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
