Liverpool wins first leg of Clipper Race

by Event on 25 Sep 2005 At 06:14 local time (GMT+1) Liverpool 08 ghosted gently across the finish line off Cascais, Portugal, to win the first leg of the Clipper 05-06 Race and just under half an hour later as the sun was rising, Westernaustralia took second, followed 10 minutes later by Durban.

These three had been in contention for much of the race, and the relief on Liverpool Skipper Tim Magee’s face was plain to see. The last few hours had been tough on all of them, frustratingly calm as they inched their way towards the finish line, lightweight spinnakers hardly filling as crew struggled to keep them from collapsing completely.

In these conditions being in front can often be the most stressful. One must keep the boat moving at all costs as any loss of momentum is hard to regain. If the boat behind picks a better angle, perhaps not sailing quite as close to the land, they can often make big gains.

Westernaustralia had narrowed the gap to under two miles by the time Liverpool finished. As day broke, the breeze filled in and Durban, too, picked up speed for a wonderful reach across the line.

Hopefully, this filling breeze will continue and help to push the remainder of the fleet towards the finish.

Singapore led the next pack in. She was followed six minutes later by Cardiff. Next expected are Qingdao and New York. Only two miles separated them at 0400 this morning, so it should be a close finish. Latest ETA is around 1500 local time.

Event website: http://www.clipper-ventures.co.uk/plc/news.php?id=119