Volvo Ocean Race- The week ahead on Leg 1

Volvo Ocean Race- The week ahead on Leg 1 - Team Alvimedica

by Sail-World on 24 Oct 2014

October 22, 2014. Leg 1 onboard Team Alvimedica. Day 11. The third day in the clutches of the Doldrums brings no breaks for Team Alvimedica, still searching for consistent winds and a way south with the fleet. MAPFRE gets absorbed by a growing rain cloud in the doldrums as Alvimedica navigator Will Oxley tries to avoid the same fate. Volvo Ocean Race Amory Ross / Team Alvimedica

Team Alvimedica Navigational Strategist, Anderson Reggio, explains the issues ahead of the crews in the remaining half of Leg 1 of the 2014-15 Volvo Ocean Race.

Sometimes situations like these serve as a reminder of why certain stereotypes exist. The Doldrums this year really are as unpredictable and varied as their reputation suggests. You can reckon that every boat is thankful to just be free of their grasp. Now, as we push away from the latest tropical wave and move onwards towards the turning mark of Fernando de Noronha (an island off the Brazilian coast that is about 3,300 nautical miles to the Cape Town finish), we can only simply follow the pack in front.

As of the 1900 UTC position report on Thursday evening, we were sailing neck and neck with Mapfre, thirty miles back off Dongfeng in fourth. The leaders have taken advantage of their head start after their early departure from the Doldrums and are now close to 200nm ahead. There are no other options for big gains on the fleet in the short term as the SE breeze will continue to blow at a steady 18 - 20 knots for the next two days. All you can do is go fast and hope everyone else goes slower.

October 22, 2014. Leg 1 onboard Team Alvimedica. Day 11. The third day in the clutches of the Doldrums brings no breaks for Team Alvimedica, still searching for consistent winds and a way south with the fleet. Charlie Enright grabs a quick nap on the bow in the doldrums, where sleep can be hard go find with always-changing weather. © Amory Ross / Team Alvimedica

The next major milestone in this marathon of Leg One is the Equatorial crossing. Maritime lore and superstition mandates a sacrifice to King Neptune, the Roman god of the sea by those who have never crossed this sacred line. Newbies are simply known as pollywogs and the sacrifices asked of them are to appease Neptune in hopes of a safe journey and advantageous breezes.

Perhaps something special will be asked this year as Alvimedica moves into the Southern Hemisphere; something which may help them gain back some of those precious miles lost as they sat and waited for the trades to arrive. The bigger the sacrifice, the more the gods may lean in your favor.

After the Equator and Fernando, the weather looks to be shaping up to be pretty standard for the South Atlantic. The St Helena High which typically dominates this body of water is the main driver for breeze in the short term. Slowly the SE trades will give way to the E breeze circulating around this massive high and teams will then face the next major tactical choice. Do they head further south in search of a weather system to push them along, or do they skirt the center of the high and sail much less distance but in less breeze. The same decision process governing the doldrums crossing will return. Distance versus pressure, the careful balance which will be discussed over and over again around the world.