Beluga Racer wins Portimao Global Ocean Race start
The inaugural Portim?o Global Ocean Race got underway today from the seaside town of Portim?o, Portugal. Portim?o's Deputy Mayor Luis Carito fired the start gun at precisely 14:00 local time (13:00 GMT) and Germany's young rising stars Boris Herrmann and Felix Oehme charged across the line in first place aboard their Class 40 yacht Beluga Racer.
'Dolphins escort Roaring Forty around Sagres - Portimao Global Ocean Race'
Ingrid Abery © Copyright
They set a Code 0 sail and in the light south-easterly wind romped into an early lead. Moments later the brightly colored Desafio Cabo de Hornos helmed by Chileans Felipe Cubillos and Jos? Mu?oz crossed the line in second place followed by the South African team of Lenjohn and Peter Van Der Wel aboard Kazimir Partners.
Earlier in the day it was an emotional scene as the ten sailors in the race said their goodbyes. The African writer Isak Dinesen said it best: The cure for everything is salt; sweat, tears and the sea. There has been a lot of sweat spent to get to this point. The tears were certainly in evidence as children hugged fathers and wives and girlfriends put on brave faces. Now all that remains for the sailors is the sea. Six thousand five hundred miles stand between the skippers and their first port of call, Cape Town, South Africa. They will sail thirty thousand miles before finally making it back to Portim?o in June 2009. 
At 09:30 Padro Arsenio visited the docks to bless the fleet. As he spoke the last vestige of Saturday night's rain storm lifted assuring fair weather for the start. After the blessing the boats headed up the River Arade in a parade of sail to the center of town where a women's marathon was taking place. In a symbolic gesture the marathon runners saluted the sailor who are heading around the world in a marathon of their own.
The first mark of the 30,000 nautical mile course was a compulsory gate one mile south of the stunning cape of Sagres on Portugal's Algarve coast. 'The idea of the gate was two-fold,' said Josh Hall. 'For a mariner passing their first cape on a passage is always a big moment. Sagres is their first cape, but not their last. They will have to pass the big five southern capes before they get back to Portugal next June.'
Just over three hours into the race the Belgium skipper Michel Kleinjans on his Open 40, Roaring Forty, passed south of the famous cape followed eight minutes later by Beluga Racer. The British yacht Team Mowgli had moved up into third with Desafio Cabo de Hornos a scant two minutes behind. In what has to be a good omen for the race, dolphins joined in the fun as the boats sailed by the stunning cliffs of Sagres.
www.portimaoglobaloceanrace.com/
by Brian Hancock 
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Mermaid Waters, QLD
