Please select your home edition
Edition
RS Sailing 2021 - LEADERBOARD
Product Feature
Allen Jib Sheet Fairlead & Cam Cleat
Allen Jib Sheet Fairlead & Cam Cleat

The Clipper Race 2019-20 Leg 6 update

by Clipper Round the World Race 9 Mar 2020 06:39 GMT
2019-20 Clipper Race fleet © Clipper Race

The Clipper Round the World Yacht Race was scheduled to return to Qingdao for an eighth consecutive stopover, during Leg 6 of the 2019-20 edition.

Since the outbreak of coronavirus (COVID-19), the Clipper Race and Qingdao Organising Committee have been working together to monitor the situation as it has developed. With the outbreak continuing to develop across the globe, the situation remains complex. For the safety of the Clipper Race Crew, supporters, staff and all related parties, after extensive discussion and careful evaluation, the Clipper Race and Qingdao Organising Committee today jointly confirmed that the upcoming Qingdao stopover has been cancelled and the race will not stop in Qingdao this edition.

The health and safety of the Clipper Race Crew, supporters, Race Partners and staff remains paramount, and in light of the ongoing health concerns, the longstanding Race Partner, is in agreement that though difficult, this is the best course of action.

The Clipper 2019-20 Race route has been amended to take into account this decision. The Race Office has had to take into consideration the outbreaks of coronavirus (COVID-19) in Japan and South Korea. Due to the limited options of alternative ports in Asia at this time, the decision has been made to make Subic Bay the Leg 6 departure port for Races 9 and 10.

The Clipper Race fleet will depart Subic Bay Yacht Club on Tuesday 10 March and head out for a day of refresher training for the benefit of all new and re-joining crew. Once the teams have further honed their practical skills and carried out various sailing evolutions, including full MOB training drills, they will rendezvous in an area approximately 6nm outside of Subic Bay to the south west at 1530 LT.

At 1700 LT (0900 UTC) Race 9 will begin with a Le Mans start directed by the nominated Lead Skipper (Rich Gould on WTC Logistics). The forecast is for light to moderate north westerly breeze at the start so the fleet should get away well.

Race 9 will take the Clipper Race fleet on a fast triangular sprint race of approximately 750nm in total. The race is made up of three individual Dell Latitude Rugged Ocean Sprint sections between virtual gates.

The first Ocean Sprint section between Gates 1 and 2 is approximately 200nm due west, stretching out into the South China Sea. The second sprint will section is likely to be upwind into the north east monsoon trade winds and will see the fleet head north for a similar distance again between two virtual sprint gates.

Closing off the triangle and heading back towards Subic Bay, the longest individual Ocean Sprint section is approximately 270nm and is between Ocean Sprint Gates 5 and 6. This should be a fast reaching sprint with decent breeze on the beam or potentially downwind. This is where the fleet should see the top speeds recorded during this Race 9 (if, of course, the current weather forecasts are to be believed).

Once the individual Ocean Sprint sections have been completed the fleet will race back around two virtual marks and into Subic Bay where they will cross the finish line and hope for a good overall finishing position.

An interesting feature of this next race is that each team may only officially enter two out of the three Ocean Sprint sections and must declare which two sprints in advance and no less than six hours before race start. This means that there are a possible nine opportunities to pick up bonus sprint points for this race as well as full finishing points.

Due to the intense nature of this race there will not be any scoring gates or any Stealth Mode permitted. The highly charged teams out there do however, have the option to play their Joker on this race, therefore doubling their finish points.

This will be a fascinating race to watch and although shorter than most races in the 2019-20 edition, it will test the teams energy and skill and may well prove to be one of the most intense races on the circuit.

The Race 9 arrival window back into Subic Bay will be 14-15 March.

Race 10 will depart Subic Bay for the North Pacific Ocean on 21 March and the arrival window into Seattle remains unaffected and stands as 19-24 April.

Related Articles

Clipper Race fleet embarks on transatlantic race
Race 2 set off from Puerto Sherry, Spain to Punta del Este The Clipper Race fleet has departed for Punta del Este as the second race in the circumnavigation left from Puerto Sherry, Spain yesterday, which was the first stopover destination following an electric Race Start from Portsmouth, UK. Posted on 16 Sep
Perseverance crowned race 1 winners
First prizegiving ceremony of this Clipper Race edition, at Puerto Sherry Marina The first Prizegiving ceremony of the 2023-24 edition took place at the Puerto Sherry Marina, with a stunning Spanish sunset and plenty of the local aperitifs to celebrate the achievements of Race 1. Posted on 13 Sep
Clipper 2023-24 Race arrives in Puerto Sherry
Perseverance taking the win of the first race of the circumnavigation Race 1 of the Clipper Round the World Yacht Race has finished with Perseverance taking the win of the first race of the circumnavigation. Posted on 11 Sep
Clipper Race fleet departs Portsmouth
Light conditions and the Solent's strong tidal flow made for a particularly tactical start One of the toughest endurance challenges on the planet, the 40,000nm Clipper Round the World Yacht Race has begun, setting sail from Gunwharf Quays, Portsmouth, yesterday, and will take almost a year to return. Posted on 4 Sep
Clipper 2023-24 Race Start Celebration Day 4
A wrap on the day's action ahead of start day Another sunshine filled day down at Gunwharf Quays as the fourth day of the Clipper Race Start celebrations draws to a close. Posted on 2 Sep
Clipper 2023-24 Race Start Celebration Day 3
Just a couple of days to go until the fleet departs for the global circumnavigation The sun returned for day three of the Clipper Race Start celebrations - and it was a day filled with plenty more excitement, World Street Food, and on the water activity in the marina as the countdown to Race Start draws in. Posted on 1 Sep
Clipper 2023-24 Race Start Celebration Day 2
It may have been a rainy day, but that didn't stop supporters heading out It may have been a rainy day, but that didn't stop Clipper Race supporters heading out to soak up the atmosphere on day two of Race Start festivities! Posted on 31 Aug
Clipper 2023-24 Race Start Celebration Day 1
The Race Village is officially open in Gunwharf Quays It's Day 1 of the Race Start celebrations in Gunwharf Quays, Portsmouth and the Race Village is officially open! Posted on 30 Aug
Washington, DC confirmed as Clipper Race host port
The US capital will welcome the eleven strong fleet at the end of Leg 7 Washington, DC debuts on the Clipper Round the World Yacht Race as both a Host Port and Team Partner on the upcoming edition. Posted on 21 Aug
A debut team entry in the Clipper 2023-24 Race
Dutch initiative to make a difference in the lives of children with cancer A Dutch initiative, working in collaboration with the Princess Máxima Center for Paediatric Oncology, will be making a debut team entry in the Clipper 2023-24 Race, under the team name of Perseverance. Posted on 21 Aug