Windseekers - Sanya Break from Fleet

Team Sanya made a break from the fleet overnight heading north towards the ice exclusion zone in search of wind as Abu Dhabi led the fleet into the final 1,800 nautical miles of Leg 7.

Around 140 miles north-west of leg leaders Abu Dhabi Ocean Racing at 0700 UTC, sixth-placed Sanya decided to try something different in the race to hook into the strong westerly winds lying ahead that will propel the fleet towards Lisbon.

“Although we have more miles to sail, and it probably looks like quite a bit on the tracker, our navigator and skipper, Aksel (Magdahl) and Mike (Sanderson) have a plan and only time will tell,” Sanya’s media crewmember Andrés Soriano said.

At 0400 Abu Dhabi led by 31 miles over PUMA Ocean Racing powered by BERG with CAMPER with Emirates Team New Zealand 20 miles further back.

Ian Walker's team were also the fastest in the fleet averaging 13.5 knots, more than four knots faster than any other crew,

As the on-the-water game of snakes and ladders continued, CAMPER media crew member Hamish Hooper said he was praying for the arrival of wind to set his team back on the fast road to the Leg 7 finish as they saw their speeds drop to five knots.

“It has been like one of those dreams you have when you are running as hard and fast as you can after something, but it’s like running in mud,” he said.

“The only hard and fast running we want to be doing is direct towards Lisbon with plenty of downwind speed.

“Apparently it is coming, once this big ‘H’ moves over us and a big ‘L’ comes down with plenty of wind.”

At 0700 fourth-placed Groupama trailed the leaders by 60 miles, with Telefónica a further three miles behind them.

Sanya See Weather Opportunity

The notoriously unstable weather of the North Atlantic may be causing havoc for their rivals but for Team Sanya the conditions present vital opportunities to get themselves back in the game.

Relishing their return to racing after being forced out of Leg 5 and 6, Mike Sanderson’s crew are on the hunt for even the smallest of chance to set up the podium finish they crave.

With the door that would have allowed them to sail a direct course to Lisbon slammed shut, the teams have been forced to change strategy five days into the 3,590-mile leg – and that could play straight into the hands of Sanya, the only second-generation boat in the race.

A high pressure system is threatening to split the fleet into two groups, one going north and the other heading south, which could give Sanderson’s team the chance they are looking for.

“Although the weather is unstable it does present plenty of options,” watch captain Richard Mason said.

“We don’t see the forecast as a problem as such – it creates a lot of opportunities. We just need to pick our way through and turn them into opportunities.”

Mason, appearing in the race for the fourth time, said his crew were eyeing up a break to the north, and would be ready to pounce on any mistakes made by their rivals.

Currently are out of the running for the overall trophy – but the top four teams are split by 14 points and have everything to lose, which in turn opens up the possibility for the race’s sole Chinese entry slip under their radar.

“The guys at the front are constantly looking over their shoulders and will be looking to cover one another,” he added.

“They’re not going to be too worried about us if we go off in a different direction and bang the corner.

“That in itself could provide some opportunities – they’re not going to come chasing us.

“Telefónica will be keeping a very close eye on Groupama and vice versa so they won’t be looking at us.”

At the 1000 UTC position update Sanya were just over 100 miles behind leg frontrunners Telefónica having pulled back 16 miles since the previous report.

Team Sanya Return to Volvo Action

Team Sanya are back and warning the rest of the fleet that they’re ready to “mix it up” with them again after rejoining their rivals in the Miami docks on Saturday.

"We’re going to win races and win legs, if they want to stay out of our way that’s probably a good idea" - - Sanya skipper Mike Sanderson

Skipper Mike Sanderson’s boat topped 30 knots boat speed on their “shakedown” sail to Florida, returning the Volvo Ocean Race to full strength for the first time since March.

Sanderson also brought news of a different arrival, announcing that he and his wife Emma were expecting their third child.

Emma was among dozens of family, friends and fans who lined the dock at the Downtown Miami Race Village for Sanya’s arrival at about 1500 local time, 1900 UTC.

Sanderson said that the team had new found confidence in their second generation Volvo Open 70 after repairing a damaged rudder and a 1.5-metre crack in the hull that forced the team to retire from Leg 5.

The four-time Volvo competitor said that the 400 nautical mile sail from Savannah, where repairs were conducted, was the perfect way to “shakedown” the boat and crew.

With a week until the PORTMIAMI IN-PORT RACE on May 19, Sanderson said his team would now focus on making up for lost time on the water.

“Sanya’s very much ready to go,’’ he said. “The race sails are on. We used race sails down here and we did all our sail changes as though we were in the race. 

“The big disadvantage is we are desperately short of sailing time as a crew. We were short before the race started and now we’ve missed two legs in a row. 

“But you know, the fact of the matter is we’re down on race time. We have to manage it as a mix of trying to catch up while the others have forced stoppage, but we also have to be ready to race next weekend.”

Sanderson, the only skipper in the fleet to have previously skippered a Volvo winning boat, said his team were ready to again keep the others honest.

Despite being hampered by damage and repairs Sanderson remains focused on “mixing it with the big boys” and pushing for in-port and leg wins.

“If the weather gods play into our hands and the fleet’s mixed up enough then we’ll certainly sail as tough as we can, so we can be up near the front,’’ he said.

“Someone asked the other day if we’re going to stay out of the way and not mix it up, well that’s up to them and not us. We’re going to win races and win legs, if they want to stay out of our way that’s probably a good idea.”

Sole Chinese crewman “Tiger” Teng Jiang He said he was itching to get back into racing after 50 days on land.

With Sanya now in better shape than every before, Tiger said the crew could now focus on their crew work and achieving their goals.

“It feels good to steer the boat after another big repair on her,’’ he said. “I can’t say she is now a flawless boat, but we do know her better and have more confidence in her that she will help us finish the rest of the race.

“The boat’s now in great shape, which leaves us focusing on how we could improve as a crew and achieve our goals set for the race from the get go.”

Helmsman/trimmer Ryan Houston will rejoin his team, having recovered from a sudden illness that forced him out of the race in Sanya, China.

“I'm much better,'' he said. "I thought it was going to take only a couple of weeks but it actually took a month. I've been back to the gym running and everything so I'm back in full strenght now."

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Volvo Race in Speed Distance Record

The 24-hour speed distance record for the current edition of the Volvo Ocean Race is under threat as the fleet face four days hurtling south at up to 30 knots.

“Finally it feels like the Volvo Ocean Race. No more drifting around or upwind sailing -- just raw power, soaking decks and high speeds" - Ian Walker, Abu Dhabi Ocean Racing

CAMPER with Emirates Team New Zealand set the bar at 554.16 nm during Leg 1 from Alicante to Cape Town – but as the six teams power south through the Pacific Ocean trade winds the record could tumble.

Volvo Ocean Race chief meteorologist Gonzalo Infante said the latest weather and routing models suggest that several of the teams stand a chance of bettering CAMPER’s record over the next few days -- particularly those able to sail wider angles in the east.

“It’s going to be very close but it’s very possible the record could fall in the next few days,” Infante said. "Breaking through the 500nm barrier is dependent on tactics and medium-term strategy - whether the teams choose to stay east or cash in their position for speed.”

The arrival of the solid north-easterly trade winds benefitted the easterly boats first with leg leaders Franck Cammas’ Groupama sailing team extending their advantage at the front to 55 nautical miles (nm) in the 1300 UTC position report.

To the west of the fleet Chris Nicholson’s second placed CAMPER and Iker Martínez’s third placed Team Telefónica continue to struggle to match the speeds of the trio in the east.

Ken Read’s PUMA Ocean Racing powered by BERG and Ian Walker’s Abu Dhabi Ocean Racing who have both clocked up peak speeds over 25 knots.

On Abu Dhabi Ocean Racing skipper Ian Walker could hardly contain his delight at the opportunity to capitalise on the eastern investment they had made, often in light and tricky conditions.

“Finally it feels like the Volvo Ocean Race,” Walker said. “No more drifting around or upwind sailing -- just raw power, soaking decks and high speeds.

“Fortunately all the easting we have strived for over the past week allows us to sail as wide an angle as we are. The wind is 25 knots and building. Boat speeds fluctuate between 18 and 30 knots. The miles to the finish are now tumbling fast which makes the soaking on deck well worth it.”

PUMA navigator Tom Addis said the crew was enjoying the chance to unleash the full potential of their boat in the open ocean.

“It’s been fantastic, fast reaching,” Addis said. “We’re back in open water, no shipping, no fishing nets, no debris to dodge. We’re just letting the boat rip doing 22, 23 knots, reaching with bow up. It’s what these boats are good at so that’s always a nice feeling.”

Addis added that PUMA were aware that they must keep up their breakneck pace for the next few days if their northern ‘further but faster’ strategy was ultimately to work.

“Opportunity is ahead for us starting from now, for sure, especially after all our hard work to get east,” he said.

“After all this torture we’re going to finally have wider and faster angles than most of the guys, so we should be gaining by the hour. We’ve put in the hard work, and now it’s time to reap the rewards.

“When you travel the most miles in a leg like we have, I guess you’ve got to expect to put some good runs on the board. We had 26 knots earlier, we may get close again but it’s likely to just average 20 knots plus.

Team Sanya skipper Mike Sanderson said although his crew were in sixth they had done well to stay in the hunt but were now facing some big losses in a drag race against the more powerful newer boats.

“We’ve worked very hard through the change of positions to be among the pack, we’ve led at times and we’ve been last at times, but now we’re faced with the reality of the speed of these new generation boats,” Sanderson said. “They’re going in excess of a knot faster than us, and they’re just going to sail on by.

“We’re all very competitive sailors and we’re all used to winning, but now we’re just not fast enough through the water after battling for the last week to keep up.

“One knot difference is big – you’re talking a 24-mile difference each day. Over the next three or four days with the trades, it’s a little bit scary. It’s going to be 100 miles in those three or four days.”

The fleet still have more than 3,500 nm to go to the finish in Auckland and are expected to arrive around March 9.

Safe Haven in Sanya Sights

Milkshakes and food you can chew are at the forefront of the minds of the seven men on board Sanya as the team closes in on the finish of the first stage of Leg 2, reports Media Crew Member Andres Soriano:

"The resilience of our team is certainly being tested this leg and I believe that it shows true character to continuously be positive through tough and trying times.

We had hoped to be crossing the line at the early hours of the morning. After a great visit from the King of the Ocean yesterday we were all looking forward to rejoining the rest of our team, but it would seem that the weather has alternative plans for us.

The breeze, which had been with us for most of the night, decided to leave us, just as a gorgeous ruby red sun rose from the horizon. Our boat speed has slowed significantly, sub six knots, and we still have quite a few miles to tick off. 

We have started the yacht tidy up, so that we can turn her loose to our ace shore team as soon as we arrive - - they are eagerly awaiting our arrival.

“I am looking forward to stepping on solid ground for 2 days, will be a nice but quick change before we get going again,” Richard Mason told the crew as we were discussing some of the things we were most longing for.

The list seems to span from a simple ice-cold glass of water, and thick milk shakes, to food that actually requires chewing.

“I just want to be able to drink something out a glass, you don’t realize how nice that is until you go this long just drinking out of water bottles,” Ryan Houston said.

Needless to say, there will be legs longer than this, but we know that they will be more filled with action battling five other boats in the middle of the ocean.

We are just all eager to reset, be it only for a couple of days and rejoin our fellow competitors and set off, and sail into our homeport of Sanya.”

Team Sanya Seeking Safe Haven

Team Sanya are nearing the home stretch with only the frustration of testing beating conditions standing between them and the Leg 2 Stage 1 finish at the safe haven in the Indian Ocean.

The crew clocked up speeds in excess of 20 knots overnight before hitting the head winds early on Tuesday morning. At 1000 UTC they were cruising at 12 knots of boat speed in a northerly breeze of the same measurement.

Media Crew Member Andres Soriano said the overnight racing was “fun, full of enjoyment and over all too soon”.

“We exited the trades at around 1700 and shot forward ticking off the miles at an average of 15 knots, ploughing through warm waves and then being rinsed off by cool short rain squalls that brought a few hours of 20 kts plus sailing,’’ he said. “Spirits were high as we sent it towards the mark.”

Helmsman/trimmer Ryan Houston described the experience as being similar to the freedom of escaping the clutch of the daily nine to five grind.

“The Doldrums is like a bad week at work, but then comes the end of the week, and you have that blast of a drive home on Friday afternoon, that’s the westerly trades,” he said.

For now, the indulgence of the trades may well be over and the rigors of upwind sailing a reality for the seven-strong crew.

“Tiger” Teng Jiang He is starting to fancy himself a helmsman as he continues to notch up time with the wheel in his grip, reported stand-in skipper Richard Mason.

“Tiger has been having a great time this trip,’’ he said. “I think Moose (Mike Sanderson) could have a few issues when we get in because Tiger rates himself pretty highly as a helmsman.

“You should have heard him on deck last night. You would have thought he was driving a Formula 1 car. We were reaching along doing 22 knots and Tiger was on the helm – he was the happiest man in the world.  

“It’s fantastic to see. Here’s a fish who in many regards couldn’t be further out of water but boy oh boy has he learnt to swim.”

Under race rules, Team Sanya will pick up four points for Leg 2 Stage 1, one point for Leg 2 Stage 2 and two points for the Etihad Airways In-Port Race, providing they arrive at the safe haven under racing conditions.

The remainder of the fleet continues to transit the worst affected piracy waters on board a ship, with racing set to resume around January 22.