Times Clipper fleet approaches Okinawa, Japan

by Sue Warden--Owen on 15 Mar 2001 As The Times Clipper 2000 fleet close in on Okinawa, the constantly changing
wind and sea conditions threaten to rewrite the order of the race, in what
promises to be a grand finale.

On Saturday 10th March, The Times Clipper 2000 fleet let go their moorings
from the Bayside Marina and motored out to the entrance of Tokyo Bay for the
start of the 7th race in their 16 race series around the world.

The wind duly arrived from the south at 10:15 Japanese time and at 11:00
precisely the start gun was fired and the yachts were on their way to Naha,
their next destination 860 miles to the southwest. The brisk and clear
conditions were perfect as the fleet set sail for Naha, the capital of the
Japanese island of Okinawa, with a fresh force 4 - 5 wind and bright
sunlight.

Seven of the eight-strong fleet of identical 60ft yachts packed themselves
into the inner end of the line and were lead across by Leeds Clipper, but
there was barely 100 yards between first and last. Bristol Clipper chose the
other end of the line, further from the finishing point, but in clear air,
and whilst the others short tacked their way south close to the coast,
Bristol chose a long tack.

Having got away in glorious weather, the fleet then continued to make
excellent progress to the southwest in some exciting sailing conditions. As
the fleet now approach Okinawa and the finish of Race 7, the light tail wind
is deserting the fleet and a fickle head wind from the southern quadrant,
aided by a north going current is stepping up the pressure and the
excitement.

Generally the yachts have been forced to sail on a line more to the north of
a direct line to the finish. This is because as the wind dropped off and
veered to the NE it went right astern causing boat speed to drop right off.
Liverpool Clipper, skippered by Rupert Dean, continues to hold a good lead
but the crew are nervously looking over their shoulders wondering how best
to protect it.

The other player apart from the wind, is the ocean current that sweeps up to
the north as part of the vast oceanic circulation. The Trade Winds produce
the equatorial current, which is an old friend to the fleet. This current is
deflected as it reaches the western shores of the Pacific and flows north
before returning across the ocean. Although the major flow is to the west of
the chain of islands they will experience between half and one knot of
adverse current. It is also likely that the current will be stronger than
expected nearer the ridge formed by the islands and this could disadvantage
any of the boats going closer inshore.

Plymouth Clipper retains second place but only 5 miles separate them from
the match-racing pair of Portsmouth and Bristol, so they will be hoping that
their northern position comes good. Leeds, Jersey and Glasgow are also all
within site of each other.

London Clipper is alone, but definitely not forgotten. After being parked
at the back of the fleet, they decided on a brave move to the south that
could still prove beneficial. At present they have paid a penalty by
slipping further back but they are significantly south of the others and
with the changeable conditions could have the last laugh and should have
less adverse current.

The Times Clipper 2000 fleet is expected to arrive in Okinawa from 14:00 GMT
on Thursday 15 March, which would be in the early hours of Friday 16th March
local time. Daily race reports and updated fleet positions are available at
the Clipper Ventures' website, www.clipper-ventures.com

Races 7 and 8 of The Times Clipper 2000 Round The World Yacht Race are
sponsored by Fox-Pitt, Kelton (FPK), the only integrated investment bank
specialising in the financial services industry worldwide. Race 8 will
start from just off the port of Naha in the south of Okinawa at 12:00 local
time on Wednesday 21st March. This will mean that the yachts will arrive on
schedule in Hong Kong on Wednesday 28 March, or possibly Tuesday 27th if
they have a fast passage from Okinawa.