After the field of yachts had some time to catch their breath yesterday in a 24-hour lull, things got busy tonight on the back of a powerful storm depression. The Volvo 70s have been ploughing through the Southern Ocean at speeds of around 25 knots since this morning. Just as Mike Sanderson's "Sanya" had once again taken the lead of the field after a long time, at least mathematically, it was over again: This morning, for no apparent reason, the windward rudder broke off directly on the shaft under the hull. The boat then took on a lot of water in the enclosed stern area.
Sanderson and his crew closed the hole in the rudder stock with a plate and are currently sailing with just one rudder blade. Volvo 70 boats have a spare rudder blade on board as standard, which can also be attached to the stern if the rudder stock is damaged. The team is currently still discussing whether they can continue sailing or head for the Chatham Islands. This would be the third time they have had to abandon a leg of the journey. As a precaution, skipper Mike Sanderson changed course to the north to avoid the strong winds of the next few days.
Accordingly, the dream of finally sailing right at the front is over for "Sanya's" crew. Still in the lead this morning, they have now fallen back over 50 miles and are almost ten knots slower than the "campers", who are currently in first place - a bitter pill to swallow for the crew, who have been carrying the red lantern in the field since the start.
But not everything is running smoothly on the other ships either. On "Puma", the two injured crew members Casey Smith and Thomas Johanson are feeling better, so that no recovery is necessary, but the two are still not fully operational, as skipper Ken Read writes from on board. "Thomas now looks like a real person again! Following Dr Ruth's instructions, he took his elbow and popped his shoulder back into place on his own. The look on his face was incomparable: from pure agony to wide-open eyes and speechless surprise when the pain suddenly subsided. He made a great recovery and was already back at the wheel," says Read.
For Casey Smith, this does not yet fully apply. "Following the doctors' instructions, he did four exercises to check whether it was a disc injury or just a muscular one. If it's the disc, he'd scream out in insane pain - if it's tolerable, it's probably just a muscle. No scream. Wow. What a relief." So the "Puma" team will sail on.
There were also anxious minutes for the crew on "Camper" after damage was discovered on one of the forward bulkheads. It detached from the hull, similar to Ian Walker's "Abu Dhabi", which therefore had to return to Auckland for repairs immediately after the start. However, the "Camper" crew managed a makeshift repair in the short period of little wind yesterday, which they hope will last around Cape Horn and as far as Brazil.
Andreas Fritsch
Editor Travel
