Yellow Sea International Yacht Race 2012 - Day 5
by Icarus Sailing Media 18 Aug 2012 06:51 BST
12-22 August 2012
Clear start for the second leg
The crews prepared for the early start this morning at 10am, but officials in Weihai had a different opinion. A problem with the travel visas of the Korean sailors delayed the race start for several hours and cost time and money to the sailors.
Finally around 3pm the boats started their 185 nautical miles journey to Qingdao, but the wind was not on their side. Team Sunny had the early lead after the start with Band Poe following them, right on their tail.
Weihai Ivy decided to risk and sail below the Liugong Island and closer to Weihai Bay, but it did not pay off. Instead they were stuck there for hours without any wind and lost precious meters from the rest of the fleet.
The light conditions and the rain that are expected to prevail in most of the 2nd leg will make the progress much slower and the duration of the race is estimated around 30 hours. Nonetheless strong battles will be given for the prizes that await the sailors in Qingdao.