Team Francesca Clapcich set off for The Ocean Race Atlantic start line
by Team Francesca Clapcich / 11th Hour Racing 1 Sep 11:41 PDT
Team Francesca Clapcich touches down in New York © Team Francesca Clapcich
In light wind, humid, and misty conditions, the six IMOCA race boats in The Ocean Race Atlantic left the dock at Brooklyn Marina, waving goodbye to friends, family, and shore crew on the dock as they started the long 120 nautical mile sail to the offshore startline.
The crew of Team Francesca Clapcich Powered by 11th Hour Racing - Frankie, Will Harris, Elodie Mettraux, Alberto Bona, and onboard reporter Julien Champolion, have a fast and furious Atlantic crossing ahead of them, anticipated to be arriving in Lorient, France around September 8.
For now, the start is expected to be at 0600 EST (1000 UTC) when the six-strong fleet will cross a virtual startline and the race will be live.
Starting safer
Inside the race to keep whales and sailors out of each other's way
The offshore startline of The Ocean Race Atlantic is thanks to the work of The Marine Mammal Advisory Group - in close collaboration with The Ocean Race Atlantic organizers and teams - to minimize the risk to marine mammals - one exclusion zone, one dataset, and one hazard report at a time.
Emily Caroe, an ambassador for the Marine Mammal Advisory Group and head of communications and purpose for Team Francesca Clapcich Powered by 11th Hour Racing, finds out more about what the group is up to from Damian Foxall.
Read more here...
Last weather briefing
A straight-line dogflight to Brittany
"Not many maneuvers for us this time. It's going to be about pure boat speed, start to finish, a drag race for most of the way across."
For this race, Will Harris will be on navigation duty. His job will be to get the boat pointing in the right direction as much as possible, and build our strategy around the weather. We asked him for an overview of the upcoming race situation.