Volvo Ocean Race Route

The final piece of the puzzle was revealed today when Auckland was announced as a stopover port for the 2011-12 Volvo Ocean Race. It will be the eighth time the City of Sails has featured in the event.

Auckland last hosted the event in 2001-02. This time it will stage the leg four finish from Sanya in China and the start of leg five, which will take the fleet into the Southern Ocean once again, round Cape Horn and onto Itajaí, Brazil.

With the confirmation of Auckland, the route for 2011-12 is now set and includes: start port of Alicante (Spain), Cape Town (South Africa), Abu Dhabi (UAE), Sanya (China), Auckland (New Zealand), Itajaí (Brazil), Miami (US), Lisbon (Portugal), Lorient (France) and the finish port of Galway (Ireland).

"Our host port programme around the world is now complete and I can confirm that Auckland has won its bid to become our stopover port in New Zealand," said Volvo Ocean Race CEO Knut Frostad.

"This announcement completes the route and our goal of contracting all the ports before the end of March 2010, significantly earlier than in previous race cycles. The preliminary course will be published during April.

"The people of Auckland have an immense appreciation of sailing, and the Volvo Ocean Race in particular. Many of the world's best-known sailors are from New Zealand, and we are proud to bring the race back to the City of Sails, where we will be sure of a huge reception."

Auckland's selection as the port of choice and return to the race route was welcomed by Mayor John Banks. "This event is a great fit with Auckland's maritime location and of significant economic benefit for our city," he said.

"Auckland has a proud history associated with this event and we look forward to welcoming the fleet and many spectators to our city once again."

New Zealand has fielded many of the world's greatest sailors, including Sir Peter Blake who competed five times in The Whitbread Round the World Race, which became the Volvo Ocean Race in 2001. Blake's victory in 1989-90 on Steinlager 2 included a clean sweep of all six legs.

Lisbon in VOR

Alicante, Spain – 01 March 2010 – After a fierce bidding process, Lisbon has been chosen as the first of the European ports for the Volvo Ocean Race, starting from Alicante in the autumn of 2011. Lisbon, located in the west of Portugal, at the point where the river Tagus flows into the Atlantic Ocean, will be the finish of the transatlantic leg of the race during the summer of 2012.

It will be the first time that this historic Portuguese port has played a part in the world’s premier ocean race.

Interest in hosting the Volvo Ocean Race in Europe was received from 34 cities, 15 of which went through to the final phase of the bidding process. This clearly underlines the enormous interest the race generates and makes Europe by far the most competitive continent in the selection procedure.

“It is great to have such an iconic city included in our list of stopovers and Lisbon, especially, has wonderful sailing conditions, which will make for a very exciting in-port race,” said Volvo Ocean Race CEO Knut Frostad. “Lisbon is a delightful city with much to offer the Volvo Ocean Race and this will be a stopover to look forward to after the rigours of the transatlantic leg,” he added.

“Portugal is a country of navigators that opened the world to new horizons and its capital, Lisbon, was the starting point for the fabulous saga of the Discoveries. A city with such grand nautical tradition had to be associated with the biggest transoceanic adventure of modern times and it is with utmost honour and pride that we are now a part of the Volvo Ocean Race’s global itinerary,” said António Costa, Mayor of the City of Lisbon.

The next European port will be announced on Wednesday 3 March.

The Volvo Ocean Race traces its origins back to 1973 and is the world’s premier offshore sailing race. The Volvo Open 70 racing boat is sailed by professional athletes, who race around the world with the prevailing winds.

Alicante to Cape Town

The racetrack for the upcoming Volvo Ocean Race, due to start from Alicante in Spain in the autumn of 2011, is now set and the first port of call will be Cape Town, South Africa, making its eighth appearance as host to this premier ocean race. This marks the beginning of the port announcement process for the Volvo Ocean Race 2011-12 and the rest of the course around the world will be revealed before the end of March.

The Volvo Ocean Race is the only professional sailing event that visits ports around the world and it is a delicate balance to select a track that is not only challenging to sail, but presents an attractive business case for potential sponsors and partners for both the race and the competing teams.

Leg one at 6,500 nautical miles, which in 2008-09 took the eventual race winner Ericsson 4 21 days, 17 hours and 54 seconds to complete, is one of the longest in the race and historically, the team that wins this leg has gone on to claim the winner’s trophy.

For Cape Town, hosting the 11th Volvo Ocean Race/Whitbread will be the biggest event following its hosting of the FIFA World Cup. Over two million tickets have been snapped up for the World Cup, which takes place throughout South Africa in June this year.

The V&A Waterfront will be a perfect place for shore crews to prepare the boats for the next test in the race, and for guests to enjoy the ambience and unique atmosphere this ocean classic generates. However, the stopover will allow little time for rest. There will be a full schedule of sailing ahead of the start of leg two, including the important in-port racing, which counts points towards the overall winner’s trophy, as well as pro-am racing.

The European ports of call for the Volvo Ocean Race in 2012, including the finish port will be the next to be announced and the entire route is set to be revealed before the end of March.

Groupama in Volvo

The Groupama Insurance Group confirmed today that it will enter the next two editions of the Volvo Ocean Race with its long term French skipper, Franck Cammas, a commitment that will last until 2015.
The announcement was made as Cammas was in the French port Le Chateau in Brest, preparing to set off on a bid to conquer the Jules Verne Trophy aboard the 32-metre maxi trimaran. The chosen designer for Groupama's new boat is Argentinean Juan Kouyoumdjian, the designer of the winning boats in the last two editions of the Volvo Ocean Race.
"It's now been over 12 years that Groupama and Franck Cammas have worked together as a team. Today, we have decided to continue this commitment by participating in the Volvo Ocean Race to inspire a more international dynamic in our common project," said Frederique Granado, director of external communications at Groupama.
"Groupama is developing strong links overseas, where we carry out nearly 30 per cent of our business, and the Volvo Ocean Race is clearly the most suitable sports event to reflect our group's new expansion," Granado explained.
Knut Frostad, CEO of the Volvo Ocean Race is very pleased about the return of a French boat to the Volvo Ocean Race: "The French certainly have their place in the Volvo against the cream of the Anglo-Saxon and European crews. It is excellent news that the Groupama team is joining the race. I have known Franck Cammas and his team for a long time. They are formidable competitors, who are remarkably well organised. It is going to be an exciting race."

Changes in VOR

The new look Volvo Open 70 Rule, published today along with the Notice of Race, confirm changes set to enhance the fleet racing in the 11th Volvo Ocean Race, which will start from its new home base of Alicante in Spain in the autumn of 2011. The changes come as a result of extensive analysis carried out over the past 12 months by the Rule Management Group led by technical expert Ken McAlpine (Volvo Open 70 Rule) and rules expert Bill Edgerton (Notice of Race) in consultation with previous competitors.
Changes include a move to furling or hanked headsails – no headfoils are allowed and a reduction from 24 to 17 race sails per boat. A single-boat team can only build 15 new sails prior to the race, and a team using a new boat and a second generation boat can build only 23 pre-race sails. Stacking of sails and equipment is restricted to the mid section of the boat below deck.
There are also strict limitations on masts and appendages. The total weight of the yacht has now been increased so that it must fit into the weight range of 14,000 – 14,500 kg, and a maximum keel fin and bulb weight has been set at 7,400 kg.
The limit of the construction of only one new boat per team is a new feature; however, a team is permitted to campaign an additional second generation boat. There is a total ban on two-boat testing before the race and if a single-boat team is using a separate second generation training boat, which they do not enter in the event, the team is limited to only 110 sailing days during 2010.
In addition to the 2,000-nautical mile qualification run, which has been a feature of the Notice of Race for some years, each team must now compete in a new 600-nautical mile qualification race, which will be held prior to the race start in Alicante.
The crew limit for an all-male or mixed team remains at 11, including the Media Crew Member (MCM), but new this time is the requirement for three crew members to be born on or after 1 September 1980. A female team can, however, comprise a crew of 14 including the MCM, representing three additional crew members over an all-male crew. No additional crew members are permitted onboard for in-port racing, which this time will be held in each stopover port.
The points system has also been overhauled and points for offshore legs will now be multiplied by five, and scoring gates multiplied by two. The in-port races will not attract a weighting and points will continue to be awarded for the best performances over two races to be held on each in-port race day.
The key objectives when drafting the Volvo Open 70 Rule and the Notice of Race were:
• to reduce costs for participating teams
• to ensure improved safety and reliability of the boats
• to ensure that the Volvo Open 70 Class maintains its status as the fastest and most spectacular offshore racing monohull
• to ensure that an entrant can be competitive with a second generation boat from the 2008-09 race

So, This was the End

The seven boats racing, plus Team Russia, who is accompanying the fleet, are beating under a blazing sun towards the finish line of the Volvo Ocean Race 2008-09 in St Petersburg tomorrow. Progress has been faster than predicted and the race director has just extended the course by 45 nautical miles, which has been an unpopular decision among some of the crews who are anxious to finish. The fleet is currently off the coast of Estonia, in the Gulf of Finland.

26 June was an historic moment in St Petersburg, Russia, when as the White Night turned to dawn the Volvo Ocean Race fleet, led by Telefónica Black in a thrilling climax, crossed the tenth and final finish line of this nine-month, 37,000 nm race around the world. Victory for Telefónica Black was hard-fought and a match race developed with PUMA, who had led the fleet for the majority of this 400-mile sprint from Stockholm. At just after midnight GMT and while on the additional triangle added to lengthen the course, Telefónica Black gained a small advantage, which translated into a two and a half boat length win, denying PUMA a second leg win in a row. However, with a total of 105.5 points, PUMA takes second place overall. Telefónica Blue (Bouwe Bekking/NED) filled the third spot both on leg 10 and overall, to close the team’s account on 98 points. Fourth place finishers tonight and fourth overall with 78.5 points was Ericsson 3.

Runaway overall leaders, with a final tally of 114.5 points and nine points clear of PUMA, Torben Grael and his 10 crew of Ericsson 4 finished this leg in fifth place. Green Dragon kept her slender lead over Delta Lloyd to finish the leg in sixth place, and fifth overall with 67 points. To conclude the Volvo Ocean Race 2008-09, Delta Lloyd, the only generation one Volvo Open 70 to compete in the race, finished shortly after Green Dragon to finish the race on a total of 41.5 points.

Overall Leaderboard (provisional)

1. Ericsson 4 (Torben Grael/BRA): 114.5 points

2. PUMA (Ken Read/USA): 105.5 points

3. Telefónica Blue (Bouwe Bekking/NED): 98.0 points

4. Ericsson 3 (Magnus Olsson/SWE): 78.5 points

5. Green Dragon (Ian Walker/GBR): 67.0 points

6. Telefónica Black (Fernando Echávarri/ESP): 58.0

7. Delta Lloyd (Roberto Bermudez/ESP): 41.5 points

8. Team Russia (Andreas Hanakamp/AUT): 10.5 points

Leg Ten Finishing Order St Petersburg

1. Telefónica Black

2. PUMA

3. Telefónica Blue

4. Ericsson 3

5. Ericsson 4

6. Green Dragon

7. Delta Lloyd

PUMA Leads As Volvo Fleet Heads To Russia

PUMA, who is now assured second place overall, led the Volvo fleet out of Sandhamn, on the outer edge of the Stockholm archipelago today - a spectacular day where conditions were perfect for the start of the tenth and final leg of the Volvo Ocean Race 2008-09 to St Petersburg in Russia.
Sailing confidently in 10 -12 knots of breeze, PUMA, Telefónica Blue and Ericsson 4 were the front runners off the start line and a huge spectator crowd needed no excuse to get out on the water and watch what these ocean greyhounds do best. A steady breeze and flat water ensured plenty of white water spilled from the bows as the boats started a leg for the last time, fully powered up and under a cloudless sky.
Leading round both buoys marking the traditional "sausage" before heading to out to sea, the crew of PUMA had set the black boat up perfectly and extended their lead, while behind, Bouwe Bekking's bowmen wrestled with their heavy code zero sail, which had remained furled and unused on the bow and was slowing the blue boat down. Green Dragon scorched past overall race winner Ericsson 4, who had the pressure put on by sister ship Ericsson 3, while Telefónica Black and Delta Lloyd were in the second string.

Team Russia joined the pack once the racing fleet had completed the inshore loop, to sail, but not to race, homewards to St Petersburg, with owner Oleg Zherebtsov working the bow as he did in the earlier legs of the race.

Although speeds were good as the fleet left Sweden behind, the leg is expected to be predominantly upwind to Russia and race rules allow for Race Director, Jack Lloyd, to shorten the 400-mile course if necessary. The fleet must arrive in St Petersburg on Saturday morning in order to clear customs and pass through two bridges, which will be raised specially in order to let the fleet into the historic city.

PUMA has now clinched second place overall, their performance improving hugely in the second half of the race. Telefónica Blue will take third after losing the battle for second when they finished last in leg nine after going aground in Marstrand, while Ericsson 4 is the runaway leader, winning the race with a leg to spare.

In Port Race Stocholm

The rocks and islands surrounding the course set today for the final of the in-port race series in the Volvo Ocean Race were black with thousands of spectators, while out on the water, in the Stockholm Archipelago, spectator boats lined both sides of the course and masts could be seen as far as the eye could see. The well-behaved spectator fleet was expertly marshalled by the Swedish Navy. It was the perfect day for racing.

As the breeze built to nine knots for the first of two races, the fleet of seven Volvo Open 70s, sailing with plenty of heel and producing foaming white water from their bows made a clean start, led by Delta Lloyd.

The two local boats, Ericsson 3 and Ericsson 4, fought for the pin end of the line and chose the far left of the course. After a slightly sticky start, PUMA, followed Green Dragon out to opposite side of the course, where she gained clean air and took a lead, which she held on to until the end of the race. Ericsson 3, using their expertise in the lake-like sailing conditions, which are their home waters, was a consistent second.

Telefónica Blue, who was last on the first beat, made a terrific comeback and climbed steadily up through order to take third, which, coincidentally, was the same top three finishing order as the second of the Galway in-port races. So close were the next two boats, it was difficult to call the finish, however Ericsson 4 eventually beat Telefónica Black by a short head (one second) to take fourth, while Green Dragon was sixth, and, after a very promising start, Delta Lloyd completed the line up in seventh place.

It was in race two that the outcome for the day was decided as the breeze increased to 12 – 14 knots and a fog bank started to roll in across the course.

Telefónica Blue put in her usual polished performance and led the fleet from start to finish. Telefónica Black, with syndicate head, Pedro Campos at the helm, sailed a perfect race and spoilt the show for PUMA by finishing second in race two, a result which prevented PUMA from claiming overall victory today. With a third and a first for Telefónica Blue and a first and a third for PUMA today, the tie was broken in favour of the results in the second race, which left Telefónica Blue as the clear winner, from PUMA and Telefónica Black.

It has been an exceptional day of racing and although the order on the overall leaderboard remains unchanged, Telefónica Blue has crept a little closer to second place overall, and is now six points behind PUMA, with one more leg of the race still to come.

Race One Stockholm In-Port Race Finish Position
1. PUMA
2. Ericsson 3
3. Telefónica Blue
4. Ericsson 4
5. Telefónica Black
6. Green Dragon
7. Delta Lloyd

Race Two Stockholm In-port Race Finish Position
1. Telefónica Blue
2. Telefónica Black
3. PUMA
4. Ericsson 4
5. Delta Lloyd
6. Ericsson 3
7. Green Dragon

Stockholm In-Port Race Results (Provisional)
1. Telefónica Blue 4.0 points
2. PUMA 3.5 points
3. Telefónica Black 3.0 points
4. Ericsson 4 2.5 points
5. Ericsson 3 2.0 points
6. Delta Lloyd 1.5 points
7. Green Dragon 1.0 points

Overall Leaderboard
1. Ericsson 4 (Torben Grael/BRA): 110.5 points
2. PUMA (Ken Read/USA): 98.5 points
3. Telefónica Blue (Bouwe Bekking/NED): 92.0 points
4. Ericsson 3 (Magnus Olsson/SWE): 73.5 points
5. Green Dragon (Ian Walker/GBR): 64.0 points
6. Telefónica Black (Fernando Echávarri/ESP): 50.0
7. Delta Lloyd (Roberto Bermudez/ESP): 39.5 points
8. Team Russia (Andreas Hanakamp/AUT): 10.5 points

Olsson Wins Fun Race

Magnus Olsson's Ericsson 3 team sailed past their teammates on Ericsson 4 on Wednesday afternoon to claim top honours in the Stockholm 'City Sprint'.

The fun race format added a bit of spice to the delivery trip from the leg 9 finish line at Sandhamn to the race village in Stockholm. Although no points were at stake, the teams sailed with their regular crews on board for the 12 mile race.

Sunny afternoon weather provided the perfect excuse for thousands in Stockholm to play hooky from work to take in the action. The race course, which twisted and turned through the narrow waters between the islands off Stockholm, was filled with spectator boats. As was the shoreline around the city. It was all too much for Magnus Olsson.

Volvo Leg 9 Finished

A third place finish in leg nine has been enough for Ericsson 4 to provisionally win the Volvo Ocean Race 2008-09. The team now has a 13-point lead over PUMA, with just 12 points available in the rest of the race. It was a good night for PUMA. After a fearsome catfight with the crew of Stockholm-based Ericsson 3, whose crew wanted a win here in front of their home crowd more than anything, PUMA stole victory on the finish line tonight in Sandhamn (an island in the Stockholm archipelago just east of the capital city), and claimed full points for Volvo Ocean Race leg nine. Today’s win was PUMA’s first leg victory in this 10-leg race, although they have had a good showing during the in-port racing. Their score of 95 points so far strengthens their second place overall at this stage of the event.

Fighting PUMA for second place overall is Telefónica Blue/Bouwe Bekking, who had the terrible misfortune of being grounded on a rock outside Marstrand shortly after the start. The crew expects to complete this leg and be in Stockholm in time to contest the in-port race on Sunday and thereby pile the pressure back on PUMA.

The largely Nordic crew of Ericsson 3, skippered by the hugely popular, Magnus Olsson, and winners of leg five, the longest leg of the race, had to settle for second place tonight, bringing their overall score to 71.5 points.

The final podium spot went to Ericsson 4, which ensures her overall victory in the Volvo Ocean Race 2008-09. Although there is still one leg left to complete before the team crosses the finish for the final time in St Petersburg on 27 June, it is now not possible for them to be beaten.

Volvo Leg 9 Start

The sun returned to Marstrand Saturday as the skippers sat down to discuss the forthcoming Leg 9, the short Swedish sprint down to Sandhamn off the coast of Stockholm. The leg measures just 525 nautical miles, but as it winds down the coast of Sweden, it promises to offer up numerous challenges to the fleet. Ericsson 4, who sit atop the overall leaderboard, are strongly positioned to win the Volvo Ocean Race on this leg. Skipper Torben Grael and his team have a 15 point margin over PUMA, with just 20 points available to any team that runs the table the rest of the way.

The start was extremely intense and tricky with very light shifty winds and irritating swell. But it was to change pretty quickly. After the gun the wind was flirting around each boat during the first beat upwind, giving everyone moments of glory. Telefónica Blue managed to go through the right hand side of the course and, luckily, the wind swung right some 120 degrees and they were in the lead together with Green Dragon. Telefónica Blue/Bouwe Bekking became wedged on a rock and suspended racing at 1231GMT while leading the fleet at the start of leg nine to Stockholm. The boat hit the rock while racing at around 14 knots of boatspeed and is hard aground in one-metre swells. The team immediately dropped the sails, but the boat’s keel is firmly wedged within the rocks whilst the rest of the fleet is sailing away. A pilot boat and the coastguards are standing by and attempting to tow the boat clear. All the crew are unhurt.

VOR Leg 8 Finished

Ericsson 4 has done it again. In a thrilling finish to leg eight of the Volvo Ocean Race from Galway to Marstrand, Sweden, Ericsson 4 pulled out all the stops to take a third leg win in a row. PUMA finished second and, after a heroic effort from the crew, Green Dragon clung on to third place, to complete the same order of finish as for leg seven.

Although Ericsson 4’s overall lead now seems unassailable (102 points overall), with just two legs to go until the finish of the race in St Petersburg later this month, the battle for second place has intensified. Bouwe Bekking’s fourth place on this leg has caused the Telefónica Blue team to lose their second place overall to PUMA (87 points overall) and they now trail by one point.

However, at the head of the field and after five days of relentless racing, Ericsson 4 made her way to the front on day four, arriving at the Rotterdam Gate in first place. Positions swapped regularly as the fleet toughed out typical North Sea conditions, and it was by no means certain that Ericsson 4’s lead was a given thing.

Volvo Ocean Race Leg 8 Start

The seven-strong Volvo Ocean Race fleet prepared to race to Sweden, leaving behind a Galway stopover that has exceeded all expectations. With visitor numbers through the race village now nearing 350,000 and climbing to well over half a million when the crowds along the sea wall for the in-port race weekend are factored in, Galway has demonstrated genuine enthusiasm and passion for the race.
But, on Saturday, the teams left that behind, as they got underway in leg eight, a relatively short sprint up to Sweden. The racecourse includes an opening loop around Galway Bay, before the teams sail for open water and past the iconic Fastnet Rock, en route to the English Channel.

Once up the channel, the race takes the boats towards Rotterdam, where there will be a single loop around two marks laid off the port entrance, near the Hook of Holland.

From Rotterdam, it’s up into the Baltic Sea and onwards to Marstrand for a short ‘pit-stop’ style stopover. Teams are restricted from their normal stopover activities in Marstrand and are not allowed, for example, to have outside assistance in working on the boats, nor are they permitted to add additional sails or other supplies before the restart for leg nine to Stockholm, where normal stopover rules apply.

Hometown boat, Green Dragon, made a fantastic start on Sunday as the Volvo Ocean Race fleet left Galway Bay on the 1250 nm sprint leg to Marstrand in Sweden. It was a great reward for the huge crowds of well-wishers, who filled every available space in Galway in order to cheer their home team on. Ian Walker’s Green Dragon revelled in the heavy breeze and flat water, which suited her perfectly and once clear of the start line, she overhauled Telefónica Black doing 19 knots, to take the lead at the first turning mark.

Sailing beautifully, starting in mid-field, Ericsson 4 out-muscled Telefónica Blue and fought off Green Dragon to take the lead after rounding the mark in second place and setting off up the beat towards the windward mark. At the mark, Ericsson 4 had taken control and hoisted her spinnaker for the second time, followed by Green Dragon who kept the pressure on, Telefonica Blue, PUMA and Telefónica Black. Further back were Ericsson 3 and Delta Lloyd.

In approximately 38 knots of wind yesterday, it became necessary to gybe - not the easiest of manoeuvres in these highly-strung racing yachts at the best of times, but in a strong breeze, it can become more than exciting.

It was a highlight for the Green Dragon team, who led the fleet round the Fastnet Rock late last night. They timed and executed their gybe perfectly whilst flying thief masthead spinnaker. They made the whole manoeuvre look easy, in spite of forgetting to swing the keel. PUMA and Ericsson 4, both of whom were right alongside at the time, did not fare quite so well. A 38-knot squall hit PUMA just as they needed to gybe. Overnight, the fleet has made very quick progress across the Celtic Sea, round the famous Fastnet Rock off south west Ireland, through the Western Approaches, leaving the Scilly Isles to starboard (only Green Dragon and Telefónica Black went to the south), past the Lizard Point and up into the English Channel.

On day 3, the breeze has dropped and the fleet now faces the challenges of the English Channel; tides, currents and shipping. A neck and neck battle between Telefónica Black and Green Dragon has developed as both teams continue to test their knowledge of this difficult region.

The Future of VOR

With 62,000 people in the race village and nearly 60,000 more taking in the racing from the sea wall between Salthill and Barna, along the Northern shores of Galway Bay, Saturday’s in-port Race in Galway was a great success. On Sunday morning the Volvo Ocean Race looked again to the future and particularly the next race, which is due to start in 2011.

The occasion was the third in a series of ‘round table’ meetings where future plans for the race were presented and explained. The Galway sessions follows similar presentations held in Rio de Janeiro and in Boston. In Ireland, special guests invited to attend included, amongst others, French multihull ace Franck Cammas, solo sailors Rolan Jourdain and Jean-Luc Nelias and noted French America’s Cup sailor Luc Gelluseau.

Volvo Ocean Race CEO Knut Frostad opened his presentation by explaining again why and how the race must embrace changes so as to become more successful in the future. The number one objective is to increase the number of competitors in the next race. A larger fleet is needed in the future for the race to be able to reach its full potential. An important element in achieving more boats on the start line in Alicante in 2011 is a reduction of costs and an increase in value for the teams. To that end, changes already announced include a reduction in crew members, from 11 to 10, and nearly a 40% reduction in race sails.

According to Frostad there are three pillars to work on to get more teams on the water in the future. The first element is a technical cost containment and reduction programme, the second an increase on the value to teams, sponsors and ports involved in the race, and the third is to keep the race seriously attractive to the best sailors in the world.

Frostad and his team which includes renowned racing class technical expert Ken McAlpine and rules expert Bill Edgerton, explained further elements of change. They included the crew make-up for the next race. In an effort to encourage female participation, the new rule will allow ‘female’ teams to carry 12 sailors, including the media crew, two of whom may be men. This represents two extra crew members over an all male crew. In terms of the Volvo Open 70 Class Rule, the maximum weight for the keel fin and bulb will be set at 7,400 kgs in the future. There will also be a minimum keel fin weight to be defined at a later date. The fin will be required to be solid, with no fairings permitted. The weight of the yacht is to be increased so that it may fit into the range between 14,000 kilograms and 14,500 kilograms, compared with a range of 13,860 to 14,000 in the current edition of the race. The combination of these two adjustments is an attempt to create a common righting moment for the whole fleet which will yield closer racing between the existing and future fleets of Volvo Open 70s and stop the expensive research and long slow builds that result in maximized bulb weights. Teams with less time and funding have been compromised with the stability of their boats and hence competitiveness.
Headfoils will be banned, headsails will either be set on furlers or with hanks. Stacking of the boats, the movement of sails and loose stores, spares and equipment inside the boat, will be limited to the centre section of the hull.

On the energy side, the overall weight of each yacht’s batteries will be reduced by 100kgs. This reduction will allow design and build teams to put the same 100 kgs into the primary and secondary structure of the hull without increasing the weight of the boat. Currently, very few of the fleet carry any solar panels so each Volvo Open 70 will also be required to carry a renewable energy source capable of generating 80 Watts of electrical power.

Further discussion centred around two-boat testing. The organisers are seeking to ensure that a team needn’t build two boats to be competitive in the next edition of the race. With that in mind, no two-boat testing will be permitted until after the ‘race’ boat has been launched, or after a yet to be defined date, which may be as late as the race start. There will be more information on this at a later date.

The next ‘round table’ session is scheduled for 22 June in Stockholm.

Volvo In-Port Race Galway

PUMA won the in-port race series in Galway today after two thrilling races were held on Galway Bay. This is the first time that PUMA has been on top of the podium for the Volvo Ocean Race and it brings her closer to second place in the overall standings. Telefónica Blue, second today, maintains second place overall, but only by one point and Ericsson 4’s slightly disappointing performance shaves her overall lead from 14.5 points to 13 points.

In race one, Team Telefónica clearly dominated in what started out as perfect conditions, with blue skies and a building breeze. While local heroes, Green Dragon, opted for a committee-boat start followed by Delta Lloyd, Athens Olympic Gold Medallist Iker Martinez (49-er) quickly steered Telefónica Blue to the left of the course and into a clear lead, which he held until the finish gun. Telefónica Black, with America’s Cup helmsman and syndicate head Pedro Campos in charge, made it a one-two for the Spanish team in conditions that clearly suited the two Farr Yacht Design boats.

PUMA put in a good performance to take third, from Ericsson 4, just as the wind began to die and seriously shift. A big cloudbank swept across the racecourse sucking the breeze with it and causing a headache for the race committee who had to reposition the windward and leeward marks several times during the course of the race.

Ericsson 3, Delta Lloyd and Green Dragon all had their problems during the race and found themselves trailing the leaders on the procession to the finish line after the windshift.

After a short postponement, race two got underway and the clouds parted to allow the blue sky and sun to shine through. A new westerly breeze of around 10 knots meant a new course was set, slightly closer to the shore.

Delta Lloyd made a blinding start at the pin end of the start line and led the fleet early. Telefónica Black was on course side and had to dip back behind the line and re-start, but made quick recovery. Green Dragon tacked, dipping behind the whole fleet and headed out to the right hand of the course.

Good work from Kenny Read and his men onboard PUMA meant they rounded the first mark in the lead from Telefónica Blue and Ericsson 4. The order at the front of the fleet remained unchanged at end of the first downwind leg, while, further back, Telefónica Black overtook Delta Lloyd and Green Dragon, who was struggling in the lighter conditions.

On the second beat, Telefónica Black came right back into contention and followed Telefónica Blue through the mid course gate to the right hand side of the course. Green Dragon also chose the right hand side, nearest the beach.

The fleet converged on the windward mark for the last time with PUMA leading the fleet safely round. Second place was very close with Ericsson 3 coming in from the left hand side and the two Telefónica boats approaching from the right. Ericsson 3 got the better of the two Spanish boats and rose up through the fleet from fourth place to round the mark in second place, from Telefónica Blue, Ericsson 4 and Telefónica Black.

On the final spinnaker leg, PUMA remained in control to complete the second race in first place, confirming her win today on a tiebreak, which takes the results of the second race as the decider. Ericsson 3 remained in second place and Telefónica Blue finished third in front of Telefónica Black.

Overall, it was a team affair, with PUMA taking maximum points today, followed by Telefónica Blue and Telefónica Black, Ericsson 3 and Ericsson 4, Delta Lloyd and Green Dragon.

VOR Leg 7 Completed

Ericsson 4 again took maximum points this morning when she crossed the finish of Volvo Ocean Race leg seven in Galway in first position. She finished at 0054 GMT today after taking seven days, 10 hours, 33 minutes and 51 seconds to sail across the North Atlantic from Boston.

The North Atlantic threw everything it could at the seven-strong fleet, which revelled in the fast downwind conditions. Many of the crews have declared the sailing on this leg as the best they have ever experienced and there was plenty to contend with. Thick fog, a myriad of lobster pots followed by a whale exclusion zone, a scoring gate – which Ericsson 4 rounded in third place – and an ice exclusion zone to negotiate all added to the mix before the high-speed drag race to the finish, which proved to be a nail-biting thriller. Ericsson 4 sailed the first half of this leg conservatively, only rising to the top of the pack on 19 May, day four. The remainder of the leg was spent either in first or second place, with the exception of a blip on day six when the team dropped briefly to fourth place.

The crew of Delta Lloyd just gets better and better. Although finishing in fifth place this morning in Galway at 0339 GMT, the team had been up in the lead during this leg and was in contention for a podium finish right up until the last moment.

The fight for fifth place was hard fought. Telefónica Black was also leader of the pack in the first third of the leg, but once the fleet cleared the ice exclusion zone and turned downwind, Telefónica Black did not flourish. For Ericsson 3, who finished two hours later in seventh position at 0558 GMT today, leg seven could have been a leg the crew would rather forget

Leg Six Finishing Order Galway
1. Ericsson 4: 8 points
2. PUMA: 7 points
3. Green Dragon: 6 points
4. Telefónica Blue: 5 points
5. Delta Lloyd: 4 points
6. Telefónica Black: 3 points
7. Ericsson 3: 2 points

Delta Lloyd Leads!

The breeze is up and the Volvo fleet is rocketing downwind towards a predicted finish in Galway, Ireland early on Sunday morning. It’s the kind of sailing that everyone has been looking forward to and it is almost certainly the last time the boats will have the chance to show off their paces in the open ocean. The sailing conditions are absolutely stunning. Downwind, 25-30 knots, flat water and a red morning sun. It is smiles all round too on Delta Lloyd, who are in the lead today. Ahead of the cold front, the crews are playing the fortunes of the Gulf Stream, which, if in the right place, can give a boat a boost of nearly three knots. Scrutinising satellite images and recording surface temperatures gives a rough guideline as to where to look for the best current, the temperature gauge being the best tool as it shows the transition from colder to warmer water.

A New Game Starts

The fleet, led by Telefónica Black, is converging on the southeast corner of the ice exclusion zone just over three nautical miles ahead, where sheets will be eased and spinnakers hoisted as a new and exciting downwind game begins.

The crew of Green Dragon has been looking forward to this point of the leg. The forecast is for downwind sailing and much of it will be in very windy conditions. Earlier, when Telefónica Black set off along the 175 nm southern perimeter of the ‘ice fence’, quite suddenly they hooked into the warm waters of the Gulf Stream – two knots of east setting current and 16 degrees Celsius water temperature. Currently, just 12 miles separate pathfinder Telefónica Black, from Ericsson 4 and Telefónica Blue. Delta Lloyd leads the second string from PUMA, Green Dragon and Ericsson 3 who are having a torrid time after losing three positions at the scoring gate.

Telefónica Blue has averaged the highest boat speed of 17 knots over the past three hours and also holds the fastest 24-hour run of 269 nm. Computer routing software is predicting a finish in Galway early on Sunday morning based on current performance.

19 May VOR Day 4

The sun was out for a few hours and although it was still a bit foggy, it was a wonderful spring like day. The sea was flat and the boats went dry inside and out. And then, moist and cold again. Due to the fog everything gets moist and wet. And when things get wet, they get colder.

Crews are trying to keep their socks dry. When the mist went away for a few hours, the crews used the time to dry the boats and the gear. The crews are looking forward to the warmer water around the corner when they get closer to the Gulf Stream.

Green Dragon is out of last place and are less than an hour behind all the other boats after making big gains to the South. Being south was an advantageous thing.

Telefónica Blue continues to make her mark on the Volvo Ocean Race 2008-09 when she was first past the scoring gate off Newfoundland, claiming four points. This comes on top of her recent wins inshore in Rio de Janeiro and Boston and her rounding the Fernando de Noronha Gate in first place on leg six.

Everything lined up perfectly for full points at the scoring gate until early yesterday morning when a couple of big whales appeared out of the thick fog. Ericsson 3 managed to avoid the first one, but only saw the tail of the next one as it dived just in front. The boat hit with both the keel and the daggerboard, and came to a complete stop with some bad noises from the appendages. The keel fin fairings were damaged or off in a big area, but the daggerboard was ok. Green Dragon and Delta Lloyd are just in front, and they are slowly pulling away.

Scoring Gate Order
1. Telefónica Blue at 03:11.24 GMT
2. PUMA at 03:12.04 GMT
3. Ericsson 4 at 03:33.05 GMT
4. Ericsson 3 at 04:06.02 GMT
5. Telefónica Black at 04:36.54 GMT
6. Delta Lloyd at 06:16.00 GMT

VOR, Boston to Galway

After a short postponement the last open ocean leg of the Volvo Ocean Race 2008-09 got underway 16 May 2009.

There was some confusion around the time of the postponement which led to four boats racing half the first beat of the inshore course before turning back to restart 20 minutes later.

After the gun fired, the seven-strong fleet split immediately with PUMA (Ken Read/USA ) looking really strong on port tack, followed by Delta Lloyd (Roberto Bermúdez/ESP), Telefónica Black (Fernando Echávarri/ESP) and Ericsson 4 (Torben Grael/BRA), while Ericsson 3 (Magnus Olsson/SWE), Green Dragon (Ian Walker/GBR) and Telefónica Blue (Bouwe Bekking/NED) opted for a starboard tack start.

Fog descended on the course as Telefónica Blue screamed up through the fleet to lead round the first mark, followed by Telefónica Black, Green Dragon, PUMA, Ericson 3 and Ericsson 4. As the fleet approached the mark, a large freighter hove into view. The leaders had a clear rounding, but Delta Lloyd was forced to alter course by the ship and rounded in last place.

While the two Telefónica boats showed a clean pair of heels to the rest of the fleet, PUMA ate into Green Dragon’s margin and Ericsson 4 put pressure on PUMA.

At the second turning mark the two Telefónica boats, Blue and Black, led the fleet. PUMA stole third place from Green Dragon as they nipped inside at the mark, followed by Ericsson 4. Ericsson 3 sailed ‘through the eye of the needle’ between PUMA and Green Dragon as the fleet dropped their spinnakers and flew headsails for the final leg of the course.

The final order as the fleet left Boston and disappeared into the mist heading for Galway in Ireland, was Telefónica Blue, Telefónica Black, PUMA and overall race leader Ericsson 4.

The first boat is scheduled to arrive in Galway one week from today, but first the fleet has to cope with ice further south than normal, a scoring gate off the island of Newfoundland, a whale exclusion zone just off Boston, and an ice exclusion zone in the shape of a pouch hanging to the east and south of Newfoundland.

It this isn’t enough to keep the minds of the 77 sailors occupied, in 2005-06 on this Atlantic leg Bouwe Bekking and his crew had to abandon their yacht movistar and were rescued by the crew of ABN AMRO TWO who, days before, had had to cope with the loss of crewman Hans Horrevoets who drowned after being washed over the side. The 2,550nm leg seven to Galway promises to give the seven competing crews plenty to think about.