News

Crews continue to struggle, with day 26 seeing the biggest loss of distance since the low pressure set in over the fleet with crews losing on average 4nm. There are no substantial gains or losses across the fleet, with just a few crews swapping positions. However the crews of Beech Boys Atlantic and Heritage Explorer are yet to lose distance to the finish since the weather turned.

By Monday morning the crews furthest west in the fleet will have Northerly winds, so may be able to come off para anchor and start to make some headway towards Antigua. Conditions will still be hard to row in at this point as any crews rowing will have cross winds acting on the boat, although the wind and the waves should work in unison moving from the north to the south, so at least there will be some continuity. Crews further east will have to wait a further 24-36 hours before conditions change enough to row.

Ocean rowing boats are most remarkable in conditions such as these. While an imposing 5 or 6 metre high wall of water sounds terrifying, due to the small size and light weight of the boats they simply ride up over the waves with their immense buoyancy. Sometimes it can be a harrowing position, with a wall of water racing towards the boat, but with each wave that progresses towards the boat, she will happily sit on top of the ocean. The ‘bad’ waves are the ones that break either just before the boat. These waves will cover the deck in sea water, and promptly throw the boat and her crew around the cabins briefly.

There have been cases in the past where a wave may roll the boat and capsize her (these are generally waves hitting the beam which shouldn’t happen while on para anchor as the boat will turn into the weather) but then the aggressive self righting capabilities come into their own to ensure a crews safety.

Britannia III managed to gain a further 70 nautical miles to the finish as the wind begins to turn towards Barbados. The crew should then benefit from Easterly and East North Easterly winds within 24-36 hours.