SOS Ocean Racing firing up NSW Coast on last leg of circumnavigation

by SOS Racing media on 12 Jun 2010 SOS Ocean Racing is making up for lost time by averaging 8-10 knots this morning. Queensland is looking closer by the hour. With under 800nm to go to Ian Thomson's home town of Airlie Beach and the finish, Ian is focused on driving the boat hard in the strong 20-25 knot south westerly breeze.

This morning prior to lunch, Ian was surfing along at 15 knots making great ground towards the QLD border and to what he says are warmer waters. 'I will be very happy to see Queensland waters, more because of the warmth rather than the fact it is close to home. Last night with a brisk Westerly it was really cold out in the cockpit so bring on QLD' Ian said.

Ian hopes to get in before the State of Origin Rugby League match but will need a dream run up the coast for this to happen. He will need to average almost eight knots all the way, to reach Airlie Beach in time for kick off next Wednesday. It is more likely that Ian will delay his arrival if he can't get into Airlie at a reasonable hour.

Speaking with Ian this morning he said 'I would love to make it for Origin but it is a stretch. If I can't make it before kick off then I am most likely going to delay my arrival till Thursday morning, even if it means throttling back.'

Ian is glad to finally be seeing wildlife with lots of dolphins and whales on his path. However he was not so glad to see two clumps of seaweed this morning, which meant he had to round up into the wind to remove them from his rudders.

SOS Ocean Racing stands for Save Our Seas and Ian's entire campaign is about raising awareness for the damage plastic bags are doing to our environment, in particular the marine environment where they are killing in excess of 100,000 marine animals every year as well as over 1 million sea birds. Ian encourages people to use green bags and gives a hint that the best thing you can do is not to put them in your kitchen drawer when you have unpacked your shopping but rather put them in the boot of your car so they are with you when you go shopping next.

Please help Ian with his campaign. Simply logon to his website www.sosoceanracing.com and vote in the very short online poll.