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Last
night, as Iker Martínez/ESP and Telefónica continued in the lead, Ken
Read took PUMA's Mar Mostro across to the easterly side of the racetrack
in a move that has split the team from the rest of the fleet.
With
gales forecast in the path of Telefónica and Groupama 4 (Franck
Cammas/FRA) in second, six nautical miles (nm) astern, Read has opted to
take the lonely eastern course, which could have significant benefits,
but involves a high level of risk.
According to PUMA’s MCM Amory
Ross, the decision to sail east was based on the weather information.
Although it will involve sailing more miles to reach Sanya, the tidal
current and wind conditions are better and far fewer tacks will be
required.
The westerly option, chosen by the rest of the fleet,
will take them upwind along the coast of Vietnam, requiring countless
tacks around the headlands and capes, moves that will be energy sapping
for the crew. Although the shorter option in terms of miles sailed, the
fleet will today need to cross a ridge of gale force conditions in a
difficult sea state, running the risk to damage to both boats and crew,
in order to reach the calmer conditions found nearer the coast.
Team
Telefónica are confident in their boat and her performance in these
conditions. Their focus is on preventing Groupama 4 from winning this
leg, a situation which would bring the French right into contention for
the overall lead.
On board Groupama, extra equipment, wet weather
gear and personal safety items are being readied as the crew prepares
physically and mentally for the three coming days and as much food as
possible is being consumed to stave off fatigue. “At a time when we are
the most sleep-deprived and mentally and physically exhausted, we now
need to work as a team to push ourselves as hard as we can,” says
Groupama 4’s bowman Brad Marsh.
The boat is beginning to slam as
the wind picks up to 16 knots and the sea is building. According to
Marsh, going up wind in a Volvo Open 70 is like riding a carbon road
bike up an off road mountain climb. “It is possible of course, but it is
not comfortably and it just doesn’t feel right," he said. "There is no
suspension to dampen the ride, there is no comfortable sea for the
landings and the gear ration for power supply is totally wrong."
Meanwhile,
39 nm from the leader, CAMPER (Chris Nicholson/AUS) has moved up to
third place. Co-skipper Stu Bannatyne said today, “There are certainly
some opportunities for some gains and losses to be made, particularly
with PUMA at the moment taking a slightly different offshore route.
“For
the rest of the boats heading towards the coast, it will come down to
finer details – how we manage smaller wind shifts and dealing with local
obstacles like the fishing nets,” he said.
Ian Walker described
fourth-placed Abu Dhabi Ocean Racing’s last 12 hours as ‘torrid’. The
team trail the leader by 75 nm and the gale force conditions ahead will
be the first real test for Walker’s new mast.
“I would be lying
if I said I was not worried about our mast and rigging, but all the
signs are that things should be OK,” he said today. The big test will be
when the crew hoists their heavy weather jib and puts two reefs in the
main for the first time since the new rig was stepped back in Cape Town.
The
crew of Sanya (Mike Sanderson/NZL), 258 nm behind and in sixth place,
have yet to decide whether to tack up the Vietnamese coast or bang the
corner and head for their homeport in Sanya in a single tack. It will be
at least three days before we can see how the tactics play out and
whether PUMA’s gamble is a winning one.
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