Pointing at the target

It is neck and neck for the leading pair in the second stage of Leg 3, with just 3.4 nautical miles separating PUMA and tiresome terrier CAMPER. Chris Nicholson’s CAMPER crew may be astern, but they are to windward and fully fired up to snatch whatever opportunities they can to take the red boat into the lead.

Amory Ross/PUMA Ocean Racing/Volvo Ocean Race

“We’ve been hanging on and the skeds have been so close, probably the closest I’ve ever seen,” Nicholson said earlier today.

According to the Australian skipper there is the potential for the rest of the fleet to move further to the north of CAMPER, as Team Telefónica already have done.

But the CAMPER with Emirates Team New Zealand have made a conscious decision to sail a little lower and faster to make small gains and protect their position.

Nicholson expects to see both PUMA’s Mar Mostro and third-placed Groupama 4 to sail lower and faster in response.

“No one will want to let us get to the east of them, because getting east puts us closer to Indonesia,” he said.

PUMA’s Mar Mostro is holding off the attack from CAMPER for the third day running. “It’s nice to know the boat is up to speed and we’re going along just nicely,” said bowman Casey Smith. “Getting round the corner of Sumatra is one thing, but the Malacca Strait is a whole different animal.”

The crew on board Groupama 4, in third, are happy to have PUMA’s Mar Mostro as their pacemaker. “It’s a meticulous job with slightly open angles and little bit of speed in the wind shifts,” said helmsman/trimmer Damian Foxall of the action on the racecourse. “Every 10th of a knot, every shift is important.”

The 3,000 nm second stage of Leg 3 from the Maldives to Sanya in China is providing some exhilarating straight-line sailing in near perfect conditions for the six-boat fleet as they close in on the waypoint of Pulau Weh, situated at the northern entrance to the Malacca Strait between Sumatra and Singapore.

Many of the boats have yet to put in a tack since the start last Sunday, bowling along on port at an even 12.5 knots. Even the cloud activity has been less than expected and for once the weather gods seem to be smiling on the fleet.

“There’s nothing too complicated going on,” said Ian Walker skipper of Abu Dhabi Ocean Racing’s black yacht Azzam in fourth place, 16.8 nm behind the leader.

“Essentially we’re just pointing straight at the target and we only have minor decisions to make as to whether we chose the high side or the low side.”

That decision will, according to Walker, depend on what the wind will do further down the track. He expects a period of 12 to 24 hours of lifting wind before it heads back in the final approach to Pulau Weh.

The fleet is now split over 25 nm from first to sixth place, and a lateral divide of 22 nm. On board fifth-placed Telefónica, the crew is happy with their speed.

“We have two days more with these conditions until we reach the Malacca Strait and we hope to catch up during this time. The truth is, the boat speed is good, so it is likely we will reel them in,” wrote MCM Diego Fructuoso.

Meanwhile, Mike Sanderson, who currently fills the sixth spot with Sanya, is hoping for a parking lot in the Malacca Strait, as his team is now a shade over 25 nm adrift. “All our efforts at the moment are to just try to stay close enough to the fleet,” he said.

This leg concludes in Sanderson’s team’s homeport where they are sure of a huge welcome regardless of their finishing position.

Positions after Day 3:

1. PUMA Ocean Racing powered by BERG, 2.321,9 Nm from Sanya
2. CAMPER with Emirates Team New Zealand, +3,4
3. Groupama sailing team, +5,1
4. Abu Dhabi Ocean Racing, +16,9
5. Team Telefónica, +19,2
6. Team Sanya, +25,3

Articles about the Volvo Ocean Race 2011-12.
Leg 1. | Leg 2. | Leg 3.

Articles about the Youth Academy.

Articles about Legends Regatta.

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Amazing Episodes from the Race 2008-09 / Videos.

Source: http://volvooceanrace.com

The VENUES of the Volvo Ocean Race 2011-12:
The 2011-12 Volvo Ocean Race will start with the In-Port Race on 29 October in Alicante, Spain and the route will go to Cape Town, Abu Dhabi, Sanya, Auckland and on to Itajaí. Next stop is Miami and then across the Atlantic to Lisbon followed by Lorient and Galway.

1 Alicante 2 Cape Town 3 Abu Dhabi 4 Sanya 5 Auckland

6 Itajaí 7 Miami 8 Lisbon 9 Lorient 10 Galway

Abu Dhabi Corniche -
Abu Dhabi

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Posted by nauticweb on January 25, 2012. Filed under News, Regattas, Regattas with Picture, Volvo Ocean Race. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0. You can leave a response or trackback to this entry