illbruck Challenge First to Finish Trans-Atlantic tune-up

The illbruck Challenge team arrived here this morning following a closely fought tune-up race across the Atlantic with fellow competitors Team Tyco and Team News Corp. In the final hours of the 13-day crossing, the lead was exchanged several times with Tyco in the last stretch to the Solent finish line off Cowes.

After finishing at 8:10 am local time with Tyco only 11 minutes later and News Corp about another hour behind, illbruck Challenge skipper John Kostecki predicted that the Volvo Ocean Race will be a hotly-contested event.

illbruck Challenge led much of the 13-day crossing with an advantage of as much as 80 miles over Tyco and 120 miles over News Corp at one stage. A few days from the finish, the illbruck Challenge team was "parked" 350 miles from the Solent with no wind and meanwhile the competitors closed the gap with Tyco taking a 49-mile lead over illbruck Challenge. In the final day, the three boats were within three miles of each other.

"We are happy with the boat's performance," Kostecki said. "We had no major breakdowns and the boat is structurally sound. It was a good test for the boat and it's good to be back racing." The team saw as much as 40 knots of wind during the crossing.

In an email from on board in the final day at sea, Kostecki summarized the lessons of the trans-Atlantic which served as the qualifier for the Volvo Ocean Race, which starts September 23 from Southampton, England.

"This Transatlantic crossing has been a great learning experience for us on illbruck," Kostecki said. "We have been able to race against some of our competitors, testing our sails, crew and navigation equipment. We now have a clear idea of our strengths and weaknesses so we can prioritize our activities these last seven weeks before we start racing," Kostecki said.

"Next week, starting on August 12, we will compete in the Rolex Fastnet Race against many more of our competitors. This will allow us to test our short-leg strategies versus our long-leg strategies we are testing now on the trans-Atlantic. The Fastnet race is only 605 miles long but we have 3 legs of similar length in the Volvo Race. After the Fastnet, we will do our final preparations and measurement checks prior to the start of the Volvo. Both our shore team and sailing team will be ready for the start and we are all looking forward to the challenge."

The three Volvo 60s started the trans-Atlantic on July 22 from an agreed point off the Chesapeake Bay on the East Coast of the US. The illbruck Challenge team had been based in Charleston, SC in the US where they were training since March. They have now established a base camp in Hamble. The team will prepare this week for the Rolex Fastnet Race which starts August 12. illbruck expects to line-up against four other Volvo Ocean 60s in the Rolex Fastnet including News Corporation, Assa Abloy, Djuice Dragons and Team SEB.

More Information:

• YachtsandYachting.com Volvo Ocean Race Information Page
• www.VolvoOceanRace.org
• www.illbruckchallenge.com