Volvo Ocean Race, Telefonica Blue consolida il primato
Equipo TelefonicaEricsson RacingGreen Dragon RacingOceanoPuma Ocean RacingTeam Delta LloydTeam RussiaVelaVolvo Ocean Race 17 Dicembre 2008 Zerogradinord 0
[singlepic=1119,250,170,,left]Volvo Ocean Race – Cochin – Scegliendo di navigare a sud mentre tutta la flotta si spingeva verso nord, Telefonica Blue ha consolidato la propria leadership nell’ambito della terza tappa della Volvo Ocean Race. Una scelta di Bouwe Bekking e del suo navigatore che, tramite mail, hanno spiegato di essere in attesa di un salto di vento per virare e spingersi verso nord: “Cominciamo ad essere un pò nervosi. Stiamo aspettando che il vento salti per scappare da sud. Purtroppo l’angolo non cambia e l’intensità diminuisce. Dobbiamo tenere duro, e aspettare questo salto, o giocarci l’opzione nord ora? Siamo messi bene, ma per restare in gioco ci serve un cambio nella direzione del vento”.
Telefonica Blue è un centinaio di miglia a sud di Ericsson 4, dato dai computer al secondo posto con un margine piuttosto ridotto su Telefonica Black, Green Dragon ed Ericsson 3, tutti ammassati tra i cinque e i sei gradi di latitudine nord. Le preoccupazioni di Bekking nascono dal fatto che la brezza nel tratto di mare attraversato dal VOR 70 spagnolo è scesa attorno agli undici nodi, mentre a nord il vento soffia tra i quindici e i venti.
Sesto, a sessanta miglia dal leader, è Il Mostro. Lo scafo di Ken Read è quello che nel corso della notte ha optato per la rotta più settentrionale di tutti: una scelta altrettanto rischiosa. Qualora le previsioni a lungo termine non si rivelassero azzeccate, infatti, lo scafo del Puma Racing Team potrebbe trovarsi a dover percorrere molte miglia in più degli avversari per raggiungere lo scoring gate di Palau We.
Leg 3, day 4, 10.00 GMT, rankings
1 – Telefónica Blue ESP (Bouwe Bekking/NED) DTF 1345 nm
2 – Ericsson 4 SWE (Torben Grael/BRA) +35 nm
3 – Telefónica Black ESP (Fernando Echávarri/ESP) +44 nm
4 – Green Dragon IRL/CHN (Ian Walker/GBR) +45 nm
5 – Ericsson 3 SWE (Anders Lewander/SWE) +48 nm
6 – Puma Racing Team USA (Ken Read/USA) +59 nm
7 – Team Russia RUS (Andreas Hanakamp/AUT) +85 nm
8 – Team Delta Lloyd IRL (Roberto Bermudez/ESP) +99 nm
Per seguire la regata sul Race Tracker clicca qui.
[flashvideo filename=video/vor/TelefonicaBlue_171208.flv /]
Video courtesy Volvo Ocean Race.
SHIFT WORK
[Volvo Ocean Race Press Release] Telefonica Blue have managed to maintain their lead overnight by playing the southerly option and heading nearly directly at the scoring gate at Palau We. But as the rest of the fleet has made a move to the north, it’s getting lonely in the south for skipper Bouwe Bekking and crew. As each hour passes, this is looking more and more like an ‘all or nothing’ tactical decision and it’s beginning to weigh on the minds of the crew.
“The strings in our minds are very, very tight right now,” wrote Bekking this morning in a dispatch for his blog. “(We are) waiting for a shift to tack back out from the south. So far no luck and we are getting less wind pressure, (so it’s) a bit of catch-22. (Do we) keep going, and wait for the shift, or bite the bullet and go north? We have nice leverage, but we need a shift to stay in the game.”
Telefonica Blue is nearly 100 miles south of second place Ericsson 4 on the 04.00 GMT position report and over 60 miles south of Green Dragon, the closest boat on the north/south axis. That’s a lot of exposure to have to the rest of the fleet. If Telefonica Blue navigator Simon Fisher can find a way back north that isn’t too painful, it’s almost a sure bet that he’ll take it.
A look at the true wind speed in the data tables will tell you why the afterguard on Blue is nervous. While Telefonica Blue had 11 knots at 04:00, the rest of the fleet was enjoying winds between 15 and 20 knots.
In contrast to Telefonica Blue, Puma is making a run to the north. In fifth place on the 04.00 position report, skipper Ken Read is looking for stronger winds and a favourable shift on the opposite side of the race course to Telefonica Blue. The risk of the northern extreme is that sailing the extra miles won’t present a big enough payoff in extra speed.
In an email from Puma, media crew member Rick Deppe wrote that conditions on board were extremely difficult – light, shifty, hot, and plenty of work for the crew as they tack and stack sails with each change in course.
“Last night for the first time since the race started, I found myself wishing that I could help the guys out… a little… just do a bit of stacking, trim or help out on the bow for a bit. The tack-fest that we found ourselves in may have contributed to my feeling a little out of sorts on the boat… in the rules I’m not allowed to take part in the sailing of the boat and last night for some reason it just didn’t feel right to be just standing around while the guys went hard at it hard for about five hours…”
It’s not going to get easier. Just 18 miles separate second place (Ericsson 4) from sixth place (Ericsson 3) and with the shifty conditions forecast to continue all the way to the scoring gate, every inch of distance made good will be fought over. Expect this one to go down to the wire.
Leg 3, day 4, 10.00 GMT, rankings
1 – Telefónica Blue ESP (Bouwe Bekking/NED) DTF 1345 nm
2 – Ericsson 4 SWE (Torben Grael/BRA) +35 nm
3 – Telefónica Black ESP (Fernando Echávarri/ESP) +44 nm
4 – Green Dragon IRL/CHN (Ian Walker/GBR) +45 nm
5 – Ericsson 3 SWE (Anders Lewander/SWE) +48 nm
6 – Puma Racing Team USA (Ken Read/USA) +59 nm
7 – Team Russia RUS (Andreas Hanakamp/AUT) +85 nm
8 – Team Delta Lloyd IRL (Roberto Bermudez/ESP) +99 nm
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