Tuesday 31 January 2012

Challenging straits prove weatherman's nightmare

I have looked back at the video of the re-start of leg 3 part 2. Six boats eagerly jostled for small gains and psychological advantage. Six skippers interviewed were all optimistic.

PUMA Ocean Racing's Jono Swain looks at the
sails while Ken Read surveys the sea with binoculars
Photo: Amory Ross/PUMA Ocean Racing/Volvo Ocean Race
The last word was left to the skipper of Team Sanya an old hand at this game, Mike Sanderson.

“It’s nice to get away cleanly but the start doesn’t mean much, Sanya here we come” he said, still concentrating on helming. 

Team Sanya
That comment has been true for most of the boats as they have traded places many times and almost re-started again as the conditions forced the fleet to concertina together.

The one boat that it did not apply to was Team Sanya.

They have struggled to stay in touch with fleet and now trail over 170 nm from the leader.

Physical challenge
The light winds and current against the fleet in the Strait of Malacca have been incredibly demanding for all the fleet.

Abu Dhabi Ocean Racing skipper, Ian Walker said that while the straits had been mentally taxing, he believed the South China Sea would be physically challenging.

Team Telefónica watch captain Neal McDonald said the crew had been awake for 20 hours in the past 24 and completed as many as 12 gybe manoeuvres in one hour as they negotiated the exit from the strait and defended attacks from other competitors.

Pushing hard
The promise of open water and upwind conditions was proving motivating for the team, McDonald explained.

“It’s quite intense. You can make a mistake so easily and it could cost miles,’’ he said of the Malacca and Singapore straits.

“There is a lot of pressure to keep pushing the boat hard and make sure you do the right thing all the time."

Shipping congestion
The right thing all the time! That's easier said than done when so much is out side your control.

At least the fleet can now leave the taxing light airs and shipping congestion of the Malacca Straits behind them.

They still have unlit fishing nets, flotsam and jetsam and short sharp seas whipped up by strong winds to go.

GRIB file
This leg has been a weatherman’s nightmare. Every three hours they will be eagerly waiting for the GRIB file. The GRIdded Binary is a mathematically-concise data format file sent to each boat every three hours.

This last 900 nm will sort the weathermen from the weatherboys.  Sanya here we come!

Monday 23 January 2012

Slow, fast, slow - go all the boats to China

    
Groupama Sailing Team’s Franck Cammas at the start
Photo: Ian Roman/Volvo Ocean Race
And they are off! All six teams are now heading south to China averaging about 10 knots in hot humid conditions.

They have left the safe haven of the now disclosed location - Male - the capital of the Maldives.

Part 2 of leg 3 of the race started between a makeshift flag on the shore and a radio tower across a channel just off the city’s port.

Strangest month
The last month has been a frustrating stop start-mix of short racing and long loading, but the teams are now very happy to be out in the ocean with many days and miles of exciting sailing before them.

“I have to admit that this has been one of the strangest months of my life. Never mind my sailing career,” said Ken Read, skipper of PUMA Ocean Racing powered by BERG.

“Not in a million years did we ever think that our sailing yacht would be on a ship not once, but three separate times during this race, so far.

Hardest legs
“We never thought we would have approximately a month in between ocean sailing legs. And now we are off.”

As much as they are happy to be sailing again, this is one of the hardest legs of the race.

Upwind for 1,000 miles in hot humid conditions through the Indian Ocean, then navigate one of the busiest shipping lanes in the world in the notorious Malacca Strait.

Vital tool
Giant merchant vessels in their hundreds are the more obvious risk in the Strait – although small fishing boats, nets, pots and floating debris are also likely to be troublesome.

The Automatic Identification Systems (AIS) on board each boat, that are used to identify any on-water traffic, will be a vital tool for the teams.

Once past Singapore, they will turn north-east into the South China Sea for the final stage of Leg 3.

Five-metre waves
Volvo meteorologist Gonzalo Infante explained that the South China Sea is shallow, and when combined with the long fetch (the length of water over which a given wind has blown) a nightmarish sea state is created.

“They are likely to be beating for one week in conditions that are very hard on the boat,’’ he said.

“The waves could reach four to five metres, and could be very steep.’’

Close field
The course is tipped to take the teams around two weeks to complete, with a finish in Sanya, China, in early February.

The fleet will stretch and then compress, almost restarting many times - so it will be a case of - it’s not over till it’s over.

As I pen this blog, I can see only 10 nautical miles between them all.

The standings are:
1. Puma Ocean Racing by BERG
2. Camper with Emirates Team NZ
3. Groupama Sailing Team
4. Team Telefonica
5. Abu Dhabi Ocean Racing
6. Team Sanya

Mark Covell

Thursday 19 January 2012

Close racing - closer finish


Dark twist:  Abu Dhabi finish first in stage 1 of Leg 3 
Photo: IAN ROMAN/Volvo Ocean Race
Leg 3 stage 1 was a mad dash down the coast from Abu Dhabi to Sharjah.

The day before, Abu Dhabi Ocean Racing had won  the Etihad Airways In-Port Race in front of a record crowd. There’s nothing like winning at home and raising expectations to pile the pressure on.

The stage to Sanya in China is a rerun of the sprint into the stopover just after New Year.

Speed kings
On that occasion we saw a pure drag race, laying out some interesting conclusions about boat speed and modes that separate the fleet in specific conditions and points of sail.

Groupama and Telefonica were crowned the speed kings with Abu Dhabi left solo searching for more speed and a good result.

After two short legs of the bay course, Abu Dhabi was last and Telefonica was leading.

Fickle wind
The wind was light and a little fickle allowing some passing lanes to open up for the trailing pack.

By the next turning mark Abu Dhabi had moved up to second. Local knowledge and some perfect lay line calls from navigator Julian Salter had put them back in the running again.

The next challenge for the front-runners was to try to extend away as the fleet left the bay and raced down the coast for 90nm.

Twist at the end
The breeze built and turned back into the drag race that the fleet had enjoyed on the way up.

This time there would be a little twist at the end that they had not had to deal with before:darkness!

The dark of the night just makes it harder to see the subtleties and pick up the relative angles of other boats and see the wind on the water.

Formation sailing
There was a very short dogleg down wind, running into the finish just off Sharjah.

As the fleet turned onto this leg they compressed and found themselves sailing in formation, parallel to each other before a final gybe into the finish.

That last gybe was going to be 99% of the race. Again navigator Julian Salter on board Abu Dhabi nailed the lay line to win the stage and make it 2 out of 2 for that weekend’s work.

Flawless FleetBroadband
Once again, the superior transmission of the Inmarsat FleetBroadband 500 flawlessly delivered some great media with plenty of live link interviews with the crews from the heart of the race.

Later, Skipper Ian Walker said:"I guess when (Telefónica) gybed and we saw how much we closed them down with about half an hour remaining in the race we thought ‘we are going fast here and it’s possible we can get them’, but gradually we overhauled Telefónica and we became more concerned that PUMA stayed behind us.
"I think what everybody is seeing here is what all the skippers have been saying all along, we have five very good boats and five very good teams and it’s easy to be last.

Piracy threat
“Telefónica, you thought they would win that hands down with the lead they had, but it’s just not that easy because you’ve got very good people behind you and you don’t need to do much wrong for people to come past.”

The fleet will now be shipped down to the start of stage 2 of Leg 3 where they will leave the serious threat of piracy behind and race onto the port of Sanya in China.

Mark Covell

Monday 16 January 2012

Racing again – the Etihad Airways' in-port race

Abu Dhabi: Winners of the in-port race.
Photo: Ian Roman/Volvo Ocean Race
Like restless animals before a storm, the five teams were anxious to get racing again.

The long Christmas and New Year break, together with the inconvenient diversion of shipping the boats, had broken the stride of these competitive sailors - and they were keen to get back to what they do best.

So after seeing the new year in with the band Cold Play, racing camels in the desert, riding record-breaking roller coasters at the amazing Ferrari World, being entertained by The Scissors Sisters and having half of Dire Straits play at the prize giving, speak to any of the racing crews and they would say "Thank you Abu Dhabi - it was a great stopover, but we want to go racing now".

Desert Shamal
They finally got their wish on Friday for the Etihad Airways' In-Port Race. The forecasted light airs were blown away by an unexpected desert Shamal wind, that arrived as if it had been ordered especially by Sheikh Mohamed Bin Zayed himself.

The last thing the teams wanted was a light and fluky lottery of a race.

The pressure on Ian Walker and his team was immense. Things had not been going well for them, pulling out of leg one and finishing a disappointing fifth on leg two, they really needed a result. Not wanting to add to the pressure of the day, Prince Andrew, Duke of York, joined them on board.

Sea legs
"I'm delighted to be here," the Prince said from on board Azzam. "I've been following the race for many, many years. I'm no stranger to sailing, I have my sea legs, and I'm very much looking forward to the day."

The race got under way on time, perfectly fitting the schedule to link up to the many television channels around the world broadcasting the race live.

Hundreds of spectators also watched from an armada of small and large pleasure boats.

Escaped animals

The course marshals struggled to keep them off the field of play. So much so that only two minutes after the down-wind start, Camper and Groupama had to weave through the eager onlookers like escaped animals in a busy market place.

Even though their rout through the crowd had been unconventional, all but Abu Dhabi Ocean Racing had chosen to sail down the right side of the course.

The fleet was looking strong in more wind and a good angle.

Arabian genie
The local team, some two nautical miles away, looked in trouble. However, as if they had been issued with their own personal Arabian genie the team's wish came true. A late shift in the wind angle and a near perfect lay line into the bottom mark, put Abu Dhabi into the lead.

For the next leg they had to vigorously defend the French as Groupama were still very close. Their crew work and tactical placement finally won them the result they needed. A home win !

After the race, Ian Walker, skipper of Abu Dhabi said: "We so wanted to win the race, so we were prepared to take risks," he said. "We knew if we could win it would be very special for everyone.

Important day
“We’re involved in a nine-month odyssey round the world, but today is the most important day for Abu Dhabi. We have never seen this many boats out on the water to watch racing, and there are lots of people out who are new to sailing.

“Right now all they are seeing is their country flag being waved. It’s a real thrill for that to happen."

Final results of the in-port race:
  1. Abu Dhabi Ocean Racing 6 points

  2. Groupama sailing team 5

  3. CAMPER with Emirates Team New Zealand 4

  4. PUMA Ocean Racing powered by BERG 3

  5. Team Telefonica 2

  6. Team Sanya (Did Not Start)

Tuesday 10 January 2012

Only one word to describe leg 2 - and it begins with the letter 'f'

To sum up leg two of the 2011-2012 Volvo Ocean Race is easy. I can do it in one word. This word is not always used in a positive tense, but doesn’t necessarily mean the experience was a bad one. 

|frəˈstrāSHən|
noun
the feeling of being upset or annoyed, esp. because of inability to change or achieve something: I sometimes feel like screaming with frustration.
ORIGIN mid 16th cent.: from Latin frustratio(n-), from frustrare ‘disappoint’.

Sorry to be negative but this was the word that most of the sailors I spoke to used to convey their feelings - even those who’d had a good run.

Flying start
The leg got off to a flying start with the best that Cape Town could offer: beautiful light with the magnificent backdrop of Table Mountain and a building breeze. You couldn’t ask for more. 

Abu Dhabi Ocean Racing was fast out of the blocks, racing hard after all their mishaps and keen to be setting the pace towards their home port. 

Late that night the wind dropped away to almost nothing, leaving the fleet drifting along the South African coast. It was Team Telefonica who realised first that the strong Agulhas current was pushing them backwards. They quickly stopped the rot by actually putting the anchor down. Frustration!

Cold front
After three days of this stop-start routine the teams finally got going again, only to be held back by a slow-moving coldfront that stretched almost 100 miles either side of them. 

Like a sweeping arm across a chess table, the fleet was pushed back and prevented from breaking through. Ken Reid from Puma commented that he had never sailed in more confused and frustrating conditions. 

Finally, two teams lost their patience. Groupama took off to the south and Team Sanya split to the north. Sanya looked like they were sailing back to Cape Town such was the dramatic change of course. 

Dive south
Groupama’s media crew member, Yann Riou, noted that after a week of sailing and this dramatic dive south Groupama was now further from their destination than when they started on the line in Cape Town. 

Yet you sometimes have to take one step back to make two forward. And in sailing occasionally you need to take four steps back to take five forward. The good news was that after a few days their strategy paid off: they managed to sail around the front and across the face of the fleet to take the lead. 

The other boat that had taken a flyer was Team Sanya. Their luck was short-lived. The move had worked for them too.  They were looking famous in more wind, a better angle to the mark and even a bit more sun. But just as they were setting up for a sail change and a tack, the bowman noticed a broken shroud. 

Bitter blow
Frustratingly, they were out. The damage forced them to suspend racing and head for the island of Madagascar. This was a bitter blow, as the team had hit a submerged object at the start of leg one, which had forced them to retire. 

The rest of the teams were feeling a bit better as they had a French rabbit to chase. Going into the dreaded Doldrums the fleet had compressed, with Groupama still leading and Abu Dhabi bring up the rear. That next week of sailing was so full of lead changes, twists and turns, you would be frustrated with me if I tried to explain the complicated maneouvres.  

Racing hard, Christmas Day came and went with very little mention. However, Farther Christmas did find the time to stop off on his busy schedule. It was very considerate of him only to leave light and compact presents for the teams, because every ounce counts against speed. 

Call home
And, happily, all the teams enjoyed the luxury of being able to call home to loved-ones on such a special day, using their IsatPhone Pro.

The last dash to the undisclosed location was just as frustrating for all but one boat. Camper had led Telefonica for days when the Spanish cruelly stole the lead with only eight miles to go to the finish Line. 

Team Telefonica won by just one minute and 57 seconds. That’s an amazing margin after sailing 5,430 nautical miles from Cape Town.

Risk of piracy
The rest of the fleet finished the leg in similar cat-and-mouse stile, changing places all the way into the undisclosed safe haven port. Telefónica took first place, followed by Camper, Puma, Groupama and, bringing up the rear,  a frustrated Abu Dhabi in fifth. 

To reduce the risk of piracy, race organizers had implemented a stealth zone in which the positions of the yachts were withheld for the latter part of the leg to mask the identity of the safe haven port. 

The five boats were then carefully loaded on to a merchant ship – a risky manoeuvre that had never been done in the race before. They were then transported to a point off the Sharjah coastline in the northern United Arab Emirates, from where the leg was completed with a day-long sprint to Abu Dhabi. The points for the leg were split 80 and 20 per cent for parts one and two.

Suspend racing
Team Sanya, the sixth boat in the fleet, was forced to suspend racing while they had new rigging sent to Madagascar. They eventually sailed to the finish line to claim some points for that leg and position themselves ready for leg three. Frustration!

For the rest of the fleet now unloaded and race-ready again, it was time for the mad dash to Abu Dhabi. The desert Shamal wind was blowing and the 98 nm course was set. 

Unfortunately, for Abu Dhabi Ocean Racing the one team that really needed a good leg into their homeport was squeezed out of the first mark and played catch-up for the rest of the day. 

Best speed
It was Groupama and Telefonica who showed the best speed, with the French finally clinching the win over the Spanish. Camper took third, with Puma and Abu Dhabi trailing

So with the combined scores of both part one and two of leg two the overall leaderboard sits like this: 

1. Team Telefonica - 66 points
2. Camper with Emirates Team NZ - 58 points
3. Groupama Sailing Team - 42 points
4. Puma Ocean Racing by BERG - 28 points
5. Abu Dhabi Ocean Racing -19 points
6. Team Sanya - 4 points

For many teams this has been the hardest leg and some of the hardest racing they have ever experienced. I know I used the word frustration to describe the leg, but if you asked the leader, Team Telefonica, to comment they would say that frustration is just a stepping-stone to jubilation.

Mark Covell

Wednesday 4 January 2012

At the heart the race - and so much more


Live race data showing on the VOR website 
Watching the leg 2 part 2 sprint from Sharjah to Abu Dhabi over 98 nautical miles, I’ve witnessed a fantastic deluge of reportage. 

Right now I’m sat in the media centre in a small white Formica booth with no windows - but I’ve never felt more connected with the race fleet as they battle up the coast in a building 20 to 25 knot Shamal desert wind.

I can see each boat’s position updated every 10 seconds, delivered using FleetBroadband 150, with telemetry that feeds the VOR website’s online yacht tracker. It is beautifully efficient, transmitting only 80 bytes per second with pinpoint accuracy. 

Position reporting
As if the position reporting wasn’t enough, it’s also delivering live data from the yachts’ onboard systems, including distance to leader, heading, average speed, instant speed, average and maximum wind speeds, true wind direction and even average wave height.  

The live theme continues with radio interviews streamed from each boat which transport you right into the heart of the action.

Volvo’s Rick Deppe is using the live video conferencing at 256kbps transmitted via FleetBroadband 500 to place us literally on the boats.

Real conditions
I feel like tipping a glass of water over my head to simulate real conditions on board! 

As well as live footage from the yachts, the media crew member (MCM) on each boat is snapping photographs and shooting HD video. 

They are editing their material I and using the onboard store-and-forward media capabilities to beam over their high-quality footage, which will appear on the web and later on the world’s news desks and TV documentaries. 

MCM videos
Each MCM has been tasked with sending 10 stills and six 15MB videos. 

To top this, Volvo HQ calls the boats for quick quotes and interviews from the race crews using Inmarsat FB150. 

All in all, on an important media race day like this, it’s safe to say that Inmarsat communications are not only at the heart of the race - but provides the backbone, the spinal cord and the big toe of all the communications.  

Data syndicated
Race HQ won’t give me a total of how many people are following the race today online, as all this data is being syndicated out to more than just the Volvo Ocean Race website. 

My rough calculations from just the ticker running on the live blog commentary, is that many thousands are tuning in from around the world.  

Mark Covell

Monday 2 January 2012

Race adapts to meet the pirate threat

Safe haven: Camper and the other boats were lifted up onto
a ship at an undisclosed port on stage 1 of leg 2
PHOTO: Paul Todd/Volvo Ocean Race
It’s proof of the changing face of the Volvo Ocean Race when the fleet spends Christmas Day at sea, racing hard, and New Year’s Eve at a sell-out Coldplay gig, while their precious boats skirt past Somali pirates by riding piggyback on a merchant ship. 

A lot has changed in its 38-year history. The fleet used to leave the Solent, in southern England, and turn left until they found themselves back at the finish line having circumnavigated the world.                                   

Like most things in life, to survive you need to adapt and change with the times. The evolution of today’s race is a direct adaptation to the world’s economy, politics and technologies. 

Emerging markets
It makes sense that the race should sail to emerging markets, igniting new interest and charting new ground. 

That’s why the race has done more than just turn left. It’s turned left and left again, heading back up north to Arabia and the magical Middle Eastern port of Abu Dhabi. 

The thorn in the side of this new route comes in the form of the very real threat from opportunistic pirates. 

Courageous decision
Adapting to the situation, the race management chose to take control of the issue. They took the courageous decision to suspend racing at a undisclosed port and carefully load the fleet on to a fortified cargo ship, chaperoning them north to a secret location off the UAE’s Sharjah coast. 

They are being unloaded now, ready for a sprint race into Abu Dhabi on 4 January. 
Changing the face of this edition of the Volvo Ocean Race has not been easy, and it may not fit everybody’s ideals. But you can’t fault them for mixing it up. 

Plenty of action
There is still a start and a finish line. There will still be a winner and a loser.  And if the story of the race so far is anything to go by, there will be plenty of action on and off the racecourse. 

So Happy New Year from me, and I look forward to bringing all the Volvo Ocean Race news in 2012. 

Mark Covell