3:29 AM Tue 27 Jan 2009 GMT
News from the Volvo Ocean Race fleet.
ERICSSON 4 LEG FOUR DAY 9 QFB: received 26.01.09 1530 GMT
Yet again a very eventful day onboard Ericsson 4. This morning we were parked off the mid-east coast of Taiwan, with a really messy leftover wave pattern it was hard to get going - we struggled with this all day and wondered how you could get such extremes in a relatively short time.
It became apparent from the weather files that we were due for some more strong northerlies - hurrah we thought - its not as if we have done much upwind sailing so far this leg!!
At around 3pm local time we got the news that the breeze was on its way and with a fair amount of strength. We all set about getting the boat ready - reefs in, some sails below, storm sails ready and for me it was time to get the roast dinner on - or at least boil the water for the freeze dried roast chicken which was on the menu, as this could be tricky in the nasty conditions. Some of the boys even hopped into their survival suits ready for the fight to continue.
In less than 40 minutes we had gone from code zero to a three-reefed mainsail and storm jib in 40+kts of cold wind. It was very surreal.
Then we had a bit of a nightmare when, in a particularly nasty gust, the padeye for the tack of the storm jib and a small amount of surrounding deck decided to leave the vessel. No further damage - but it's left us without the storm jib for now. It was a pretty good bang though, and means our mighty boat builders have a fair amount of work to do! Sorry lads!
Dave (Dave Endean) came up trumps once again and has managed to repair the hole in the deck - I wouldn't be surprised if TVNZ does a remake of MacGuiver series with Dave in the lead role - as himself!
Now it's back to an upwind bashing and the hard slog to China.
The words 'Daddy - how much further is it?' are ringing in my ears.
Guy Salter - MCM
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DELTA LLOYD LEG FOUR DAY 9 QFB: received 26.01.09 1213 GMT
Hi guys,
It has been an amazing journey so far. Having stopped for nearly 24-hours and then still being on the scheduled arrival time is not what we had anticipated the moment we decided to drop anchor.
First we noticed that we caught up with the Dragons pretty soon after we left our shelter. That raised the spirit on board. Beating upwind with these boats is no party. We decided to put a second reef in the main, but that didn't work out quite well. Chuny (Roberto B?rmudez/ESP) decided to drop the mainsail and hoist only the J4. Under that single sail we still managed to run some 10-11 knots, and above that, the boat was still manageable.
At daylight, and under a little more favourable conditions, the main was hoisted again and soon we were doing 15 knots, still with wind speeds up to 35-40 knots! Every sched that came in raised a cheer from the crew. We were gaining a lot of miles on the four boats ahead of us and we intend to continue that streak.
At present we can say that we crossed the passage between Taiwan and the Philippines. A little bit manoeuvring through some shallows and along some islands and we are in open waters to go wherever we want to go.
Should we make another stop in Taiwan? After all, the total sailing time was not really influenced by our last stop. An interesting thought: 'How many stops can you make, or how long can you stop without changing the sailing time??' There must be a maximum there.
Anyway, as I said, we continue to catch up with the group ahead and still aim for that glorious place at the top, at least for this leg.
Cheers,
Frits Koek - navigator
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TELEF?NICA BLUE LEG FOUR DAY 9 QFB: received 26.01.09 1052 GMT
I thought we had seen it all, but what about this:
We had a collision with an object and there is chunk out of our bow. Luckily it is in our so-called 'crashbow', which is about 40 cm thick, and especially designed with this in mind. The real structural bow is further back, so we aren't taking on water.
The other bad news is we are in a storm again, with gusts up to 45 knots. The main is lashed down to the boom, and we just have a small head sail up. The waves are even more confused than 48 hours ago, so we are taking it very easy - full survival mode again.
Daryl Wislang/NZL hurt his shoulder, and we put him in a bunk. Families: don't worry, he can make all movements, but we are just giving him rest. So that means two men down. I am getting a little better, but every word I type is a hassle, as I am sitting twisted, not good for my back at all. That's it for now; we have another action night ahead of us.
Cheers,
Bouwe Bekking - skipper
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GREEN DRAGON LEG FOUR DAY 8 QFB: received 25.01.09 2209 GMT
Happy Chinese New Year from the Green Dragon crew!
At 0945 GMT today, after nearly 24 hours at anchor we resumed racing. It took about 12 hours for the boatbuilding crew to fix up the broken forward bulkhead as best they could and about 10 hours for the sail making crew to put back together our mainsail, J4 and J5. Some people managed to put in a performance for both projects and after an awesome effort we managed to leave our anchorage before nightfall.
Unfortunately the beautiful locals in canoes offering us chilled beer in my dreams never arrived, but we did end up being greeted by a customs man. He was most put out that we hadn't reported to him, but a bag of chocolate bars and one of my team shirts seemed to pacify him. Guillermo Altadill from Delta Lloyd must have had similar thoughts to me as he went ashore by canoe and came back an hour later with a crate of San Miguel beer for his crew.
Since leaving harbour, things have not gone so well for us. We proceeded very carefully into a wicked head sea and it wasn't long before Neal (Neal McDonald/GBR) and I heard two dreaded cracks. We were inspecting the bow repair at the time and while the repair held firm, the bulkhead let go either side of it.
Since then I have been agonising over how best to proceed. Do we go to Hong Kong, Xiamen or even Shanghai to make repairs? Do we go back to Subic Bay? Is it safe to cross the Straits in the current weather? Should we soldier on slowly and nurse the boat to Qingdao - maybe even get there without retiring and using the engine?
Right now, we are doing just that, but more damage could rapidly change things. We are currently sailing in 37 knots with storm jib and trysail (it is very hard to nurse your boat in 30+ knots!). If we get through the next 12 hours intact, conditions should very much improve for a couple of days before another 'cold push' (gales from the North) will pass over us. This will be hard for us to deal with as it will be bang on the nose.
As always my crew have been fantastic. Everyone is fully focused on getting the Green Dragon to Qingdao. There is nothing we want more right now than to sail into Qingdao, however long it takes us. We have no more repair materials onboard, so we must prevent any further damage in order to do this.
The Singapore to Qingdao leg of the Volvo Ocean Race will stick in my mind for some time to come- and we are only just over halfway!
Ian Walker - skipper
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