Clipper Race Yachts Sail out of Hawaii
The Clipper 07-08 Round the World Yacht Race series is underway again after a nice start in a stiff breeze off the island of Oahu in Hawaii. Next stop Santa Cruz, California.
Nova Scotia was the first of eight internationally-backed yachts to cross the start line at the western end of the world-famous Waikiki Beach, before racing along the shore towards Diamond Head and out into the Pacific Ocean at the beginning of the 2,080-mile race to Santa Cruz, California.
Durban 2010 and Beyond and westernaustralia2011.com did not make the start line as work continues on their new masts.
The Canadian entry was across the start line by Uniquely Singapore and Jamaica, the only yacht to start on a starboard tack, and Qingdao who squeezed out rivals Hull & Humber forcing them round again. New York, Liverpool 08, Glasgow: Scotland with style Clipper and Hull & Humber completed the order over the line, approximately two minutes after the start horn was sounded at 1130 local (2130 GMT).
The start was postponed 30 minutes from the advertised time due to a final rig inspection and a new gas sensor being fitted on Hull & Humber.
The crews have had a longer than expected stopover in Honolulu after race organiser, Clipper Ventures, took the decision to replace some rigging fittings across the rest of the fleet following the dismasting of two yachts, westernaustralia2011.com and Durban 2010 and Beyond, during the Pacific Ocean race from Qingdao, China. The work was completed yesterday and all eight teams headed out of the Ala Wai Harbor for short test sails to check their rigs and to get back into an ocean racing frame of mind.
Having been surfing, diving, shopping, climbing Diamond Head, flying Maui and to the Big Island to witness the volcanic activity there, the crews have taken advantage of all Oahu and the Neighbour Islands have to offer. They said their farewells and mahalo, (Hawaiian for ‘thank you’) to their hosts, Hawaii Yacht Club, Waikiki Yacht Club and Magic Island Fuel Dock, for the aloha they received during their stay in the Ala Wai. There were tears from the staff at the Fuel Dock as the yachts slipped their moorings and headed out of the harbour to the start line.
Nova Scotia skipper, Rob McInally, said, “I don’t think anyone wants to leave here but we do have to crack on. I think the race to Santa Cruz is going to be a very close one. We’ve had a fantastic time here and it’s going to be tough leaving.”
Race Director Joff Bailey says, “It’s great to see these yachts racing again. The entire Clipper team both here and back home in the UK has worked flat out to get them back to sea within the delay we announced when they arrived here. Our thanks goes to the manufacturers who delivered the new parts to us within such a tight timeframe and to the specialist riggers and mast builder who have flown out to work with our own highly skilled maintenance team to ensure we succeeded.”
Waikiki Yacht Club and Hawaii Yacht Club’s Commodores, Michael Roth and Frank E. Lang, respectively, assisted the Race Director for this morning’s start.
Joff says, “My sincere appreciation goes to Waikiki Yacht Club and Hawaii Yacht Club who provided boats for the race officials and media team during the start, in particular Principal Race Officer Ted Miller and 5-year-old Maxwell Roth, the Commodore’s son, who sounded the start horn.”
Clipper Race founder and legendary solo sailor, Sir Robin Knox-Johnston says, “We expect the race to Santa Cruz to take about 14 days so the ETA is 19 April. We are asking all Leg 6 crew to be available in Santa Cruz for a crew changeover on or before 1000 local time on 21 April. The actual re-start date will depend upon the arrival date and the race duration but is likely to be 23 April. The Santa Cruz stopover will be no longer than 5 days.
“Of course, the times are weather dependent. The boats need to get north out of the easterly trade winds which means crossing the variables to get into the westerly trades, then it is a spinnaker run to California. The extent of the variables is, well, variable! Our plan remains to try to get back on schedule for departure from Jamaica.”
Durban 2010 and Beyond followed the eight yachts out of the Ala Wai to wave farewell to the teams who set off on Race 8 on saturday morning. Watching from the quayside was westernaustralia2011.com’s skipper Martin Silk along with several of his crew. Round the worlder, John Kimber said, “This is weird, watching them go and being left behind.”
Progress on the masts has been excellent and the shipment containing the spreaders arrived yesterday. The team will work through the weekend to ensure the task of getting westernaustralia2011.com and Durban 2010 and Beyond on their way to Santa Cruz is completed as quickly as possible.
This is the sixth edition of the Clipper Round the World Yacht Race, the brainchild of Sir Robin Knox-Johnston, who wanted to give ordinary people access to the exhilaration of ocean racing. Ten months after they set off, at the end of their 35,000-mile circumnavigation, the teams will arrive back in Liverpool, England, on 5 July 2008 during the city’s European Capital of Culture 2008 celebrations.
Last night Sir Robin was presented with one of the Ocean Cruising Club’s two annual Orders of Merit for his participation in the latest VELUX 5 OCEANS Race. The other was awarded to 72 year old Minouru Saito from Japan who participated in three BOC Around Alone races - the former guise of the VELUX 5 OCEANS, which is also organised by Clipper Ventures. Sir Robin was also awarded the Jester Medal for his 500,000 miles of sailing, much of it single handed.
Submitted By YachtPals on 09 Apr
clipper race, Clipper Round the World Yacht Race, Honolulu, Hawaii, yachts, yacht, sailboats, sailboat, sailing, masts
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Clipper Race 8 - HAWAII - SANTA CRUZ
Clipper Race 8 - HAWAII - SANTA CRUZ
DAY 2
Headwinds being produced on the south side of the North Pacific high pressure system means the yachts in the Clipper fleet are tacking their way towards Santa Cruz. It is obvious looking at the positions on the race viewer that most of the skippers/navigators have come up with varying tactical plans and the fleet has split up over a large area very quickly.
The centre of the North Pacific High has moved further north and it looks like the whole fleet will continue to experience headwinds for the next five days or so.
Race Director Joff Bailey says, “Even though only eight of the ten yachts managed to make the start line yesterday the fleet is still racing for full points. In light of the fact that westernaustralia2011.com and Durban 2010 and Beyond were unable to start the race due to the work being undertaken on their masts, and this being outside the control of the crew, the Race Committee has decided to award both teams the points (to the nearest whole number) associated with their average position in the previous seven races.”
Clipper Race founder and renowned yachtsman, Sir Robin Knox-Johnston, has thanked the shore team for the sterling work in getting the other eight boats ready to sail yesterday. He says, “I want people to remember that the “Black Hand” gang’s work is still not done in Hawaii. They are one of the unseen reasons the Clipper Race can keep to its tight schedule.”
Joff says, “I’m glad the crew are taking such an interest and getting involved. This is another experience they can draw on to add to those on the water that contribute to their continued development as competent and skilled sailors.”
Skipper Ricky Chalmers, who has been helping the mast builder and riggers as they work on the mast in Ala Wai Marine boatyard, was delighted to see the mast being manoeuvred into place. “This is great,” he said as he helped guide the mast onto Durban 2010 and Beyond, “I’ve been waiting for this moment.”
As the mast was lowered into place under the watchful eye of Ian McGully from Spencer Rigging, Nick Wellspring from Atlantic Spars continued to work on westernaustralia2011.com’s mast. He has removed a length of the section that remained in order to reduce it to the correct length to join it with the new section flown out from the UK last week.
Martin Silk, skipper of the Western Australian entry said, “The crew has been working on other bits and pieces on the boat, putting the gear box back in. A couple of the crew have been working with the mast builder and a couple of others working at the sail loft, putting the main back together and we’ll have more people at the sail loft all day on Monday or Tuesday.”
They did find time this morning for some scuba diving team building. “About five of us hadn’t dived before,” says Martin, “But we did two dives off a boat and saw turtles, eels and an octopus that was climbing around everyone.”
SEASICKNESS SUBSIDES AS CREWS FIND THEIR SEA LEGS
The main message coming back from the boats today relates to the varying degrees of seasickness being experienced by the crew. Many crew are struggling to find their sea legs today after a slightly longer stopover during which the crew will have got their land legs back.
Hannah Jenner, the skipper of Glasgow: Scotland with style Clipper, reported to the Race Office, “The first 24 hours has blown the cobwebs away and most crew members are now looking a little less green. Last night was a difficult night with shifting winds and many squalls. Let’s hope tonight is a little more settled!”
Even the sea sick crew will be pleased with their progress today as the Scottish entry appears to be stamping their authority all over this race and has taken an eleven-mile lead over their nearest competition in what is predicted to be a very close and competitive race.
Danny Watson on British rival Hull & Humber reported, “Seasickness amongst the crew is subsiding as everyone falls into routines. Gusty, squally conditions now after nightfall.”
The whole fleet is currently experiencing moderate headwinds but a weak ridge in the Pacific high pressure system should give all the teams a slightly better wind angle over the next 24 hours which will see their progress towards Santa Cruz improve. This will, however, push them all further north with the risk of sailing into the centre of the high with its associated light and variable winds.
In Ala Wai Harbor in Honolulu, there has been no let up in the pace of the work to replace Durban 2010 and Beyond’s mast and repair westernaustralia2011.com’s. Having lifted Durban 2010 and Beyond’s mast into place late yesterday afternoon, the riggers have been working today to replace the rope guys that had been holding it in place overnight with steel rigging cables. They plan to go out for an initial set up sail tomorrow, when westernaustralia2011.com’s mast should also be ready to lift into place. These are the biggest rigs Ala Wai Marine boatyard has ever had to crane in.
The crews of both boats have been victualling today – not a simple task as they have decided to buy enough tinned and dried food for both Race 8 and Race 9 in order to save time in Santa Cruz, where they will only need to replenish stocks of fresh fruit and vegetables.
Clipper Race Update - April 9
Durban 2010 and Beyond and westernaustralia2011.com moved closer again today to joining the rest of the fleet on their way to Santa Cruz, California. westernaustralia2011.com was moved from her berth at Hawaii Yacht Club to the boat yard as soon as the tide was high enough and the mast builder and riggers swung into action to crane her new mast onboard. Once again it was a smooth operation watched by the big blue boat’s crew who have been busy onboard, in the boat yard and at the sail loft getting their yacht ready to sail as soon as possible and learning new skills from the experts along the way.
Bruce Macky, round the world crew member from Dulwich, South Australia, said, “I feel very pleased to see that going into place. I’m looking forward to getting sailing again – it’s been a long time since 5 March. I’ve been here with the mast every day since the guys arrived, trying to give them a hand as best I can. I’m very, very pleased to see it finally in and I’m looking forward to when they say they’ve finished and I can string the rest of my ropes!”
“It’s terrific to see it all go back into place, the fellas have put so much work into this, it’s been incredible,” said Lyn Condratoff, another round the worlder who has been working in the sail loft on their mainsail. “We finished that and the main is ready for putting back on the boat once the rigging’s finished, of course. That again has been a terrific experience to see how it all works, the logistics of putting a sail together.”
As the sun was setting behind them the crew of Durban 2010 and Beyond were fitting the boom to their mast while victualling was being completed and food separated into day bags for both the crossing to Santa Cruz and Race 9 from the Californian port to Panama.
And while all the work continues ashore, the crews are keeping a watchful eye on how Race 8 is unfolding for the rest of the fleet who left Hawaii on Saturday morning for the 2,080-mile race to Santa Cruz.
It is another close and competitive race with all of the teams monitoring their opposition’s positions at each schedule update to see whether any of them has made a break from the pack.
Hisayasu Jin from Japan, who joined Hull & Humber in Hawaii says, “Glasgow: Scotland with style Clipper and New York remained in sight during the night and every effort was made to remain in the leader board. In the morning Hull & Humber entered into a no wind zone and all possible sail combinations were attempted to move the boat in the right direction. After few hours of hectic sail changes easterly wind arrived in our favour and achieved good boat speed in terms of VMG (velocity made good)”.
Liverpool 08 watch leader Mikey Thomas has noted a change in pace and attitude since the start of the race and the stopover in Hawaii and asks the question, “How are we going to improve on the last couple of results? This question is a very popular one from my family and friends as they now feel part of the team. The answer, I reply, is that we need to raise our game more as the other boats have. We have to realise that this now is no longer a race with just one experienced sailor on each boat but there are up to eight, maybe nine, experienced sailors therefore it feels like more of a professional race than the amateur one that we signed up for.”
Lawrence Chan on Uniquely Singapore reports, “The long rest in Hawaii had certainly taken a toll on our fitness as some of us were physically exhausted after the evolutions during the first two days. Apart from the occasional squalls passing overhead, everyone is enjoying the “fine” sunny weather and bouncy ride towards Santa Cruz.”
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