crews is now very similar, though the New Zealanders don't seem to be firing on all cylinders on a reach or in light airs such as those in Saturday's In-Port race. As such, the next stage of this third leg to China promises to be thrilling!

[Guest]

Another one from Groupama and its an interesting read that gives some insights into the racing

 

Leg 3 : Abu Dhabi - Sanya

Leg 3 Part 1: Analysis by the Volvo Ocean Race crews

 

 

 

Following the coastal course between Abu Dhabi and Sharjah, a prelude to the third leg of the Volvo Ocean Race, Groupama 4 has taken third place and boosted her position in the overall standing. However, this result hasn't lived up to the crew's ambitions and they have observed that the level is becoming increasingly similar throughout the fleet and that they must further improve their cohesion during manœuvres.

 

 

 

“Throughout this race, it was a very closely fought battle: we had a very good upwind stretch but ultimately the standing at the first windward mark certainly didn't reflect the end result… Everything came down to the final spinnaker run and the final gybe off Sharjah: everything that happened prior to that didn't really serve for much! We found ourselves in second position just behind Telefonica, which had a good lead at the end of the long reaching section: at the finish, the Spanish had dropped three places while we dropped one. Those that came off the best were the Americans on Puma and above all Abu Dhabi, which is back on form and really flying!

It was an interesting race because everyone remained in contact: we were able to carry out some trials on the sail configurations and we very quickly saw the effects on the boat's performance. Not everything turned out well but at least we now know what we mustn't do… We also had an issue with hoisting the gennaker because of poor packing and we had to make three attempts at it: that probably caused us to lose the leadership against Abu Dhabi.

The result of this race practically corresponds with the reverse of the overall standing in terms of points but we've learnt a great deal” said the skipper of Groupama 4, Franck Cammas on arriving in Sharjah.

 

“It was a very fine race and Puma, like Abu Dhabi, were very impressive as they were really on the pace. There were lots of upsets in the ranking, some calling into question and, on our part we made some good calls and one poor manœuvre which cost us two places. The sentiment is that we have a very good boat but we need to anticipate even more than we are doing and be more focused: the level is very high and you can't get away with making any mistakes.

After almost seven hours of racing, everyone is knackered! There was a lot of tension and pressure because we were really neck and neck. I missed this contact and it's very exciting: it's racing in its purest state and it's very different to the offshore formats. We're managing to put up a consistent performance, always or almost always on the podium, whilst discovering points we can improve on. I think we're on a real upward cycle but there is increasing pressure from our rivals” adds Thomas Coville at the end of this 106-mile coastal course.

 

The winner of this race confirmed the overall impression of the five teams present in Abu Dhabi: “Everyone can see that there are five very good boats and five very good crews: it's very easy to finish last. We though that Telefonica was going to win this race given its lead, but there are some big players behind and you can't afford to make mistakes!” stated Ian Walker, skipper of Abu Dhabi.

 

Ken Read, who finished second aboard Puma was pleased with their performance too: “For sure we were very quick on a reach. The improvements that we've made to the boat have borne fruit and we're satisfied with that. Tactically, on a long section with eased sheets, we sailed well and that was a pleasant comeback for the crew.”

 

Iker Martinez, helmsman on Telefonica, explained their comeback down the home straight: “One of our sails fell in the water and we had to slow down to deal with that: we lost our boat speed and the boats behind very quickly gained on us. We lost our position as leader but ultimately we're very close to each other in terms of performance. It's a bit frustrating to have had to deal with that, but it happens from time to time…”

 

This Sunday, the five VO-70s are to be loaded onto the cargo ship in Sharjah to make for the secret port in the Indian Ocean, which they're set to reach at the end of the week. The start of the second part of this third leg is scheduled for Sunday 23 January with the final destination of China. Meantime, Sanya, which had to make a stopover in Madagascar to repair her rig, is heading for the same port in race mode, and is set to join up with the rest of the fleet there for the rest of this 3,000 mile course. It will take about a fortnight to complete this oceanic race which will again see its course split into two sections. The first section will go as far as Malaysia in a moderate Northerly providing reaching conditions, whilst the second half will involve a beat into light NE'ly winds.

[Reg 0]

What can Camper do ?? They do look off the pace in light air and reaching, but in reality thats what the majority of this race is.

[Guest]

I guess that they can be pretty happy with being off the pace but still 2nd place!

[Guest]

I heard a rumour that Camper were going to look at their sails and see if they could gain some more speed that way. Their boat is slow on the reach and I dont know if theres anything they can do about it as it looks to be the hull and not the rig that is causing the problem. I would however laugh if it was their strop that has been the focus of many protests. They have preformed well so far in the light and seem to be in the top half of the fleet when it comes to the light stuff. They struggle with Puma and Telefonica when the wind gets to 20 knots and can not match them which is why Telefonica lead the way so far.

 

The biggest surprise in the last 2 races has been Abu Dhabi and if they are as quick as what they have shown they can be, its going to make this race more interesting as they could stop Camper and Telefonica running away with this competition.

 

Its close so far and Camper are well and truly in striking distance if Telefonica do something wrong so thats still a good sign. 2nd place cant be thrown out the window and should be congratulated even if Puma who they seemed evenly matched with have lost points for a mast failure.

[Guest]

The complete Volvo Ocean Race line-up will head into battle for the first time in more than a month on Sunday, January 22, as the second stage of Leg 3 gets underway to the Chinese city of Sanya.

 

The leg start is scheduled for 0800 UTC and will see the six-strong fleet race more than 3,000 nautical miles across the Indian Ocean, through the Malacca Strait and into the South China Sea.

 

The fleet will have to tackle monsoon winds, painfully long stretches of upwind sailing through rough seas and there will be container ships to dodge as they pick their way through some of the world’s busiest shipping lanes.

 

The five teams currently being shipped to an undisclosed port in the Indian Ocean are expected to arrive in the early hours of Saturday where they will be reunited with Team Sanya, forced to suspend racing during the first stage of Leg 2.

 

Once docked at the safe haven, the five boats will be unloaded and work will begin to prepare them for the second stage of the third offshore leg of the Volvo Ocean Race.

 

Just seven points separate overall leaders Team Telefónica on 71 points and second placed CAMPER with Emirates Team New Zealand on 64, while third placed Groupama sailing team lie 20 points behind Telefónica with 51 points.

 

PUMA Ocean Racing powered by BERG and Abu Dhabi Ocean Racing are split by just five points on 36 and 31 points respectively, with Team Sanya on 11 points.

 

After a string of consistent results but no leg win, CAMPER skipper Chris Nicholson said Leg 3 Stage 2 could fall in their favour.

 

“We just have to bide our time for this next leg,” he said. “There’ll be a bit more upwind which we’re comfortable with and just keep chipping away at where we’re weak.

 

“We have a lot of homework in regards to the weather and geographical obstacles that we have in the next leg.

 

“I don’t think the next leg will be won by boat speed, it will be won with being smart and keeping the boat in one piece and going the right way.”

 

For Mike Sanderson’s Team Sanya, stage two of the Leg 3 represents an opportunity to race into their home port as heroes.

 

“A nice end for us will be to secure a solid result in Sanya after a decent run,” he said. “Obviously, a win in the in-port race at home would be a dream come true but just finishing the leg will be a milestone after all we’ve been through.”

 

Leg 3 Stage 2 comprises of three sections: firstly, a stretch of more than 1,000 nautical miles to the northern tip of Sumatra, an area prone to monsoons.

 

The next section will see the fleet take on the Malacca Strait, a narrow stretch of water between Sumatra and Malaysia notorious for shipping hazards.

 

Volvo Ocean Race Chief Meteorologist Gonzalo Infante said this stage could prove costly for any team not 100 percent focused on the task ahead.

 

“It is very tricky, you can lose everything you gained in the Indian Ocean with one bad decision or lack of attention in here,’’ he said. “It’s unlikely that the yachts make big gains, but you can certainly make big losses.”

 

The final stage will see the teams race upwind for up to a week through the shallow South China Sea in potentially boat-breaking conditions.

 

“They are likely to be beating for one week in conditions that are very hard on the boat,’’ Infante added. “The waves could reach four to five metres, and could be very steep.’’

 

The course is tipped to take the teams around two weeks to complete, with a finish in Sanya in early February.

[Guest]

Let it be. I hope they encounter 50 knot winds with a 3m swell as it will make it interesting to watch as we wouldnt know which boats could survive.

 

The five boats who made it to Abu Dhabi were transferred through high risk piracy waters by secure cargo ship and are now at Malé in the Maldives, joining Team Sanya whose skeleton crew finally completed the first stage of Leg 2 there on Thursday.

 

The delicate and nerve wracking process of unloading the boats from the ship started at first light and was completed successfully this afternoon.

 

The 3300 nautical mile (nm) Leg 3 second stage to China sees the fleet return to more familiar ocean passage racing after the unusual stop-start schedule resulting from the race organisers’ anti piracy course changes.

 

Cited by all the skippers as one of the most challenging of the race, Leg 3 takes the fleet across the Indian Ocean to the north west tip of Sumatra, down through the congested waters of the Malacca Straits before turning north east for a final gruelling slog through the South China Sea to the finish on the Chinese island of Sanya.

 

In the last edition this section of the race saw some of the most brutal conditions with the fleet forced to shelter from storm force winds and several boats sustaining major damage.

 

Despite a faltering performance from race leaders Team Telefónica during the Abu Dhabi stopover which saw them finish last in the Etihad In-Port Race and fourth in the Leg 3 first stage to Sharjah, Iker Martínez’s tightly knit crew nevertheless take a healthy seven point margin into the second stage of Leg 3.

 

While not always the fastest in the fleet, the blue Telefónica boat has consistently proved not been the slowest and with no major breakages to date and some smart navigational performances in the opening legs, the Spanish team have been far and away the best all round performers to date.

 

Telefónica boat captain Pepe Ribes said the Spanish crew did not feel any extra pressure as race leaders but were conscious of the increasing threat from the other teams.

 

“There is a lot of racing left,” Ribes said. “I don’t think anyone will feel pressure as the leaders until Lorient. Some of the teams have improved a lot, such as Groupama and Abu Dhabi.

 

“It looks like a good leg for Groupama but with the conditions it will be easy for the fleet to stay grouped and any of them could win.”

 

Ribes agreed that Leg 3 was set to be a close fought challenge. “Based on previous experience this next leg is going to be quite difficult and could be very close,” he said. “I hope it will be a speed race for all the boats from here to the Malacca Straits and then after that it will be a question of luck, a lottery – little wind, windless periods, currents against us.

 

“Then there is a difficult area to pass through alongside Singapore with the shipping lanes and we have to pass through required waypoints.

 

“After Singapore we have 1,100 miles left of tight racing to China. We may see 30-35 knots of wind but hopefully it might be a little less.”

 

Second placed CAMPER with Emirates Team New Zealand have been working hard to close the performance gap they believe exists between them and the other front runners.

 

New Zealand based coaches Joey Allan and Rod Davis, who normally focus on the Emirates Team New Zealand America’s Cup squad, have been working with the CAMPER crew to “help them lift their game”.

 

Third placed Groupama sailing team are looking to build on their Leg 2 Stage 2 victory in Abu Dhabi when they showed blistering reaching speed on the 98 nautical mile sprint from Sharjah.

 

Watch captain Damian Foxall said that despite their strong showing recently their impressive offwind performance may count for little on what is expected to be a predominantly upwind second stage of Leg 3.

 

“We look back over these last two short legs and the in-port race and we have a first, a second and a third so we can’t complain about that,” he said. “In the last few short legs we’ve gained momentum again and it’s important to maintain that momentum now.

 

“Basically we’ve got to go upwind to Sanya. Here we are in the middle of the Indian Ocean looking upwind right into the middle of the monsoon which blows down the east coast of Asia and down along the Pacific coast.

 

“Then we’re off towards the Straits of Malacca which aren’t very windy. It’s very light, reaching downwind I’d imagine. We have a fairly narrow band of water to get through.

 

“Then we’re really into the upwind stuff as we come past Singapore and towards Sanya on the southern side of China. Then we’re into the proper monsoon stuff with building breezes as we get closer to Sanya.

 

“We just have to go in the right direction and hopefully keep the boat in one piece. It’s nothing too extreme, but we’re expecting winds of around 30 knots or more as we get up towards Sanya,” Foxall concluded.

 

PUMA Ocean Racing powered by BERG go into the Leg 3 second stage in fourth place having bounced back from a lacklustre in-port race in Abu Dhabi by snatching second in the final stages of the Leg 3 opening sprint to Sharjah.

 

Having broken their mast on Leg 1 from Alicante, Spain to Cape Town the PUMA crew have since had to play catch up as they tuned their new rig on Leg 2.

 

After reaching Sharjah in second PUMA skipper Ken Read said he was glad to be able to put the stop-start racing caused by the risk of piracy and get back into a more normal rhythm of ocean racing.

 

“We’re pleased with the adjustments we made, but there’s a long way to go,” Read said. “Clearly there are some improvements we need to make for the short courses. But, we’ve had enough bad fortune, and we’ll take a little good fortune and hopefully build upon it.”

 

Fifth placed Abu Dhabi Ocean Racing claimed maximum points in the last two scoring opportunities, winning both the Etihad In-Port Race and the Leg 3 sprint out of Abu Dhabi.

 

Having been unable to complete Leg 1 due to damage to their bow and missing the second stage of Leg 2 with rigging damage, Mike Sanderson’s Team Sanya crew have been revitalised by the prospect of a Leg 3 homecoming in Sanya.

 

“I don't think I have ever been so amped up to get back out and go racing,’’ he said. “We owe it to everyone, and ourselves to go and have a decent leg and get this show back on the right track.

 

“The boat is great and the team is one of the most wonderful group that I have been involved with, I really can't say enough good things about them. Through thick and thin they have just dug it in and done what needs to be done and some.

 

“I am sure we will have a nice leg and gain some momentum from there, so all the efforts can finally reap some rewards.”

With the unloading process behind them the sailors have had to scramble to get their boats race ready in less than 24 hours ahead of tomorrow’s restart scheduled for 0800 UTC (1300 local time).

 

The fleet is expected to finish the over 3000 nautical mile Leg 3 second stage to Sanya around February 6.

[Guest]

From EMTNZ as they all drag race out of the Maldives

 

Part B of Leg 3 of the Volvo Ocean Race has got underway with CAMPER with Emirates Team New Zealand out to deliver a vastly improved performance in the 3300 mile slog to Sanya, China than their result in the first stage of Leg 3.

 

The leg restarted from a secret safehaven that can now be revealed as Male in the Maldives after the fleet was shipped across a high risk piracy area from Sharjah in the United Arab Emirates.

 

In an 8 to 10 knot easterly CAMPER made a strong start in the upwind conditions leading the fleet out of Male and into what is shaping up to be the most challenging leg to date. The 3300 nautical mile second stage to China sees the fleet finally return to more familiar ocean passage racing after the unusual stop-start schedule resulting from the race organisers’ anti-piracy course changes.

 

The Leg takes the fleet across the Indian Ocean to the north west tip of Sumatra, down through the congested waters of the Malacca Straits before turning north east for a final gruelling slog through the South China Sea to the finish on the Chinese island of Sanya.

 

Light to moderate north easterlies are expected for the first 24 hours with the fleet on a tight reach as they head out into the Indian Ocean. However, the equatorial conditions mean that the boats will have to negotiate clouds and squalls, and the associated sail changes and re-trimming of the boat.

 

CAMPER skipper Chris Nicholson says that the entire crew is focused on delivering a much better performance and gaining as many points as possible.

 

“We need to do better end of story and we’ve spent a lot of time over the last few days preparing for this leg, looking at where we can improve our performance and how we can make the most out of the weather patterns ahead.

 

“Boat and crew are both in great shape and it’s just great to be out sailing and back in proper racing mode after the stop start nature of the last few weeks. I think we’re all looking forward to a true ocean leg rather than the drag race type format we’ve seen recently.

 

“The next 14 days are looking like they’re going to be very tough but we feel more than ready for it. This stage won’t be won by boat speed, it will be won by being smart and keeping the boat in one piece and going the right way and I rate our ability to do well in those areas.

 

“If I could use one word to describe this leg it would be ‘worrying’ and I think the range of conditions and obstacles it will present means that it won’t be decided until the closing stages.”

 

The fleet is expected to arrive into Sanya in early February.

[RushMan 31]

Slow night... Only 21 tabs open

[Guest]

Slow night... Only 21 tabs open

 

I was waiting for someone to comment on it. I felt like listening to some music so off to youtube I went.

[Guest]

From Groupama

 

This gives more insights as to what they will face in the next two weeks and what they will expect from the weather.

 

Leg 3 : Abu Dhabi - Sanya

Racing into the wind

 

 

 

This 3,000-mile leg between Malé (Maldives) and Sanya (China) will be very tactical: a great deal of upwind sailing, in a rather light, variable breeze, with tidal and oceanic currents, a large amount of shipping in the Straits of Malacca, some forbidden zones and some areas which aren't properly charted, boat-breaking conditions in the South China Sea and so on… Franck Cammas and Jean-Luc Nélias examine the special features of this race.

 

 

 

Franck Cammas, has the crew of Groupama 4 been able to enjoy a break whilst the boats were transported from Sharjah to Malé on a cargo ship?

“It was important to have a four-day break at this stage of the race because there won't be a lot of downtime between here and the ultimate finish: such a pause enables you to set off again fully motivated. The pace has been pretty intense since Alicante with the vagaries of the first two oceanic legs. All the rest phases have been shortened and this break has given us the chance to recharge our batteries.”

 

This second part of leg three promises to be tricky on the water!

“It's a special leg because we'll essentially be sailing into the wind in light airs, which are conditions we won't necessarily have for the rest of the race. We'll rarely sail below 80° to the wind… The first section promises to be pretty direct between the Maldives and the Straits of Malacca: it's likely to involve a long port tack with little breeze and close-hauled sailing with the sheets slightly eased. Things get more complicated as we approach Sumatra, where the wind shadow from the islands will really come into play: there will be four days of speed where we'll have to choose the right angle in relation to the wind and the right sail configuration. It's sure to be a battle where we'll be in close contact and within sight of the others, which will be interesting for analysing the performances of our rivals.”

 

Traversing the Straits of Malacca is pretty complicated…

“The second part is more random since we'll be sailing in a kind of tunnel with few options possible, but we'll have to really get a handle on the local phenomena such as the landforms, the thermal breezes and the tidal currents. We may even have to drop anchor!”

 

The climb up the China Sea is also very new!

“We're not used to sailing in a monsoon system, as we'll have to do over the third section of the course between Singapore and Sanya. The wind can be pretty strong as it may reach in excess of thirty knots, with a very choppy sea.”

 

Will it be a race where the fleet remains extremely bunched together?

“There aren't really any tactical coups to be had, even though we'll have to choose sides over the end of the course along the Vietnamese coast, as the wind is likely to be coming right from where we're heading, before we end up on a starboard tack. There aren't likely to be any major options though as everyone will be trying to stick to the most direct route.”

 

Has Groupama 4 been optimised for these specific conditions?

“Our recent results are encouraging when sailing with slightly eased sheets, but these aren't the kind of conditions which are shaping up for this next course! All the teams are still finding their feet a bit there and the close contact sailing will reveal any strengths and weaknesses. We're on an upward spiral but that's over short legs: we have yet to confirm our performance over a long course…”

 

So you've made some modifications to the boat?

“We're tried to play around with Groupama 4's longitudinal trim, as she's a boat which sits lower at the stern for sailing in breezy conditions with sheets eased. We also have some more powerful sails for light airs, as our boat is the stiffest under sail: we've modified our trimming so as to make gains in terms of performance in the light breeze.”

 

A navigator's journey…

 

Jean-Luc Nélias, this leg is a combination of three very different phases…

“The course spans around 3,000 miles and is split into three sections: from the Maldives to Malacca, which equates to 1,300 miles of upwind sailing with eased sheets in around ten knots of breeze; then the period where we have to traverse the straight, which involves 630 miles of very variable, light winds, in a zone close to the equator and hence similar to the Doldrums, with some storms and squalls and above all some regions where there can be up to five knots of current! In addition to that there's a great deal of shipping, fishermen, objects floating in the sea, pirates and so on… We round off the leg with a climb up the South China Sea, which involves 1,200 miles of navigation in a North-Easterly monsoon, amidst islands which are poorly charted, into a general current of at least a knot which runs along the Vietnamese coast. As such there's a lot of navigation in view!”

 

The climb up the South China Sea will involve you sailing into a monsoon…

“The monsoon has the special characteristic that it is the only weather phenomenon that traverses the Doldrums. Right now the winter monsoon is in force which is synonymous with a North-Easterly wind generated by a large anticyclone centred over China. It's a fairly fluky breeze as it's cold air which blows across a warm sea, and as it's an omnipresent wind, that picks up very heavy seas.”

 

When you refer to the equator, you refer to high temperatures!

“It's a leg which is essentially equatorial: as such it'll be very hot and as it's also a warm wind, and hence lighter, there's sometimes more wind at the masthead. For that reason we'll have to recalibrate the electronics and tinker around with the performance polars. Added to that there will always be six crew down below, which will make it like a good old boiler! Of course in the China Sea, it won't be possible to get air running through the boat, and there will be very little shade on deck… Conditions will be pretty hard to bear then, especially as we won't be sailing very fast! The final beat won't be very comfortable either.”

 

Is the crew of Groupama 4 well prepared for this particular leg?

“We're feeling pretty confident: the boat is making better headway in the light airs, but the race will be about making small gains, as there are no major weather options to enable you to get away from the fleet. It's more about tactics, where you have to back a horse both ways to minimise the risks, and in the Straits of Malacca there will be some tricky sections. However, there's been a serious preparation phase for this leg: we have Jean-Yves Bernot's roadbook, written for the previous edition, we've carried out some statistical studies and met up with some sailors who are familiar with the area…”

[Guest]

Its going to be a slow drag race overnight and it will be interesting to see who comes out on top. Sanya are holding up well so far and theres enough wind to keep telefonica from falling behind.

[Guest]

cant get to sleep so heres a video of the start and the skippers views on how it went

 

[Guest]

Telefonica are now having to repair their code Zero after they had trouble hoisting it. Heres your morning press release and tracker update.

 

PUMA’s Mar Mostro (Kenny Read/USA) is the new leader tonight at 1900 UTC, having forced early leader CAMPER (Chris Nicholson/AUS) into second place. However, the entire fleet is split only by 2.90 nautical miles and CAMPER is only 0.10 nm behind Mar Mostro.

 

It is with universal relief that the six crews started Leg 3 Stage 2 from the Maldives to Sanya today. Everyone is happy to get back in the groove after the stop-start nature of past weeks, which was a necessary interruption to the racing action to avoid any possible interference by pirate activity.

 

This 3,051nm leg will certainly throw in some curve balls in the shape of uncharted atolls, shallows, shipping and ocean debris, but for now, the fleet is enjoying a relatively straightforward first night at sea, on a port tack stretch across to Pulau We, an island on the northwest tip of Sumatra, Indonesia.

 

As the crews settle into their watch systems, the navigation lights of those around them are clearly visible as the fleet races in warm air and flat water at around 12 knots.

 

All six boats are currently south of the rhum line in order to avoid the effects of a wind shadow from the Sri Lankan coast. Mike Sanderson (NZL) has taken Sanya the furthest south, while PUMA’s Mar Mostro is 4.21 nm to weather of the fleet.

 

Team Telefónica (Iker Martínez/ESP) lost some valuable miles earlier in the day when a fitting on their code zero headsail failed, leaving the sail flogging and threatening to self-destruct. The crew has assessed the damage and is now hard at work on repairs, but is still well in touch and lies in fourth place tonight.s, but is still well in touch and lies in fourth place tonight.

[Guest]

Puma are looking good in this drag race but so Camper and groupama.

[Guest]

Just off the boat from Camper

 

After the first day of Leg Three, Part B CAMPER with Emirates Team New Zealand has made a solid start sitting in second place just behind race leader Puma in what is shaping up to be a tight race.

 

After making a strong start and holding a slender lead overnight CAMPER slipped back to second place in light conditions this morning but is in a tactically strong position to windward of Puma.

 

In the tightly bunched fleet CAMPER is 2 nautical miles behind first placed Puma, with Groupama in third place a few hundred metres further off the pace. The entire fleet is separated by less than six miles.

 

CAMPER made light work dodging the atolls and other obstacles around the Maldives and is now well into the north east trade winds straight-line drag race across the Indian Ocean to the Malacca Strait that is likely to take a few days.

 

CAMPER Skipper Chris Nicholson says that it has been a solid first 24 hours for the team.

 

“We had a nice start and since then things have been going pretty smoothly. Our crew work has been good and overall I’m pretty happy with where we’re sitting.

 

“It’s a bit of a case of snakes and ladders at the moment and although Puma have got a paper advantage over us currently I think we’re in a strong position being upwind of them.

 

“The monsoon conditions we’re likely to see over the next few days are going to produce plenty of sail changes so it’s really pleasing to see how quickly the guys have got back into things.

 

“When the fleet is this tightly bunched any little problem or niggle can be costly so we’re really focused on our crew work.

 

“To be honest it’s just great to be back out here. I think everyone has breathed a sigh of relief to be back sailing and have all of the interruptions behind us.”

 

CAMPER in the latest position report at 1400h 23 January NZT is averaging 11.9. knots in a 12 knot north easterly.

[Guest]

From Sanya. It might be a little old by now but it gives another perspective of what its going to be like especially for the next several days

 

Often in sailing when at a regatta you will hear the locals give an excuse about the bad weather of breeze that is “ it’s not normally like this…” Well that was all that was going through my head as we set up to start the second part of the leg 3 out of the Maldives, this time though I wasn’t talking about the weather, I was talking about the Volvo Ocean race. Because we hadent been a part of the sprint leg into Abu Dhabi this was my first experience in four Volvo’s of such a start, Jack Lloyd the race director sitting on a rock with a flag on a piece of Bamboo ( so it looked) and then a radio tower on another island as the leeward end, yup for sure, it was okay to say to the first timers on board.. “its not normally like this…” But it worked and was just fine and here we are the whole fleet off and on their way to Sanya, it’s over a month since we were forced to suspend racing in Leg two and to say it is great to be back racing with the fleet is the understatement of the year, it’s unbelievable!!!

Got away cleanly and the whole fleet is all pretty close on port tack in about 12 knots of wind, we are going okay…, but just okay, for sure we are slowly bleeding meters, so as I have always said we can’t have it be just a drag race all the way to the finish, but if any leg has the opportunity to throw up some curve balls it will be this one, we just need to make sure that we are still close enough when entering the Mallaca straights and then we can mix it up again.. For now though for the next 1250 miles it’s about hanging n with the skin of our teeth…

Happy Chinese New Year to you all and, give nice positive thoughts for the underdogs!! It’s our turn !!

Talk soon

Cheers

Mike and the guys on Sanya Lan..