Volvo race fleet closes in on iconic Cape Horn

THE Volvo Ocean Race moves close to its Galway conclusion by the week; the race is due here during the first week in July but there are three legs and in-port races to negotiate before that. Here, in our regular look at their progress, we report on a difficult week for the fleet.

The Volvo Ocean Race fleet are approaching the iconic Cape Horn highlight of the race this week – but their efforts have been hampered by unfavourable winds. The boats left Auckland last Sunday week and are due in the Brazilian port of Itajai around April 19, with the going difficult, even for the favourites, over the past few days.

Race leaders, Groupama, gybed away from the south easterly track that they and second placed Puma Ocean Racing had been sailing for several days. Puma held on to the south east for a while before eventually following suit and heading north east in Groupama's wake.Groupama Media Crew Member Yann Riou said the gybe had taken almost two hours of hard work as the sailors first prepared the boat above and below deck with the actual manoeuvre requiring the entire crew on deck.

"The gybe itself was a little stressful at night especially since it’s a week we spent on that tack," Riou wrote in his latest report from the boat. "We immediately did a visual check rigging after the gybe. Then came the optimisation of the stack, below and above deck."

In third, Team Telefónica, who confirmed plans on Tuesday to stop for repairs in Argentina, also gybed to head north east shortly before reaching the eastern edge of the ice exclusion zone.

Telefónica MCM Diego Fructuoso said that although the boat and crew were holding up well, the team had nevertheless decided to pitstop for repairs to protect their chances of a leg five podium result."We are sailing as fast as we can without damaging anything and it's very cold. We have about four days to reach our first destination and we hope that conditions are not particularly hard on the way.

"We have to defend the podium on this stage and our lead in the standings that we have worked so hard for. We are 1,400 miles to the stop and then about 1,800 to Itajaí. Let us hope that everything goes well,” he said.

Camper with Emirates Team New Zealand – heading for a repair stop in Chile – remains fourth on the leaderboard as fifth placed Abu Dhabi Ocean Racing continues to make rapid progress to the south east having passed the central ice exclusion zone waypoint overnight.