SAILING: VOLVO OCEAN RACE:AS A rolling fog-bank swept across Boston Harbor on Saturday afternoon, one of the most notorious stages of the Volvo Ocean Race started in front of a crowded race village and spectator fleet. And then it started again, and, for a time, it appeared that a third start might even be on the cards.
But in the context of a 2,550-mile leg, such trivialities were mere window-dressing for the seven-strong fleet now sailing hard towards Galway.
The final oceanic stage of the 39,000-mile race is likely to be the final test of stamina and durability as under 2,000-miles of coastal racing will remain when the fleet departs Irish waters on Saturday, June 6th.
A reminder of what lies ahead quickly arrived as the cold fog and gusty breeze arrived. As the count-down sequence got under way the 10-minute gun fired, but the start was signalled too early and chaos ensued as the fleet split between those who began the leg and those which had spotted the error and returned.
Twenty minutes later, the start went flawlessly and the fleet raced away to the first turning mark on the harbour. Except that a bulk carrier was entering the port and, as local security regulations require clear passage for such vessels, Roberto Bermudez on Team Delta Lloyd fell foul of the Coastguard patrol boat and was ushered astern of the tanker as the other six racers escaped and opened up distance.
The delay was mostly academic, as the Limerick-owned boat soon caught up and a protest for redress seems improbable.
For the benefit of the crowd, it was Bouwe Bekking and the inshore specialists on Telefonica Blue that led the pack, and even Ireland’s Green Dragon team held their own in third place before their adoptive home crowd.
Having secured additional sponsorship of a substantial six-figure sum on Friday last, skipper Ian Walker and his team are a happier bunch, though the deal with United Games now places the crew under the scrutiny of the 208,000-strong online virtual gaming community.
However, New England homeboy Kenny Read on Puma Ocean Racing was having none of it and soon over-hauled the dragons, determined that, having failed to get on the podium arriving into America or during the In-Port races, he should at least put up a show leaving Boston.
That show continued to improve as the fleet headed off into thick fog and fresh south-easterly winds that saw the boats dodge lobster pots as they headed north around a whale protection zone en route to the leg scoring-gate off Newfoundland.
It is almost guaranteed that the feet will experience similar gale conditions at some stage over the leg.
However, as a large high-pressure system is expected to block the optimal route to Galway, inevitably postponing the earliest ETA in Galway from Saturday to possibly as late as Tuesday of next week.
Such an outcome may result in a new, 24-hour speed sailing record, currently held by overall race leader Torben Grael on Ericsson 4.
Dozens of ice-reports for the leg have obliged organisers to set ice-gates to divert the fleet, but this added obstacle only serves to place the Atlantic close to par with the Southern Ocean for its demands. Galway may be near, but for the 77 sailors crossing the Atlantic, it remains a far-off land for now.
