It Begins. Again.
gun fired signifying the start of the 2,500 nautical mile leg to Qingdao in
China, the leg most crews consider will be one of the most difficult and
brutal legs of the race. Never in this history of the race has there been a
leg like this, where the fleet will be sailing upwind for such an extensive
distance. The difference between racing and surviving is taken very
seriously and all skippers are predicting the need to ease back when
conditions worsen.
After the blessing of the fleet, the start got underway in ideal conditions
of 10 15 knots. Ericsson 4 (Torben Grael/BRA) and PUMA (Kenny Read/USA)
immediately commenced battle and both had their bows ahead of the rest,
opting for the middle of the line, while Delta Lloyd, with new navigator
Frits Koek/NED in the navigator¹s chair, chose the pin end. Both Telefónica
boats and Green Dragon (Ian Walker/GBR) were in the second row as the gun
fired at 1300 local time (0500 GMT) and the fleet pounded up the first
two-mile beat.
At the windward mark, Ericsson 4 led, with some smart sail handling, with PUMA
right on her heels. Ericsson 3 (Magnus Olsson/SWE) performed an outstanding
spinnaker hoist and took third place, while Green Dragon struggled with
their huge gennaker in fourth position. The match racing continued between the two leaders, as they approached the
next mark, Ericsson 4 proving to be the class of the fleet. PUMA was just a
couple of boat lengths behind; Green Dragon rolled Ericsson 3 and was
followed by the two Telefónica boats and Delta Lloyd. Photo and text courtesy onEdition Photography.
