The start of leg three of Velux 5 Oceans has been postponed as a result of the severe weather expected to hit Norfolk, Virginia (USA), over the weekend, was announced by Race Director David Adams on Friday April 13. With less than 48 hours to go before the fleet of skippers were due to set sail for Bilbao (Basque Country, Spain) and complete their solo circumnavigation of the planet, the weather has dealt a blow to race start plans as a powerful low pressure system moves into the Chesapeake north of Norfolk and looks set to deliver intense storm conditions, reminiscent of the start of the race in Bilbao.
The latest forecasts from NOAA show 40-55 knots of wind offshore (over 20 miles from land) on Sunday morning, with gusts up to 60 knots and waves of 25 feet east of 1,000 fathoms (over 100 miles offshore). After the front has hit, the storm is then expected to back off with up to 40 knots of wind on Monday, diminishing to 25 knots late in the day. These formula one ocean machines would not only contend with these challenging conditions, but would have to battle against the tides, significantly worsening the sea state and increasing risk of damage.
Race organisers have not set a new time for the start but will review the situation every 12 hours and make their decisions as the weather develops, in constant consultation with meteorologists from across USA and Europe, as well as the skippers and their teams. The news is a blow to the planned events for start day, which included a helicopter trip for the skippers out to HMS OCEAN and festivities down at the Waterside Marina in Norfolk. However, the skippers will still attend a special farewell ceremony onboard HMS OCEAN on Sunday with guests from Velux and representatives from the city of Norfolk to formally bid farewell and celebrate the end of the stopover in Virginia.
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