Volvo Ocean Race Leg 4 - Start - Yachts and Yachting Online

Volvo Ocean Race Leg 4 - Start

By Volvo Ocean Race media on 19 Feb19 February 2012 © Paul Todd / Volvo Ocean Race

Volvo Ocean Race Leg 4 Start

Team Telefónica will lead the fleet out from Sanya in China and on towards Auckland, New Zealand at 0700 local time on Monday (2300 GMT, Sunday) after Iker Martínez´s team took advantage of an astonishing collapse by PUMA to win Leg 4 Stage 1.

The Stage 2 start will be staggered according to finishing times on Sunday, meaning Telefónica will begin with an advantage of 02 minutes 34 seconds -- their margin of victory over Groupama sailing team in a 43.2 nautical miles sprint that PUMA had looked set to win easily.

Ken Read's team built a huge lead only to sail into a wind hole, leaving them forced to watch the entire fleet sail right past them. They eventually finished over 39 minutes behind the leaders, leaving the skipper angry and upset.

"I've never seen anything go so bad that started so good," said Read. "We got literally a two-mile lead after sailing fantastically, park in a hole and then watch the fleet sail by a couple of hundred yards from us. It's infuriating.

Abu Dhabi Ocean Racing will start third, followed by Team Sanya, CAMPER with Emirates Team New Zealand and finally PUMA.

Race organisers decided to split Leg 4 into two stages because of dangerous weather conditions in the South China Sea, with forecasts of waves breaking over 10 metres.

After studying the data again on Sunday, Race Director Jack Lloyd told the teams conditions would allow a Stage 2 start at 0700 local time for the first boat. The six teams will sail 5,220 nautical miles to Auckland, with an early ETA of March 8.

Telefónica were running in third before CAMPER experienced trouble with an unfurled sail and then PUMA lost all wind.

"We were a little bit fortunate today," said Telefónica watch leader Neal McDonald. "We were going around the triangle inshore in third place and we were quite happy with that. Then all of a sudden CAMPER had a little problem and we were in second, then by the time we got to the statue down the other end we were looking good, then bad then good again and we held on."

Telefónica also won the Sanya Haitang Bay In-Port Race on Saturday and lead the overall standings by 18 points from second-placed CAMPER.

The biggest upset was on board Ken Read’s PUMA when their huge lead disappeared completely after sailing into a windless area shortly after starting the home run back to Sanya.

Read’s men on PUMA's Mar Mostro could only watch as all five rival teams passed them in better breeze while they floundered with windless sails flapping.

"We were literally miles ahead," said Read. "I don't know what to say. It's hard enough in this fleet not to give everyone else an hour advantage."

Team Sanya were in a positive mood after finishing in the middle of the fleet for the first time since the Iberdrola In-Port Race in Alicante. Ever since that first day of action in the race they have either failed to finish or come in last.

"It was pretty full on, exhausting stuff but we’re very happy," said helmsman Richard Mason. "It’s the first time we’ve really passed a boat. When we passed Groupama, we were shouting ‘C’mon old girl, you can do it old girl’. It was great. Fortunately we had some opportunities in a transition area and managed to get passed CAMPER and PUMA so it was wonderful to finish in fourth, and let's hope we can stay in fourth."

The teams will restart racing from Sanya in Leg 4 Stage 2 at the following times:

Team Telefónica: 0700hrs-00sec local (23:00:00 UTC Sunday)
Groupama sailing team: 0702hrs-34sec local (23:02:34 UTC Sunday)
Abu Dhabi Ocean Racing: 0703hrs-36sec local (23:03:36 UTC Sunday)
Team Sanya: 0707hrs-32sec local (23:07:32 UTC Sunday)
CAMPER with Emirates Team New Zealand: 0709hrs-13sec local (23:09:13 UTC Sunday)
PUMA Ocean Racing powered by BERG: 0739hrs-17sec local (23:39:17 UTC Sunday)

Leaderboard:

Pos	Team	Sanya IP	Total
1	Team Telefónica	6	101
2	CAMPER with Emirates Team NZ	3	83
3	Groupama Sailing Team	2	73
4	PUMA Ocean Racing by BERG	5	53
5	Abu Dhabi Ocean Racing	4	43
6	Team Sanya	1	17

www.VolvoOceanRace.com

Chinese acrobatics onboard CAMPER (from CAMPER with Emirates Team NZ)

CAMPER today has completed the first stage of Leg Four earlier this evening and will leave Sanya for Auckland at 0709h tomorrow morning, local time. The crew completed a short 42-mile course to the Guan yin Buddha and then back to Sanya after the race organisation delayed the official start due to adverse weather conditions in the Luzon Strait.

For the crew onboard CAMPER one of the day’s highlights was guest ‘jumper’ on board. This ‘jump seat’ position gives a VIP guest the opportunity to get a real taste of taking part in a leg start before ‘jumping’ from the boat about an hour into the race.

Yang Wei, the five-time gymnastic Olympic medalist who is known for his very high difficulty scores, was today tested to the extreme when he performed a forward flip roll off the back of CAMPER, while she was racing at speeds of some 15 knots.

It was the gymnast’s first time sailing and when he was collected from the water he could not contain his excitement.

“It is the first time that I have been sailing and I am very excited about the experience. This race is all about teamwork and there are lots of parallels here with my career as gymnast. Everyone needs to trust each other to make the boat go faster. My jump means good luck for all the CAMPER crew to win the leg!

Pit stop in China (from Groupama Sailing Team)

The weather conditions in the South China Sea were too extreme for the six competitors in the Volvo Ocean Race to have to tackle in one go. Indeed 8m waves and over 40 knots of breeze were on the cards beneath the squalls. As such the Race Committee decided to launch a preliminary coastal course and then keep the boats in port for a dozen hours. Groupama 4 scored second place on this course, at the end of the 43-mile course which was raced in a very fluky dozen knots or so of breeze.

An extreme weather situation and an unusual course! In fact a depression has formed between China, Vietnam and Borneo, generating strong winds in excess of 35 knots, but above all very heavy seas with waves in excess of eight metres. Fortunately this tropical phenomenon is slipping towards Singapore as it fills in, leaving behind it a more pacified north-easterly to easterly monsoon system. However, there will still be more than 25 knots of breeze as they make for the North of the Philippines via the Luzon Straight, with thick cloud cover which will cause the breeze to pick up considerably in places. To overcome these particularly harsh conditions, the Race Committee has decided to split this 5,220-mile leg between Sanya and Auckland in two, so as to let the worst of the tropical storm roll over. As a result, this Sunday morning (European time), the six VO-70s just took the start of the first section of the race in a breeze of around a dozen knots, which involved a 43-mile coastal course to the South of Hainan.

A scratch

The start of the race wasn't at all favourable for Franck Cammas and his men, who were driven back onto the pin end of the start line, to the extent that Groupama 4 hit the mark. The French boat was forced to perform a penalty turn on itself, whilst the Americans made good their escape! The crews then had to perform two short 3.5-mile laps, each of them off the marina in Sanya, prior to racing along the South coast of the island of Hainan towards the Guan-Yin Buddha, one of the highest statues in the world at 108m... However, with the effect of the shore, the wind was twirling about in the middle of this long downwind section spanning over fifteen miles, to the extent that the boats had to traverse a transition zone which was hard to make out, between an easterly breeze and a westerly breeze!

Pretty fast downwind, Groupama 4 made up ground on the American leader with every gybe, followed by the Spanish boat. However, on the return leg towards the port, the situation became considerably complicated: the wind was blowing onshore but disappeared offshore... Puma didn't spot the danger and in addition to that, led the way into the extended calm which its rivals were able to sidestep. Ken Read and his crew were stuck fast for forty long minutes and the whole fleet got past them! The match racing then came down to Telefonica, Groupama 4 and Abu Dhabi, which were weaving along on a beat in a breeze which kicked back round to the East at around fifteen knots.

At the end of this chaotic prelude, the Spanish scored the best time after four hours of racing and Telefonica will therefore be the first to set off on Monday morning (Chinese time, 2300 hours UTC) with a lead of two minutes thirty-four seconds over Franck Cammas and his crew. The latter were followed one minute twelve seconds later by Ian Walker (Abu Dhabi), then five minutes later by the Chinese boat, which obtained its best score at home. Camper will set off with a 9'13 deficit in relation to the leader and Puma 39'17...

As such the six competitors will take the start to Auckland at different times early on Monday, in a breeze of around a dozen knots, which will very quickly increase to over 25 knots as soon as they leave the Chinese coast astern of them.

Quotes from the boat:

"It's an important leg in a navigation zone where we've never been before with romantic names like the Philippines, the Solomon, Vanuatu and Fiji... Given the weather conditions this Sunday afternoon in the South China Sea, the race was cut short after the first coastal course along the island of Hainan: the boats will set off again with the same time deficits as they had at the end of the preliminary race. Our aim is to win in Auckland: we trust in Groupama 4" indicated navigator Jean-Luc Nélias before the race.

"This will be a very long and very complicated leg with strong winds and big seas initially, then some transition zones with light airs. It may be the hardest of this round the world! This is likely not to be very quick, heading off upwind into the easterly monsoon, then there will be some sailing with sheets eased where Groupama 4 goes pretty quick... However, there are so many weather options before that, so we'll have to remain very much on our toes in relation to the strategic choices" explained Charles Caudrelier.

"This was probably our worst start since Alicante! However the crew never gives up and it's superb for that. We very quickly got into the match downwind. It was very complicated on the race zone with some huge wind shifts. Fortunately we have a young lad on tactics... Erwan Israël is brilliant and really on top of things and that enabled us to catch up with the leaders. After going around the statue of the Buddha, we were lucky not to get stuck like Puma. However, once again, Telefonica is very optimistic and managed to slip down the inside lane. It's a good result before setting off on Monday morning at 0700 hours (Chinese time)" commented Thomas Coville on the pontoons of Sanya.

PUMA's Mar Mostro finishes first stage of Leg 4 (from PUMA Ocean Racing powered by BERG)

PUMA Ocean Racing powered by BERG completed the first stage of Leg 4 of the Volvo Ocean Race 2011-12 from Sanya, China, to Auckland, New Zealand, on Sunday, Feb. 19. PUMA finished with a time of 4:39.17 as the final team to cross the line on the 43.2 nautical mile “Buddha course.” Racing will resume at 07:00 local/23:00 UTC tomorrow when Team Telefónica, the leaders into Sanya, starts the second stage, and PUMA’s Mar Mostro departs at 07:39.17 local/23:39.17 UTC.

“After rounding the Buddha mark and heading back towards Sanya, with two thirds of the race completed, we had approximately a mile and a half lead,” said skipper Ken Read. “To be honest, up until then we sailed fantastically - Kelvin did a nice job on both beats inshore, like yesterday. We saw a breeze transition line happening in front of us, we were totally prepared, then hit a hole, changed sails and literally sat there for an hour and a half while the entire fleet sailed around us. We knew there was a transition, but it turned into a vacuum. It’s hard enough in this fleet, now everyone has about a 35-minute advantage. That’s not perfect, but we’ll deal with it. I have to admit, it’s a very frustrating way to start a leg. We’ll now regroup and we have the rest of the leg to Auckland to gain back miles.”

PUMA’s Mar Mostro won the start and quickly moved into the front as the crew sailed strong up the first windward beat. The team held the position, extending their lead at every mark around the in-port triangle to round the sixth mark in the loop 1.06 ahead of CAMPER with Emirates Team New Zealand. The fleet headed on to Mark 7 at the giant Buddha statue where PUMA had stretched their lead substantially. Shortly after rounding the mark, light winds in the transition slowed PUMA and the trailing boats literally sailed around them.

Leg 4 from Sanya to Auckland was split into two stages due to a tropical cyclone with expected 6-11 meter waves in the South China Sea. Today’s “Buddha course” marked the first stage as the fleet sailed to the Buddha statue at the Sanya Nanshan Temple and back to the Sanya start line, including the scheduled in-port triangle off the start. The fleet will now re-start on Monday with a staggered departure on the second stage of Leg 4 in the order they finished Stage 1 of the leg. The continuation of the Leg 4 journey will take the fleet approximately 5,220 nautical miles into Auckland.

PUMA sits in fourth place in the overall standings with 53 total points. Telefónica holds onto the top spot on the leaderboard with 101 points.

The Volvo Ocean Race started on November 5 in Alicante, and the fleet is traveling 39,000 nautical miles through 10 ports, finishing in Galway, Ireland, in July 2012.

The PUMA Ocean Racing powered by BERG team is once again under the leadership of Read (Newport, Rhode Island, United States). Collectively, the crew has won the Around the World Race six times. The core includes: Tom Addis, Navigator (Sydney, Australia); Ryan Godfrey, Pitman (Adelaide, Australia); Kelvin Harrap, Helmsman, Inshore Tactician (Napier, New Zealand); Brad Jackson, Design Coordinator & Watch Captain (Auckland, New Zealand); Rome Kirby, Trimmer & Driver (Newport, Rhode Island, USA); Michael “Michi” Müller, Bowman (Kiel, Germany); Tony Mutter, Aerodynamics Coordinator & Watch Captain (Auckland, New Zealand); Casey Smith, Systems Manager & Bowman (Brisbane, Australia); Jonathan “Jono” Swain, Helmsman & Trimmer (Durban, South Africa); Amory Ross, Media Crew Member (Newport, Rhode Island, USA); Kimo Worthington, General Manager (Portsmouth, Rhode Island, United States); and Tim Hacket, Shore Team Manager (Sydney, Australia).

Blog from the Seas (by Amory Ross, MCM, PUMA Ocean Racing powered by BERG)

No way to sugercoat it, this is a weird report to be writing. I could wait to send it from the hotel in a few hours! But that would defeat the purpose of an onboard report...

We technically left Sanya with the start of Leg 4 at 2 pm local time, but were now racing (or drifting) back to the very same stretch of water for a temporary finish, a final Chinese feast, and one good night’s sleep before leaving in the morning to face the remnants of a particularly malevolent monsoon.

Obviously there are some mixed feelings about the decision to hold the fleet ashore for the night, but regardless of those opinions, our safety is of value and however the decision was made it was done so with that at the forefront. That has to be appreciated.

As for the racing, we had a great start near the pin and were very nearly over, but lady luck finally graced us with her presence and off we went, to leeward and ahead of the fleet. Solid sailing and smart decisions saw us keep the lead around the triangle course and we extended on the long run to the "Big Buddha."

That's where things have gone wrong. As the leaders, we were the first to sail into the lighter winds on the return leg, and we've been struggling to get out of our offshore position. The boats behind had the advantage of seeing our problems and opted for the inshore option. We can't get to them, they're all powered up in completely different conditions, and we're watching them sail right by. We've completed maybe 30 tacks in the last 30 minutes, could be more, and it doesn't look like it will change soon.

I was planning on tonight being a "dry" one, but maybe a few beers are in order for the guys...

- Amory