Nothing to report really on the Virtual Race. The yacht Hold the Mayo is currently in 35,463rd place but it is too early for that number to mean anything.

The great story is on the water with the real boats.

During the start of leg 5 the boat Telefonica Blue struck something underwater in a place where they should have had more than enough depth. They suspended racing just before the start and returned to docks and puled the boat out of the water to repair their damaged keel and have resumed racing. they are currently 169 miles behind the leader.

The heroes of the event so far are the crew of Ericisson 3. i detailed some of the story in the post below. This is from the write-up on the race web site:

It's been 27 days since they set sail from Singapore for leg four and 18 since they started taking on water through a big crack in their hull. They suspended racing in Taiwan, their boat underwent major surgery, and then, with no one else on the track they resumed racing on Thursday morning (local time) and finished the leg at 1801 local time tonight to collect four points for fifth place.

...

Normally, it would be worth it for the rest and relaxation that comes at the end of a stage, but Olsson, visiting China for the first time, does not have that luxury. The crew expect to leave for the longest leg in the history of the race within two hours of their arrival.

In between, they must load 40 days worth of provisions, a few sails, some fuel, satisfy customs and welcome Magnus Woxen, Arve Roaas and Eivind Melleby onboard. Richard Mason leaves with an injury, while Jan Neergaard and Klas Nylof step off. Olsson laughed at the task, but is confident his shore crew can get his team on the track in good time.

They pulled it off and are currently a mere 29 miles behind the leader.

Posted by: Stephen Macklin at 10:58 PM | No Comments | Add Comment