Volvo Ocean Race 2011-2012

[mpowlison]

December 7, 2011

PUMA ARRIVAL BRINGS FLEET BACK UP TO FULL STRENGTH



The full Volvo Ocean Race fleet is back together for the first time in over a month, after PUMA Ocean Racing powered by BERG limped into Cape Town with just days to spare before racing resumes in conditions that will once again test the teams to the limit.

The six boats in the 2011-12 edition are preparing to rejoin battle over the weekend with the second of 10 in-port races on Saturday (1300 UTC) and the start of Leg 2 to Abu Dhabi on Sunday at the same time.

Weather forecasts suggest the teams will be heading straight back into possible boat-breaking conditions in Leg 2, with the teams facing the prospect of beating upwind in up to 30-35 knots for the first 24 hours. That will raise uncomfortable memories for at least some of the fleet after the havoc wreaked on the way out from Alicante.

Abu Dhabi Ocean Racing and Team Sanya were forced out of the leg due to damage caused in a brutal first 24 hours. PUMA’s Mar Mostro, skippered by the American Ken Read, was the third boat forced to retire later in the race after breaking her mast.

“I do feel of sense of nervousness before the leg start,” said Sanya skipper Mike Sanderson, who led ABN AMRO ONE to victory in 2005-06. “Given a forecast of 35 knots on the nose at the start there’s not too much of a settling in period!”

The three teams that actually finished Leg 1 – winners Team Telefónica, second-placed CAMPER with Emirates Team New Zealand and Groupama sailing team in third – have had more time to prepare their boats but are still working against the clock to get back in peak condition after three weeks at sea. The first targets are the non-scoring practice race on Thursday and the pro-am on Friday and it is still not clear how many will be ready in time.

Abu Dhabi were the first team to suffer from the heinous conditions in the Mediterranean on the first night, as they came off a huge wave and broke their mast. A few hours later, Sanya’s second generation Volvo Open 70 racing yacht suffered massive damage to her hull.

Both teams ended up shipping their boats to Cape Town but their adventures were nothing compared to the odyssey endured by PUMA, whose dismasting in the southern Atlantic left them in real trouble.

Their only option was to crawl to the world’s most remote human settlement at Tristan da Cunha and they only made it that far thanks to a Greek freighter that diverted to pass them over some diesel.

After regaining their strength with beer and lobsters on Tristan, they were eventually picked up by the container ship TEAM BREMEN, dispatched from South Africa to help them, and after arriving back on Tuesday night they were hauled back into the water and motored round to the team’s shore base in the early hours of Wednesday morning.

Their target is to get the replacement mast fitted and be back sailing as early as Wednesday evening.

“Our ability to get back competing in this race will depend on what we do over the next couple of days,” Read said after stepping off the boat to a heartfelt welcome from wife Kathy, 31 days after leaving Alicante.

“Our shore crew have been itching to get the boat and now we’ll get to see what they're made of. My hunch is that they’re made of some pretty good stuff.”

Abu Dhabi have fitted a new set of rigging and are back in the water, while Sanya expect to be sailing again by Wednesday night.

On Thursday, the teams are due to take part in the non-scoring practice race, though it is unclear whether the three damaged boats will be ready in time.

The same goes for Friday’s pro-am, though at the moment all six boats are on track to take the line in the V&A Waterfront In-Port Race and the start of Leg 2 to Abu Dhabi. The route for the that leg has been substantially redrawn because of the threat of piracy, with the teams now set to be transported by ship between two Safe Haven Ports, to take them through the worst affected area.

Abu Dhabi won the first of the 10 in-port races in this edition in Alicante, briefly taking first place on the leaderboard. The current situation is:

1. Team Telefónica - 31 points
2. CAMPER with Emirates Team New Zealand - 29 points
3. Groupama sailing team - 22 points
4. Abu Dhabi Ocean Racing - 6 points
5. PUMA Ocean Racing powered by BERG - 5 points
6. Team Sanya - 3 points

Team Telefónica: The first boat to finish came in with the boat in immaculate condition, according to team technical chief Horacio Carabelli. Theirs has been a problem-free stopover, with the boat going back in the water on Monday and the team having the luxury of giving the rigging a careful check.

“Even though we knew the mast is fine we took it apart,” said Fernando Sales, who is responsible for the mast. “We had time and what we decided to do was to take the entire thing apart. That means we took out everything that might be unscrewed, loosened or moved along the way: all of the spreaders came out and the fixings which fix them to the mast itself, as well as the shrouds, and all of this had to be put back together. We took everything that forms part of the mast apart to give it a good clean and to put it through ultrasound testing”.

CAMPER with Emirates Team New Zealand: CAMPER have also had plenty of time to work on their boat, with skipper Chris Nicholson satisfied that the problem they had with the rigging on the way into Cape Town was purely down to human error rather than any technical fault. “There was no rigging failure and we didn’t almost drop the rig,” Nicholson said. “What happened was down to a handling error on our behalf. Was I happy with that? No and I made that very clear to the guys and it won’t happen again."

Groupama sailing team: After coming in third, three days behind the winners, Groupama have been checking everything meticulously. Their boat is in the water again and no major problems have been detected. “These past six days have seen us checking the carbon and mechanical structures and we also unstepped the boat's mast, daggerboards and rudders,” said head of boat construction Pierre Tissier. “We also cleaned the hull beneath the waterline and checked over the whole structure. Some slight repairs and modifications have been required to improve life for the sailors on board. We haven't encountered any problems and Groupama 4 is in tip-top condition."

PUMA Ocean Racing powered by BERG: The team arrived at the shore base around 0100 on Wednesday and skipper Ken Read told reporters the crew would be pulling an all-nighter, with a view to getting her back in the water with the replacement mast stepped and even sailing again the same day.

“Our ability to get back competing in the race depends on what we do over the next couple of days,” said Read. “The other teams will get faster on every leg but can we get faster too? Will we get left behind? We’ll have a good idea early in Leg 2.”

Abu Dhabi Ocean Racing: Everything has gone to schedule for Ian Walker’s team since the boat came in on a container ship. The rig has been installed and tuned and the team were able to go out sailing on Wednesday. “Azzam is back in the water and looking good for contention come the race restart,” said Walker. “There is still more work to be done on refining the mast and rigging but we are committed to living up to Azzam’s determination moniker and be fighting fit for our home leg to Abu Dhabi.”

Team Sanya: The enormous hole in the hull has been repaired thanks to round-the-clock work from a team of boat-builders brought in from New Zealand. The boat will be launched on Wednesday afternoon and the team should be back sailing by Thursday.

"Today is a day of split feelings really,” said skipper Mike Sanderson. “On the one hand I cannot praise enough everyone that has been involved in the process of getting our boat back into race mode again. On the other hand, I do feel of sense of nervousness before the leg start. There are four boats out training and here we are this morning going on our keel and going into the water only tonight. That should not detract in any way from the great work done, but for sure my apprehension has gone up probably. Also given a forecast of 35 knots on the nose at the start there is not too much of a settling in period! The most important thing right now is to get out sailing tomorrow and for sure a lot of those nervous feelings will go once we are sailing again."

Cape Town Stopover race schedule:

Friday December 9 - Pro-Am Race 1300 local (1100 UTC)
Saturday December 10 - V&A Waterfront In-Port Race 1500 local (1300 UTC)
Sunday December 11 - Leg 2 start to Abu Dhabi 1500 local (1300 UTC)

[mpowlison]

December 8, 2011

THREE BOATS IN RACE AGAINST TIME TO START LEG 2 OF VOLVO OCEAN RACE 2011-12

Cape Town, South Africa – Three boats, which retired during the first leg of the Volvo Ocean Race 2011-12, have all been in a dramatic race against time this week to prepare their boats for the start line for Leg 2 of the Volvo Ocean Race 2011-12 in Cape Town, South Africa.

Abu Dhabi Ocean Racing, which won the Alicante In-Port Race on October 29, broke their mast November 5 on the first night of Leg 1 and had the boat shipped to South Africa from Lisbon, Portugal. The boat arrived last week and the team and shore crew have been working hard over the past few days mounting the new mast, and testing it in preparation for this Saturday’s V&A Waterfront In-Port Race and the Leg 2 start Sunday, December 11. The team sailed for the first time in Cape Town on Wednesday, December 7.

Team Sanya, the first-ever Chinese-entry into the Volvo Ocean Race, had a bigger fix on its hands. Team Sanya’s boat suffered serious damages to its hull on November 6 and immediately retired from Leg 1. After being shipped to South Africa, the boat had its front section completely cut out and was fitted with a brand new bow section. The boat, skippered by past Volvo Ocean Race winner Mike Sanderson, was lowered into the water on Wednesday, November 7 in the port of Cape Town. Only a tremendous feat of boat-building over the past week has made Team Sanya’s readiness for Leg 2 possible.

PUMA Ocean Racing powered by Berg has perhaps the most dramatic story. On November 21, as the team was heading full speed towards Cape Town in the South Atlantic, their boat broke its mast. After a fuel transfer at sea, the team motored to the world’s most remote inhabited island, Tristan de Cunha, where they awaited a rescue cargo ship. The transfer on a ship to Cape Town was completed smoothly and PUMA’s Mar Mostro reached the port stopover of Cape Town on the evening of December 6. The team has two more days to ready the new mast and rigging prior to Saturday’s V&A Waterfront In-Port Race.

With the three damaged boats up-and-running, the full Volvo Ocean Race fleet is back together for the first time in over a month; meanwhile, the three teams that actually finished Leg 1 – winners Team Telefónica, second-placed CAMPER with Emirates Team New Zealand and Groupama sailing team in third – have had more time to prepare their boats, but are still working against the clock to get back in peak condition after three weeks at sea.

The six boats in the 2011-12 edition are preparing to rejoin battle over the weekend with the second of 10 in-port races on Saturday (1300 UTC) and the start of Leg 2 to Abu Dhabi on Sunday at the same time.

Weather forecasts suggest the teams will be heading straight back into possible boat-breaking conditions in Leg 2, with the teams facing the prospect of beating upwind in up to 30-35 knots for the first 24 hours. That will raise uncomfortable memories for at least some of the fleet after the havoc wreaked on the way out from Alicante.

Provisional Leaderboard Volvo Ocean Race 2011-12
1. Team Telefónica: 31 points
2. CAMPER with Emirates Team New Zealand: 29 points
3. Groupama sailing team: 22 points
4. Abu Dhabi Ocean Racing: 6 points
5. PUMA Ocean Racing powered by BERG: 5 points
6. Team Sanya: 3 points


VNR SHOTLIST – TEAM SANYA RELAUNCHES
00:00-00:05 OPEN SLATE
00:05-00:16 Hole in Team Sanya’s hull (November 7)
00:16-00:26 Cutting out damaged section of Team Sanya hull
00:26-00:39 Establishing Shot in Port of Cape Town
00:39-00:45 Fleet Shot (no Team Sanya)
00:45-00:52 Team Sanya damaged hull pieces
00:51-01:25 Crane lifting boat
01:26-01:39 Boat in water
01:39-01:51 Shore Crew preparing mast
01:52-02:09 Mike Sanderson quote
“At this point, the boat is probably stronger then it was when you put a new piece in. There’s quite a lot of overlap, where the new piece gets attached to the old piece and of course structurally the boat is actually double, the strength it needs to be at those points.”
02:09-03:04 Tiger quotes
03:05-03:09 END SLATE


VNR SHOTLIST – PUMA ARRIVES IN CAPE TOWN
00:00-00:10 OPEN SLATE
00:10-00:15 PUMA aerials
00:15-00:20 3D race tracker before and after mast breaks
00:20-00:25 Mar Mostro crew attempt rig salvage
00:25-00-53 Quote – Ken Read, Skipper, PUMA Ocean Racing
00:53-00:59 PUMA sailing under jury rig to Tristan da Cunha
00:59-01:04 3D race tracker of boat reaching Tristan da Cunha
01:04-01:13 PUMA crew being rescued
01:13-01:23 PUMA crew arriving to Tristan da Cunha
01:23-01:30 PUMA crew playing golf in Tristan da Cunha
01:30-01:35 PUMA on sea
01:35-01:45 DHL quote about logistics
01:45-01:50 Team Bremen departing from Cape Town
01:50-01:56 Team Bremen sailing to Tristan da Cunha
01:56-02:01 PUMA leaving Tristan da Cunha
02:01-02:06 PUMA crew arriving to Mar Mostro
02:06-02:22 Quote – Ken Read, Skipper, PUMA Ocean Racing
02:22-02:43 Mar Mostro being lifted safely
02:43-02:48 Ken Read reacts to Mas Mostro being lifted safely
02:48-02:52 Timelapse of Team Bremen with Mar Mostro on deck
02:52-02:57 Team Bremen with Mar Mostro arrives in Cape Town
02:57-03:06 Mar Mostro being unloaded and put in the water
03:06-03:10 Mar Mostro arrives on dock
03:10-03:19 PUMA fans reactions and crew arrival
03:19-03:54 Quote – Ken Read, Skipper, PUMA Ocean Racing
03:54-04:04 END SLATE


VNR SHOTLIST – ABU DHABI IN CAPE TOWN
00:00-00:05 OPEN SLATE
00:05-00:20 Abu Dhabi breaks mast on-boards (November 5)
00:20-00:27 Abu Dhabi aerials with broken mast
00:27-00:37 Abu Dhabi returns to Alicante
00:37-00-41 Cape Town aerials
00:41-00:51 Abu Dhabi arrives in Cape Town port
00:52-01:13 Shore crew prepares in Cape Town
01:13-01:25 Abu Dhabi lowered into the water
01:25-01:41 Abu Dhabi motoring to its dock in the race village
01:41-01:48 Skipper Ian Walker visits boat
01:48-02:06 QUOTE - Skipper Ian Walker
“It’s great – I mean, this isn’t how we wanted to arrive in Cape Town but it’s taken a lot of work to get this all right. And we are very relieved to get it off the ship safely, to the base and we have one stage to go now and that’s to cure the new rigging for leg 2. Another step on the journey and a good morning so far.”
02:06-02:29 Boat at dock
02:29-02:34 END SLATE

[MLovett]

December 9, 2011 - 1300 UTC
FULL STRENGTH FLEET RETURNS TO RACING ACTION

For three teams it will be an achievement simply making the start line of the V&A Waterfront In-Port Race in Cape Town on Saturday (1300 GMT/UTC) but don’t expect the competition to be anything less than full-blooded when all six boats get to race against each other for the first time in over a month.

Team Sanya, Abu Dhabi Ocean Racing and PUMA Ocean Racing powered by BERG were all forced to retire from Leg 1 and have been working against the clock to get their boats ready for the weekend.

For the three teams that made the Leg 1 podium – winners Team Telefónica, second-placed CAMPER with Emirates Team New Zealand and Groupama sailing team in third -- it has scarcely been less frantic with a shorter than usual Cape Town stopover meaning all have had to graft to complete their work lists.

Given the lack of time to put anything right for Leg 2 to Abu Dhabi, which starts on Sunday, you could forgive all the teams for choosing a safety first approach for the in-port race but that would not sit well with the competitive nature of the six skippers.

“I’d love to say we’re smart enough to ease off but I’m not sure we are,” said Ken Read, skipper of PUMA’s Mar Mostro.

The leaderboard heading into Saturday has Telefónica with 31 points, CAMPER with 29 and Groupama with 22, followed by Abu Dhabi on 6, PUMA with 5 and Sanya 3. The winners of the in-port race will scoop 6 points, with 5 for second and so on down to 1 point for last place.

In total, the in-port racing delivers close to 20 per cent of the points and with the 2011-12 edition tipped to be the most competitive ever, the value of the shorter races – which are scheduled to last less than an hour and give the public a chance to see the boats in close-quarter competition – is not lost on anyone.

“I’ll try and win the race,” said Abu Dhabi Ocean Racing skipper Ian Walker. “It’s even more important for us now because we’re behind on points, so one way we can claw back some of those points is to try and excel in the in-port race. We’re just going to work; we’re going to give it hell, yeah.”

The racecourse will be located outside of Cape Town’s port to the east of Table Bay if the wind is blowing from the south east, and will feature a downwind start followed by an L-shaped course. If the wind swings to the south west, the course will be moved to the west of the bay to escape the wind shadow created by Table Mountain.

The forecast is for around 15 knots of wind – perfect racing conditions for the Volvo Open 70s to provide a spectacle to the thousands of spectators expected to line the shores of the bay.

Abu Dhabi, Sanya and PUMA were all back out sailing on Thursday after sterling work from their shore crews to get ready. Abu Dhabi had to step the mast and tune the rig after coming in by container ship on November 30. Sanya arrived the same day and had to put their boat together again after building a huge replacement section of their hull. PUMA only got the boat back to their shore base in the early hours of Wednesday morning and have had to work round the clock to replace the mast and complete preparations.

The other teams have all checked their rigging carefully after the events of Leg 1 and are eager for battle to recommence.

“We are stronger now than when we left Alicante,” said Groupama skipper Franck Cammas. “We are in good shape in terms of boat preparation for the next leg and in good shape with our spirits.”

Telefónica won the first leg but could not have performed worse in the first in-port race so their mood is anything but complacent.

“The team is very happy but at the same time very realistic,” said skipper Iker Martínez. “Just because we won the first leg we’re not thinking that we’re better than the others. That can be a big mistake.”

Skipper quotes:

Team Telefónica skipper Iker Martínez:

“It was not good racing in Alicante for the in-port race, but then the first leg was the best that you can do, winning the leg. The first leg is very special, so that’s even more important. Now it is time to go again for the in-port. As we saw in the first leg it is very important to make the boat safe, so on one hand you want to go very fast, and on the other you don’t want to break your boat. So we’re looking forward to the in-port. We were always thinking that being on the podium is a good position to start. We were a little bit scared, as always before you start, that someone else is very fast and you won’t be able to catch him, which is what happened last time with Ericsson or the one before with ABN. But once we were sailing we saw that we were good, and we saw that everyone was close. We understand that this race is probably going to be close all the time.”

CAMPER with Emirates Team New Zealand skipper Chris Nicholson:

“I’m feeling a little rushed to be honest with you, but everyone will be in the same boat. It is an extremely compressed schedule at the moment but in all the rushing around and everything we’re pretty conscious about what are the priorities, what are the big things we have to get right. The boat’s in fantastic shape from a really good refit basically in Cape Town and the crew’s all healthy -- Mike’s got his front teeth back, so all in all we’re in good shape. I guess like anything we’d always like more time to prepare tactically or weather wise, but you know, that is what it is and we’re in the same boat as everyone else.”

Groupama sailing team skipper Franck Cammas:

“We are in good shape in terms of boat preparation for the next leg and in good shape with our spirits. We are good and we have a lot of chances to keep going like that. The ambience will be the same as the Alicante start with the first night very hard on the boats and the crew with a lot of wind ahead. It’s still a good test for the ability of the boats but with the first leg out of the way and with the incidents on the other boats the fleet is now more prepared and we can be more confident in the reliability of the fleet.”

Abu Dhabi Ocean Racing skipper Ian Walker:

“We’re good -- we’re back to us being in A1 condition. It feels a bit strange because really we should be feeling super confident like we were when we left Alicante, but obviously we can’t get the mast failure out of our minds and that is going to take us a while to get over that. We need to fall off some big waves and get confidence in the mast and rigging back, that’s not something you can force that’s just going to come over time. You’d like to say you need to be more careful, but our rig didn’t fall down because we weren’t being careful, and neither did PUMA’s, and these boats can bite you in any conditions so we just have to make sure we keep our concentration, make sure we don’t make a mistake, which can always happen, and then just rely on the design and technology to stay in one piece.”

PUMA Ocean Racing powered by BERG skipper Ken Read:

“I think it will be good therapy for us. We need to go racing. It’s what we do, it’s what we’re here for. We haven’t done it in a long time. A hundred per cent of me is scared that this is our last rig. We have to walk before we can run. Would it be a wonderful Cinderella story to go out and win the In-Port Race? Of course it would. But it’s going to be windy and it’s easy to say now but if we do something stupid and lose our rig our race is over. I’d love to say we’re smart enough to ease off but I’m not sure we are. OK, so things didn’t go our way. Do you sit around and feel sorry for yourself or do you make the best of it. Hopefully we dragged a few more people into our sport because of it.”

Team Sanya skipper Mike Sanderson:

“It’s just blown me away that the guys managed to fix this thing in a week. It feels as good as it should. The rusty bit is going to be us! We’ve got to be careful in the in-port Race. I think we have to be conservative. Getting the boat on the start line on Sunday is the highest priority. We will be using the pro-am Race to check a few final things off. To be honest our intention is to take it easy on Saturday so we’re all ready for Sunday.”

[MLovett]

Dec. 10


TELEFÓNICA SURGE TO VICTORY IN CAPE TOWN V&A WATERFONT IN-PORT RACE

Cape Town, South Africa - Team Telefónica surged to victory in Saturday’s Cape Town V&A Waterfront In-Port Race to strengthen their overall lead after PUMA Ocean Racing powered by BERG had briefly hinted at a fairytale comeback to the Volvo Ocean Race.

Telefónica, first into Cape Town at the end of Leg 1, led from the start in warm sunshine and breezes averaging 14 knots in Table Bay, only for PUMA’s Mar Mostro to sneak past them at the first mark.

Ken Read’s team, who only arrived in Cape Town midweek after becoming the third team forced to retire from Leg 1, then looked to be in a strong position but a sail handling mistake allowed Telefónica and CAMPER with Emirates Team New Zealand to streak past them on the way to mark 5, after which there was no way back.

Telefónica, last in the first in-port race in Alicante, finished the Cape Town V&A Waterfront In-Port Race in 52 minutes 55 seconds, with CAMPER with Emirates Team New Zealand in second 43 seconds back and PUMA third a further nine seconds behind them.

Abu Dhabi Ocean Racing were fourth, Groupama sailing team fifth and Team Sanya sixth.

The result sees Telefónica consolidate first place overall with 37 points, followed by CAMPER with 34 and Groupama 24. PUMA and Abu Dhabi are tied on nine points, with Sanya on four.

For PUMA and the other two teams forced to retire from Leg 1 – Abu Dhabi with a broken mast and Sanya with a massive hole in their hull – it was a real achievement just to make it to the start line.

That PUMA hinted at one of the great comebacks in the race’s history was scarcely credible.

PUMA, who lost their rig in the south Atlantic in Leg 1 and had to seek refuge at the impossibly remote Tristan da Cunha, only got the boat back to the shore base in the early hours of Wednesday morning.

After hours of round-the-clock graft, they had the replacement mast back in and on Saturday it looked like they had never been away.

Telefónica led from the beginning, blasting through the start line with their spinnaker flying to take an early gain.

PUMA and Telefónica, both latest generation designs from Juan Kouyoumdjian, had raced neck and neck at the front of the fleet for days on end in Leg 1 and Read’s team stuck close once again.

By mark one PUMA had reeled them in, rounding 14 seconds ahead of their Spanish rivals. After splitting from the leaders after mark 1, Abu Dhabi Ocean Racing and Groupama took advantage of a shift of wind direction and pulled back vital ground, all six teams rounding mark 2 within two minutes of each other.

It was a lead PUMA were to enjoy until a crucial moment after the fourth mark.

Telefónica made their move by gybing away from PUMA and were followed by CAMPER.

Sail choice – PUMA having to go for reaching sails while Telefónica and CAMPER went for downwind sails – proved critical and by the time the split boats came back together Martínez’s men were in front, PUMA having to settle for third place rounding mark 5.

Once out in front Telefónica didn’t look back, crossing the line 400 metres ahead of CAMPER, who took second place ahead of PUMA.

The teams are straight back in action on Sunday with Leg 2 to Abu Dhabi, starting at 1300 UTC/GMT.

The route has been redrawn for the second leg because of the threat of piracy in the Indian Ocean, with the teams due to make for an undisclosed safe haven port and then be transported by heavy lift ship to a position off the Sharjah coastline in the northern Emirates. From there they will sprint in to Abu Dhabi for the finish.

In-Port Race Results:
1. Team Telefónica (Iker Martínez), 52:55
2. CAMPER with Emirates Team New Zealand (Chris Nicholson) +0:43
3. PUMA Ocean Racing powered by BERG (Ken Read) +0:52
4. Abu Dhabi Ocean Racing (Ian Walker) +1:19
5. Groupama sailing team (Franck Cammas) +1:49
6. Team Sanya (Mike Sanderson) +4:10

Provisional Leaderboard Volvo Ocean Race 2011-12
1. Team Telefónica: 37 points
2. CAMPER with Emirates Team New Zealand: 34 points
3. Groupama sailing team: 24 points
4. Abu Dhabi Ocean Racing: 9 points
5. PUMA Ocean Racing powered by BERG: 9 points
6. Team Sanya: 4 points

[MLovett]

Dec 11


VOLVO OCEAN RACE 2011-12 LEG 2 UNDERWAY AS FLEET HEADS TO ABU DHABI

Cape Town, South Africa – Abu Dhabi Ocean Racing blazed a comeback trail after speeding around the Cape Town inshore course and leading the fleet on the Leg 2 charge to their home base at Abu Dhabi just days after replacing the boat's broken mast.

After a slow motion start with a light breeze in the shadow of Table Mountain, Abu Dhabi gained pace and led to the top mark, followed by Groupama sailing team, CAMPER with Emirates Team New Zealand, PUMA Ocean Racing powered by BERG, Team Sanya and Team Telefónica, who stalled on the start line.

But as the westerly wind eased to five knots and the fleet made their way around the 11-mile inshore course Ian Walker’s Abu Dhabi Ocean Racing team extended their lead at the Cape Town leaving mark.

Hundreds of spectators, fans, friends and families gathered at the Cape Town Race Village to give the 66 sailors warm, energetic and at times tearful farewells.

Telefónica supporters donned team colours and loudly blared their vuvuzelas in vocal support of the race leaders. Team Telefónica extended her lead by winning Saturday’s V&A Waterfront In-Port Race, scoring six points to take their overall score to 37.

Skipper Iker Martínez said his team had a solid strategy and would try their best to fend off the challengers. Hot on their heels are CAMPER with Emirates Team New Zealand, intent on winning Leg 2 and stealing the lead. Also close behind are third-place Groupama, with an excited Franck Cammas keen to “get back to ocean racing.”

A defiant Ken Read has also set out his hopes of PUMA becoming the first team to win the Whitbread/Volvo Ocean Race without completing all the legs, having retired from Leg 1 with a broken mast.

Team Sanya’s skipper Mike Sanderson said he was just happy to have his boat back in one piece and to be joining Leg 2 after a miraculous repair effort. Sanderson said following heart breaking results of Leg 1, when his team were back onshore within 24-hours that it was good to get going.

As the team songs faded out across the race village and the departure ceremony drew to a close, the focus soon turned to the race course, where hundreds of spectators had gathered on boats scattered across Table Bay.

By the start time, 1300 UTC, the morning’s rain had passed, with a sunny blue sky creating a picture perfect day, while a westerly breeze created dream conditions to charge up the fleet in the close-quarter inshore combat.

The fleet can expect yet another brutal leg start opening night, with the wind tipped to tend south as they make the 35-mile trek to the Cape of Good Hope.

Volvo meteorologist Gonzalo Infante said teams could expect the first night to be a good test for the three yachts ousted from Leg 1 with damage: Abu Dhabi, PUMA and Sanya.

“Twenty-five to 30 knots coupled with a three to four metre sea is going to be a good test for the new rigs and bow,’’ Infante said.

Leg 2 sees the fleet head out from Cape Town and they will eventually arrive at Abu Dhabi around New Year's Day. Because of the threat of piracy in the Indian Ocean the boats will be shipped from an undisclosed Safe Haven Port through the worst affected area before completing the leg with a sprint into Abu Dhabi.


Provisional Leaderboard Volvo Ocean Race 2011-12
1. Team Telefónica: 37 points
2. CAMPER with Emirates Team New Zealand: 34 points
3. Groupama sailing team: 24 points
4. Abu Dhabi Ocean Racing: 9 points
5. PUMA Ocean Racing powered by BERG: 9 points
6. Team Sanya: 4 points