Clipper 09-10: Spirit of Australia first to scoring gate

12:30 AM Thu 3 Dec 2009 GMT

'Spirit of Australia at the start of race 4' Clipper Ventures PLC &copy

Clipper 09-10: Spirit of Australia has gained maximum points at the Leg 3 scoring gate, crossing at 1742GMT yesterday evening ahead of their closest rivals Team Finland.

'Three points, you little ripper!' exclaims Brisbane based skipper, Brendan Hall. 'Getting through that gate was a fairly nail biting affair, we thought it would come down to minutes of difference but in the end we crossed more than an hour ahead of Team Finland, a great psychological boost to the crew.'

By securing three points at the gate the Australian team has moved one step closer to the top of the overall leader board. As the fleet left Cape Town at the start of Leg 3, Team Finland was in the top spot, ahead of second place Spirit of Australia by three clear points. However, for a short time yesterday evening the Australians had equalled the Finns overall point tally of 29. But their closest rivals answered back, crossing the gate at 1915GMT in second place and gaining two points and an overall score of 31.

'We are rather pleased with our first scoring gate points from last night,' says Team Finland's skipper Eero Lehtinen. 'Making the move north, fighting hard the whole day and squeezing ahead of Cape Breton Island and Uniquely Singapore just when it mattered most, felt very good. Spirit of Australia covered their position smartly and deserve their second gate victory in the race. Well done Boxing Kangaroos!'

The final point went to Uniquely Singapore, who crossed the gate at 2051GMT, but the result didn't come easily as the team's skipper, Jim Dobie, explains. 'In quite possibly the most nail biting 24 hours we have had for a long while the crew of Uniquely Singapore are delighted to get through the scoring gate and get one point,' he says. 'It was
frustrating as we had some bad runs in light airs and as we watched our position fall we started to think we would miss out. However, at yesterday's 1200GMT position report we saw that Cape Breton Island had fallen into another wind hole which allowed us to sail through the gate in third place. The lesson in all of this is never give up because, as
we have seen over the last few days of racing, positions can change dramatically over a six hour period. On Uniquely Singapore we take our sponsor, Keppel's 'can do' approach around the world.'

Seemingly cursed by wind holes, the mood on board Cape Breton Island is understandably low today. Self named Captain Wind Hole, skipper Jan Ridd, explains his team's sudden drop to sixth place.

'It has not been a good 24 hours on Cape Breton Island,' admits the Weymouth based skipper. 'After a fantastic charge to regain first position, we managed to fall into a massive wind hole, which left us going virtually nowhere while the rest of the fleet made good mileage. We are now probably more than 60 miles behind and after working so hard to get to the front it is a hard blow to give away the lead so easily.

'The crew are obviously not happy about missing the scoring gate but we all have our sights firmly on the finish line and as soon as we get wind to work with us we will be charging towards the front again.'

Edinburgh Inspiring Capital has also failed in their bid to be one of the first three teams across the scoring gate but skipper Matt Pike is far from disheartened. 'We missed out on the points this time but have gained a place in the fleet,' he says. 'It is reward enough for all the hard work we've put in. After a quick debrief to exorcise all the 'what
ifs?' it is onwards and upwards and we now focused on the remaining run to Geraldton.'

It has been a difficult 24 hours for the team on board Jamaica Lightning Bolt. Not only have they lost a place to Edinburgh Inspiring Capital but they have felt the effects of the sudden gusts of wind that can so easily take a boat by surprise in the Southern Ocean.

'The wind Gods weren't feeling kind and a very strong gust of wind caused us to have a massive broach,' says Jamaica Lightning Bolt's skipper, Pete Stirling. 'The boat rounded up into the wind and was laid over on her side under the pressure of the wind in the sails. Despite having the wheel hard over to correct the course and the mainsheet eased right out the helm wouldn't respond as most of the rudder was out of the water. In the frantic chaos that ensued we ended up snapping the spinnaker pole in half and putting two 5 metre long vertical rips in the
sail. The good news is that nobody was hurt and the damage is repairable. It was a wake up call to all of us to not lose respect for the power of the sea and in particular the Southern Ocean.'

The team on board Chinese entry, Qingdao, has also learned this lesson as things took a turn for the worst in the early hours of this morning.

'At approximately 0200 boat time in the pitch black, 40 degrees south and with only 60 miles separating us from fourth position, while reaching under our heavy weight kite, affectionately known aboard Qingdao as Judith, disaster struck. We were hit by a squall which combined a 20 knot jump in wind speed with an 80 degree change in direction. The initial blast had the helmsman rounding up uncontrollably and as the kite started to point into the wind. The on-deck watch went into a controlled response relieving the Dragon Wagon of the irrepressible power of her main and allowing her to turn downwind back to safety and calm.

However, this wasn't the end of things for the Dragon Wagon and as the team recovered from a second big gust, a third wind shift had their heavy weight kite heading for the inner forestay.

'The helmsman, still recoiling from the last two blows, brought the boat up to wind a little and in so doing quickly cleared the wrap without damage. Fate then chose its moment to step in. A single wave rolled the boat, port, starboard, port, starboard and then a dreaded cry comes from the foredeck, 'The kite's wrapped! The kite's wrapped!' To our dismay, having been pulled too hard in too many directions for too long, Judith, our work-horse sail, gave up the fight.'

California has also spent the night wrestling with sails and wind shifts but fortunately for the American team they have emerged relatively unscathed.

'The morning after the night before and no we weren't partying in the Southern Ocean!' says skipper Pete Rollason. 'The weather forecasts over the last couple of days have been showing very different information and
we started off the night sailing well under full main, poled out Yankee 2 and Staysail. Suddenly, at about 1.00am boat time, the wind shifted about 90 degrees and increased by 25 knots in a matter of seconds. The ensuing struggle by the crew to resolve the situation was monumental and they did a magnificent job of getting the boat under control and flaking (folding) the Yankee 2 on deck in 40 knots of wind.

'This just a taste of another day at sea and that's why we all love it so much. It can only be summed up by seeing the crew emerge from a wave after being buried in cold water on the foredeck with big beaming smiles on their faces. We wouldn't be anywhere else!'

Hull & Humber's crew also wouldn't be anywhere else, having finally embarked on their race to Geraldton.

'It is great to be out sailing again and so soon,' says skipper Piers Dudin. 'Big thanks to the team at Clipper for pushing everything through so quickly and to the various teams who came and went throughout the stages of the repair. The quality of the job is really impressive and Hull & Humber likes her new hip replacement!'

Cork, the cause of Hull & Humber's 'hip replacement', is now well on her way to Australia but the crew has discovered, like the teams ahead, that the Southern Ocean isn't all about consistent fast down wind racing.

'After two good days of sailing and good progress made, the wind has slackened off and we are left sailing along at 6 knots,' says Cork's skipper, Richie Fearon. 'I keep promising the crew that the big surfing waves will come but they are starting to think that I am lying to them! Luckily enough the wind is filling in from the west later on this
afternoon so hopefully we can start getting some trade mark Southern Ocean sailing instead of this cruising weather!'

Positions at 1200 UTC, Wednesday 2 December

Boat DTF* DTL*
Spirit of Australia 2787nm 0nm
Team Finland 2829nm 42nm
Uniquely Singapore 55nm 104nm
Edinburgh Inspiring Capital 2869nm 82nm
Jamaica Lightning Bolt 2878nm 91nm
Cape Breton Island 2908nm 121nm
Qingdao 2920nm 133nm
California 2984nm 197nm
Cork 3771nm 984nm
Hull & Humber 4668nm 1881nm

(*DTF = Distance to Finish, *DTL = Distance to Leader)
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