News

Another  1100nm completed by the fleet through day 34, a drop which is a reflection of the slight change in wind speed and direction over the weekend.  Just 12nm separated the 2 leading pairs crews at the conclusion of day 34, and both had crossed the halfway point within the last 24 hours.  Two more crews, Vivaldi (Rames Dames) and Patience are within 100nm of the halfway point of the race, and this week may see the first half of the fleet pass the same point.

The weekend weather blip is almost over, with the forecast set for Easterly winds until next weekend, when the weather may turn again – however this is still a week away and naturally it is hoped the forecast may alter as the week progress.

Having endured almost 5 weeks at sea many competitors are experiencing the brains trickery during the overnight watch. When in the depths of tiredness and exhaustion, it is very easy for the mind to imagine things - past crews have mentioned these after finishing races and it is no different for crews in the Atlantic now. Indeed, while I am sure this phenomena is not limited to just Annie on Explore it seems some competitors are confusing their oars for ‘sea monsters’ during the night. Perhaps a bit more water and rest maybe in order.

QBE Insurance Challenger continue to close in on the narrow lead of Karukera and may pass them to lead the pairs class during day 35. Beyond the leading crews, Red Arrow have sustained a daily average of 50nm over the past 5 days and in doing so have climbed several places in the leader board and are now in 14^th position, their highest since the opening 2 weeks.

Finally, Britannia III move into the last 10% of their Atlantic crossing, with less than 250nm to go at the end of Sunday 7^th February and are still on target for making land either late Wednesday 10^th February or in the early hours of Thursday 11^th February.