Volvo fleet splits and heads for Cape of Good Hope

by Volvo Ocean Race media on 16 Nov 2008 Eight hours into the second leg and the Volvo Ocean Race fleet is zig-zagging its way southwards having cleared the Cape of Good Hope.

After fighting their way free of the fickle winds in Table Bay soon after the start in Cape Town, the leaders were pounding along in 17 knots from the south at about 10-12 knots of boat speed.

They are all seeking to hitch a ride on the low pressure system, lying south of the Cape, that would fast track them along the southern African coast if they can hook into it.

By the 19:00 GMT Position Report, a split had developed with PUMA and Green Dragon powering south, to the west of the rest, while Team Russia, the most-easterly positioned of the fleet, chose to hug the Cape of Storms. Meanwhile, Ericsson 3 and 4 occupied the middle ground along with Delta Lloyd and the Telefonica twins.

An ever-changing leader board had Delta Lloyd nomimally leading the way from Telefonica Blue and Ericsson 3 with over 110 miles covered.

The 4,450-mile passage takes the eight Volvo Open 70s south to the foot of South Africa via an encounter with the Roaring Forties and from the Atlantic to the Indian Ocean.

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The first point scoring opportunity on this leg will be when the fleet crosses from west to east – the line of longitude 58 degrees E, anywhere south of the latitude 20 degrees S.

The journey time is expected to be in the region of 18 days on this unique venture into the unknown. Tricky wind conditions, tough currents, monsoons, hundreds of small vessels and the threat of pirates are on the menu.

PUMA's skipper Ken Read summed it up thus. 'I have never entered a race or a leg of a race so confused about how the outcome may turn out. I’m expecting the unexpected in this leg,' he said.

'This is certainly a road never travelled – rather than less travelled – so we have to be smart, with our eyes open, and also lucky in this leg too. There are many obstacles out there, both above the water, such as unlit fishing boats, but also in the water that we have to look out for.'

'There are so many different route possibilities; we could all end up hundreds of miles apart. It’s going to be interesting for us, but it could be a hard leg to follow back home. It may be hard at times to see which boat is really ahead, and who has the advantage. It certainly keeps me awake at night. '

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