Clipper 2002/2003 Race - Hurray - Trade Wind sailing!
08:02, 09 August 2003
by Colin de Mowbray

Yesterday afternoon Ross Daniel in New York echoed everyone's thoughts 'A joy to be moving again!' The wind has stayed and all the boats are now enjoying a beam reach with 15 - 20 knots true wind from the NE. The wind appears to be a bit too shy for the heavyweight kites at present but I can see the easterly boats may be the first to be tempted to trade their windward positions for a bit more speed during the day.

The race order has remained the same with Simon Rowell and Jersey locked into the lead and holding a westerly position in the fleet. Justin Taylor and Hong Kong are however also trailblazers some 50 miles on their starboard beam, and going just as strongly. The effect of the arrival of the NE Trades has opened out the places but not as much as might possibly have been expected.

Bristol and Liverpool have remained within 3 miles of each other for 48 hours now as they give chase to Hong Kong. They lead the heavenly pair of New York to the SW and London to the SE. Glasgow remains faithful to the westerly cause and continues in Jersey's wake. That leaves Roger Steven-Jennings and Cape Town who went out on their own to the west hoping for better currents and winds. Despite their flank being closer to the finish their more southerly latitude has meant they have had to wait for the Trades to arrive and so have lost out 65 miles over the last 24 hour period. They will need some clever thinking now if they are going to get back into the fight.

The next landmark for the fleet will be when they cross their outward tracks from Portugal to Cuba. This is known as 'Tying the Knot' and is the true symbol of doing a circumnavigation of the world. This will have a great significance for the Round the Worlders; it is an achievement that they will be justly proud of and something that can never be taken away from them. How many people do you know who have raced a yacht around the world? At the present rate I expect that Jersey will tie the knot first as they had a more southerly track to Cuba when they passed this way some 30,000 miles and 9 months ago. Hong Kong, despite being slightly north of Jersey at present, had a track to Cuba well to the north.

The arrangements in New York are progressing well. Our visit is supported by the Sports Commission which is a department of the Mayor's office. The 8 yachts will be berthed at the Intrepid Museum at the end of 46th street. This is no ordinary museum as the Intrepid is a retired US naval aircraft carrier. The hangar decks have now house a variety of amazing displays and the whole complex includes a destroyer and a submarine. It is difficult to imagine anywhere more exciting to base a Round the World yacht race and I am sure that all those visiting the Clipper fleet will be intrigued and thoroughly enjoy the Intrepid experience. I recommend their website at http://www.intrepidmuseum.org

And how better to spend a lovely sunny weekend in Somerset? The de Mowbray families' copy of Sea Change has arrived and will be duly passed around to those who have not yet read it. As Ed Gorman from The Times said 'Dickens' writes well - his accounts of the storms off Japan and the Cape of Good Hope are excellent' …..Ian's Great Grandfather, Charles, did quite a good job with the old quill also.

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Source: Clipper 2002/2003 Round The World Race Official Site