It has been some frustration onboard Ericsson 3. They have lost a lot of miles from their decision to go outside the ‘dangerous ground area’ and they were struggling to get back. But, bad weather was on its way and the race committee took precautions. A decision was taken to modify the course to include a waypoint at South Rock Light, positioned near to Manila in the Philippines, to keep the fleet to the east of the South China Sea, and in the lee of the Philippine islands, which would provide shelter from the approaching storm.
As the fleet converged on South Rock Light, it was Telefónica Black in the lead from PUMA and Telefónica Blue. The teams then short-tacked up the shore of Luzon Island as the wind began to build. Mainsails were reefed and smaller headsails hoisted as the seas became confused.
As the fleet converged on South Rock Light, it was Telefónica Black in the lead from PUMA and Telefónica Blue. The teams then short-tacked up the shore of Luzon Island as the wind began to build. Mainsails were reefed and smaller headsails hoisted as the seas became confused.
Then the storm came. It brought out the pure seamanship of the fleet rather than the hard racing ability of the seven crews. Data off the boats indicated top wind speeds near 50 knots and maximum wave heights of 14 metres, caused by the wind blowing against the prevailing current, resulting in a sharp, steep sea state.
PUMA (Ken Read) broke their boom and turned south while in the lead and headed downwind. The have anchored in a bay. Then, the new leaders, Telefónica Black, who had been sailing conservatively under storm sails, pulled off the racecourse to investigate a crack in the hull. Delta Lloyd (Roberto Bérmudez/ESP) also turned back from the Luzon Strait for the calmer waters of the coast to repair a damaged steering wheel, ripped mainsail and a damaged mast track. The team suspended racing at 1010 GMT, (under race rules for a minimum of 12 hours), and anchored in a bay just north of Vigan. Green Dragon (Ian Walker/GBR), already nursing a damaged rig, followed Delta Lloyd’s lead and headed inshore. The boat suffered damage to the forward ring frame. There is a three or four-day window to get to Qingdao before the weather turned bad there, so the teams would have to leave their safe havens when it was probably still rough, in order to get to China before the weather closed in.
