Volvo: Green Dragon rounds Horn on St. Paddy's Day

Four of the five boats still racing have rounded the Horn.  Telefonica Blue - amazingly - is still racng - though 700+ miles from the leader and 500 miles from the Cape.  Impressive when you know they have no forestay.

And the Irish-crewed, Chinese-built Green Dragon rounded on St. Patrick's Day.  Normally I hate images of leprechauns and silly hats, but you have to forgive this one.

Here's the link

Volvo: Iceberg at 2 O'Clock

Green Dragon (the Irish/Chinese consortium) is sailing at 50 degrees South - what should be above the ice zone (that's why there are ice gates - to keep boats out of the ice zone.  But the icebergs don't know about the rules.

They saw three last night - and then these during the day.  Here is the video

VOR - It's really got a hold on me...

Volvo Ocean Race, leg 2 - Capetown to Cochin - the old fashioned way - under sail.

November 21, 2008    

6 days out of Capetown 

2,300 nm to Cochin

12 - 14 knots - Fleet Average Boat Speed   (8 boats)

78 nm - Distance from front to back of fleet 

Data from Team Data Centre

Team index page

There's email, audio, video, commentary.

There's passing footage to die for, mishaps and astonishing skill and competitive spirit.

Highlights of the week:

Video

Ericsson 3 passes Telefonica Blue - in rough seas in the Indian Ocean, November 16

Team Russia: Chinese Gybe 

Delta Lloyd: Hits a whale

Puma: 2d longitudinal frame crack video

Green Dragon: racing with no boom.

Email

Ken Read, skipper of Puma reports on day 17  out of Capetown, Tuesday 18 November 2008 10:57 GMT -  3,000 miles from Cochin:

"We got about as vertical in a sailboat as you would ever want to be when...we found another beauty of a wave, except this one had no face in front of it and ---whoosh. Take off!  

"The inevitable silence of a boat that feels like it is literally flying, followed up with a massive SMASH into the not very soft Indian Ocean. But this one was different than the other 10,872 smashes that have occurred over the past 48 hours or so. This one had a horrid CRACK along with it. I was working with Justin on the sail at the time and had on my headlamp and ran to the bow to quickly find several cracks in our longitudinal frames in the bow section. "

 See  Puma Team email for reports of fabricating carbon fibre splints underway, more damage, despair, and recovery.