Clipper 2002/2003 Race - Liverpool Leads!
17:17, 20 September 2003
by Colin de Mowbray

There is great excitement out in the Western Approaches….. During the morning all the yachts' tracks tailed off to the south east as the gale force north easter cut into them. The advantage for Bristol and Liverpool in the north became greater and greater…. It was a game that needed strong nerves.

The weather front has now passed over Jersey in the south and Simon Rowell, now some 40 miles off the lead is one again a happy bear. 'Colin' he reported. 'We have now tacked and yippee - we are heading for JERSEY!' What will delight him more is that he knows Bristol are heading for the north Spanish coast and their lead will be tumbling like a one legged drunken tightrope walker.

But the surprise this afternoon is that Liverpool has got past Bristol and has taken the lead. This is tremendous news for Adam Kyffin and his crew who have been on the pace for so much of this race but have still to score a win. With one more full race and one half race to come they desperately need to score here and try and grasp third place overall.

London have done a great job too! They have been doggedly slogging away and now have had their reward by getting ahead of Jersey. Will those last however now that Jersey has the 'new' wind?

Hong Kong's dash south should start to show gains over the next 12 hour period. They will be hoping to get ahead of Glasgow again. Cape Town and New York both had respectable runs of 76 miles and these should now start to rise once they can head for Jersey.

The next schedule will be very telling as Jersey closes up once again. When will Adam and Binks stop heading for Spain and will they be ahead or astern of Simon the Pieman in Jersey?

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