Volvo Ocean Race- Wislang expected to lead Kiwis home after fast ride

by Richard Gladwell, Sail-World.com NZL on 24 Feb 2015 Latest predictions for the finish of Leg 4 of the Volvo Ocean Race are all indicating a finish time between 1000hrs and 1400hrs on Saturday February 28.

As the boats exit an area of variable breeze around Vanatu, they are expected to be in steady breeze from midnight Tuesday night (NZT) and that 1200nm long motorway will last pretty well all the way to Auckland.

The lead boat is expected to rip down the Pacific Highway to Auckland with the boats enjoying fast reaching conditions sitting on speeds of 13-20kts for almost the whole trip.

The only real soft spot forecast by the routing function of Predictwind occurs in the final approaches to Auckland around dawn when the wind is forecast to drop to 6-8kts and the boats may even have to get onto starboard tack after spending over 1,000nm with the breeze coming over the port side of the boat.

The optimum course from Predictwind is also largely unchanged - a near straight line to Auckland - giving the shortest distance in what should be very fast sailing conditions.

As predicted in the last routing by Predictwind, Abu Dhabi was in fact the race leader, and the then Volvo Ocean Race leaderboard leader, Dongfeng has dropped in behind her. Now the leaderboard lines up with the routing, which takes into account the weather expected to be encountered on the leg.

With a lead of less than 1nm, Abu Dhabi will have her work cut out to stay between the French/Chinese entry.

For one of only three Kiwi crew members in the Volvo Ocean Race, Abu Dhabi's Daryl Wislang looks like being the first in the queue at the piecart, when the boats reach Auckland.

Abu Dhabi OBR Matt Knighton report the crew have had a fast trip through the Doldrums which exist around the equator. 'It’s not every day you get to do 28 knots through the doldrums' he wrote yesterday. 'Everyone was on deck this morning enjoying the fast sailing while it lasted. Blasting downwind through the bright blue water of the South Pacific is exactly what you’d imagine it would be – really really fun. The spray is as warm as the air and it’s refreshing – the exact opposite of the funk and sweat brewing down below.'

About Predictwind:

Developed by former Olympian, Jon Bilger (470, 1992), www.predictwind.com!PredictWind application was used by the Swiss team Alinghi to win the 2003 and 2007 America's Cups, and has become the leading wind system used by racing and recreational sailors around the world. It is available on a subscription basis and also with a free forecast option.

A mobile app for Android and iPhone is available and www.predictwind.com!PredictWind is available for download

Real time local wind observations have been added as further functionality.

You can check the weather anywhere in the world, and get a five day forecast, plus a variety of other features and functions of www.predictwind.com!PredictWind. The app is synchronised with your PC, so that your latest set of locations are always available without resetting each time you change a device.

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