It’s on the nose in the Bay of Biscay - Race News

It’s on the nose in the Bay of Biscay

24 September 2007

Following the light wind and clear skies of the start, the fleet encountered totally different conditions overnight and through the early hours of this morning.  A cold front has swept across the Bay of Biscay bringing rain and winds of 25 knots with occasional gusts of 30 knots.  Since the fleet’s departure the wind direction has been predominantly from the south-west which has proved challenging for the fleet as this is the direction they need to head.  The necessary tacking has caused the fleet to split with Jamaica and Hull & Humber choosing a more northerly course and New York heading south with the rest of the fleet spread inbetween over a 100 nautical-mile line.

Race Director Joff Bailey said: “The boats are so close in terms of their Distance To Finish (DTF) that until the wind changes into the north-west we will not know who had the right tactics. Liverpool 08 and Durban 2010 and Beyond are doing well in a more central position but Hull & Humber or New York could pull up through the fleet if the wind gods smile on them.”

Reporting from Uniquely Singapore last night Skipper Mark Preedy said:  “We’re trucking along at a steady 9 knots and the crew are starting to settle into the daily routine that will become very natural over the next three weeks.”

All the skippers selected their Yankee 1 and a full mainsail for the start in order to give themselves the largest sail area possible for the light wind conditions.  With the increase in wind strength overnight there will have been some frantic sail changing onboard and most of the boats will have made the decision to change down to their Yankee 2 or Yankee 3 headsails.  The mainsails will also have been reefed in order to keep the boats under control and enable them to make the best possible progress to the first waypoint off Finnisterre.

The good news for the fleet is that once the cold front has passed the winds are forecasted to become more favourable north-westerlies allowing each of the boats to make a more direct route to the famous headland.