Volvo Ocean Race - Bold move by Team Alvimedica trumps the Leaderboard

by Richard Gladwell, Sail-World.com on 19 Jun 2015 Team Alvimedica has trumped the Leaderboard in the Volvo Ocean Race, after a bold tactical move to stay on the French coast has paid off.

Earlier Alvimedica navigator Will Oxley remarked that the course up the coast of France would not pay off initially, but as the boats worked their way north, the winds would increase and those of the French coast would enjoy a good payday.

The issue is the Traffic Separation Scheme which dominates the the English Channel at its narrowest point, to make life thoroughly difficult for the navigators and strategists, the Volvo Ocean Race organizers inserted their own Exclusion Zones, which left a very narrow route up the French coast and a broader one up the English coast past Dover.

The race leaders (excepting for overall leader Abu Dhabi, who had the race all but won with a leg to spare, and were just looking for the quiet life) opted for the English coastal route, while Alvimedica, Abu Dhabi, Team Vestas Wind and Team SCA stayed on the French side.

Initially the English route looked very good with the three boats straightlining at good speed up the coast while on the French side the four boats were forced to zig-zag up the coast in light winds as they passed through a very narrow channel remaining between the French coast and the Exclusion.

As the day passed the tables reversed, and now it is Alvimedica who is streaking along at speeds of up to 10kts, while the English coast trio of Team Brunel, Mapfre and Dongfeng are struggling to get back across the Channel sailing in winds of 3.8kts and making as little as 1.3kts of boat speed and fighting with the tides.

Team Alvimedica OBR, Amory Ross described the day in his report at 1900UTC on June 18:

England versus France – that’s how the fleet is playing it today. The Dover Traffic Separation Scheme that lies in the middle of the English Channel split the seven boats.

Dongfeng Race Team, MAPFRE and Team Brunel took the northern English coast route, leaving Team Alvimedica, Abu Dhabi Ocean Racing, Team Vestas Wind and Team SCA to play the southern French coast.

Initially the north pack was making good headway in more wind and a better angle. The southern pack had to tack many times along the northern beaches of France, famous for many more sobering conflicts of the past. Struggling with less wind and a worse angle, they started to fall back.

However by this afternoon the tables slowly turned, favouring the southern pack again. Team Alvimedica stretched their lead to the south over Abu Dhabi Ocean Racing. Both fleets will at least be trying to win their respective side.

By later afternoon the northern pack had slowed down from about 15 knots to about 5 knots. The wind went right and with the TSS in their way, they had to start tacking.

Right now there is about 10 nautical miles from Dongfeng back to Team Brunel, bobbing about just past the TSS and desperately trying to get south. The wind has dropped right off and their sails are hanging in just 2 knots of wind.

Just 30nm to the south, Team Alvimedica is making good headway sailing at 10 knots straight towards The Hague.

The tide has changed and is getting stronger against the fleet. It’s not making things very easy for them as they navigate in changeable conditions, busy shipping and a setting sun.
The big question is how the northern fleet will zip up with the southern. Who will have been right? England or France?