Clipper Round the World Race - Welcome to Yorkshire secures second

by Heather Ewing on 2 May 2012 Clipper 2011-12 Round the World Yacht Race fleet is on the nineteenth day of race ten from Oakland, California to Panama.

'It brings me great pleasure to be writing Welcome to Yorkshire’s report this morning,' explains skipper, Rupert Dean, after his team claimed second place in Race 10 of the Clipper 11-12 Round the World Yacht Race.

'Finishing second in the race to Panama has brought my crew, the Welcome to Yorkshire sponsor and all our supporters back home much happiness. They should feel proud with what they have achieved from this long, hot and mentally challenging race,' continues Rupert.

Welcome to Yorkshire crossed the race ten finish line at 1300 UTC yesterday afternoon to seal their second podium position of Clipper 11-12, their first since the race to Rio de Janeiro.

'What a tactical race it proved to be! Our podium finish has come at a very good time for the Welcome to Yorkshire team. After numerous legs of underachievement, where the tactical dice have rolled the wrong way for us, we really needed this. The result will be very good for our team belief as we focus on the remaining five races to Southampton and very intense battles in the North Atlantic.

'Until then I wish to congratulate my crew for their hard work and for never giving up. Time now for them to take a break and spread the Welcome to Yorkshire message to Central America. Panama had better watch out!'

The ten-strong fleet taking part in the Clipper 11-12 Race are now motoring their way to Panama where they are expected to arrive on the 6 May and await their transit of the Panama Canal. The Race Viewer will continue to track each boat’s position every three hours (De Lage Landen every 12 hours due to a technical issue) and updates on ETA in Panama and transit times will be published on the Clipper Race website.

'Well what a day,' reports Visit Finland skipper, Olly Osborne.

'The final couple of hundred miles of this race turned out to be some of the closest racing of all, and we certainly had more than the heat to make us sweat!' continues Olly, soon after his team snatched third place from De Lage Landen in race ten.

'During the last 24 hours we found ourselves in a four boat battle for the line, with Welcome to Yorkshire and the De Lage Landen team offshore of us and Gold Coast Australia going for a similar more inshore route.

'Keeping the boat moving during the last 24 hours has been very demanding, and with the stakes being so high every position report has been eagerly awaited and analysed carefully. The crew have worked incredibly hard to squeeze every ounce of speed out of the light airs, and I am glad that they have the reward of being back on the podium after nearly three months. It has been a very exiting race from both a tactical and sailing perspective, and it will certainly be one of the most memorable for me.'

Elsewhere in the fleet attention has now turned to arriving in Panama and transiting the famous canal.

'The crew are looking forward to getting to Panama, transiting the canal and getting ready for the next race to our home port of New York,' reveals Gareth Glover, skipper of New York.

'We haven’t won a race so far but we will be focusing on wining this race to our home port. The next race is going to include more wind and more of the conditions that we race well in and have had top three places in, so we are hope full that we can done much better on this race. As we get closer to the end of the round the world yacht race every point will count until we get back to the UK.'

Meanwhile on board Geraldton Western Australia, skipper Juan Coetzer, reflects on his team’s performance.

'Sixth position is ours, a good result, meaning progress and more points. I and my crew are pleased by the result. Lots of work needs being done before we reach Panama, such as a spring clean and tidy up, taking stock of what we have and doing maintenance were needed.

'All the tasks need being done and the crew need to be kept focused, as a bored crew member could become an infectious problem,' continues Juan.

'I sprang a man over board drill just before sunset and let my watch leader, Ian Geraghty take charge. Even though it is a drill, I reminded the crew to take it seriously. Doing these drills and exercise leads to the crew being more competent and it’s a time to learn from mistakes in order to perform better in the future.'

With the first boats expected to arrive in Panama on the 6 May, the Race Office hopes the first transit through the canal will begin on the 9 May. Updates on the fleet’s progress will be posted daily on the website and the crew’s daily diaries will continue to be sent back from the boat.

Provisional Race 10 Results:
1 Gold Coast Australia
2 Welcome to Yorkshire
3 Visit Finland
4 De Lage Landen
5 Derry-Londonderry
6 Geraldton Western Australia
7 Singapore
8 New York
9 Qingdao
10 Edinburgh Inspiring Capital

Full positions are updated every three hours and can be found online.

www.clipperroundtheworld.com/" target="_blank">Clipper Round the World Yacht Race website