http://www.greendragonracing.com/en/news/article/ en lucy.harwood@intotheblue.biz Copyright 2009 2009-07-08T12:55:34+00:00 http://www.greendragonracing.com/en/news/article/day-36-snakes-and-ladders/ http://www.greendragonracing.com/en/news/article/day-36-snakes-and-ladders/#When:18:21:01Z For the crew onboard Green Dragon the final days into Rio will be longer than anticipated as the reality of a 40 plus day leg sets in.  The current leg leader Ericsson 3 has hit the second band of high pressure that is blocking the path to Rio and the chasing boats are closing the gap. For the crew onboard Green Dragon the final days into Rio will be longer than anticipated as the reality of a 40 plus day leg sets in.  The current leg leader Ericsson 3 has hit the second band of high pressure that is blocking the path to Rio and the chasing boats are closing the gap.  The Dragon has lost some miles in the last 24 hours as they negotiate the weather systems described by Green Dragon’s navigator Wouter as a “minefield”. Sometimes being the navigator is a tough position onboard, as Wouter described in his update today, “We lost 43 miles to the fleet. Not the kind of message I like to come on deck with for the boys, but today it has been the harsh reality that as a navigator you have to deal with. Waving a white flag and phrases like ‘don`t shoot the messenger” are pretty much of no use, the crew is going to take it out on you.  Nice mess you got us into, Wouter.!” The slow route into Rio also means a genuine concern for the supplies onboard, Green Dragon has just two food bags remaining and one spare, each bag supplies two days food and with the present routing suggesting a finish in Rio later next week, it will be a hungry final few days for the crew onboard Green Dragon. But the game of snakes and ladders on the race course continues and current forecasts suggest a potential opportunity for Green Dragon due to a small low developing of the Argentinean coast, which may provide a chance to gain back some miles on the boats ahead. Read Wouter’s update in full here View the latest images from onboard here Leg Five Day 36: 1600 GMT Volvo Ocean Race Positions (boat name/country/skipper/nationality/distance to finish) Ericsson 3 SWE (Magnus Olsson/SWE) DTF 882 nm Ericsson 4 SWE (Torben Grael/BRA) +86 PUMA Racing Team USA (Ken Read/USA) +174 Green Dragon IRL/CHI (Ian Walker/GBR) +411 Telefónica Blue ESP (Bouwe Bekking/NED) +712 Delta Lloyd IRL (Roberto Bermudez/ESP) DNS Telefónica Black ESP (Fernando Echávarri/ESP) DNS Team Russia RUS (Andreas Hanakamp/AUT) DNS Race Team 2009-03-21T18:21:01+00:00 http://www.greendragonracing.com/en/news/article/the-road-to-rio/ http://www.greendragonracing.com/en/news/article/the-road-to-rio/#When:14:26:10Z The leading boats continued on the long road north, they have passed the Falkland Islands and are now in a line as they tackle a band of high pressure.  Positions over the last 24 have remained fairly consistent, Green Dragon is just 80 miles behind third placed PUMA, but they are still looking for an opportunity to strike if the fleet slows once again. The leading boats continue on the long road north, they have passed the Falkland Islands and are now in a line as they tackle a band of high pressure.  Positions over the last 24 hours have remained fairly consistent, Green Dragon is just 80 miles behind third placed PUMA, but they are still looking for an opportunity to strike if the fleet slows once again. This compression as they head into Rio is a distinct possibility Race Forecaster Jennifer Lily highlighted a high pressure zone that will hit the fleet just before the finish, “the wind speeds will decrease and the fleet is likely to bunch up, as everyone is forced to sail upwind, through the light air on the back side of the second high”. You can read the full forecast here The final road to Rio will be a challenging one and strategy will be key and the Dragon will be looking for an opportunity to grab a podium spot, Volvo’s Race expert Mark Chisnell commented, “it’s got the potential for murder on the road to Rio, it appears that there is no way through this ridge, compressing the fleet for a restart with about 600 miles (or one Sydney-to-Hobart) to go”. Talking through their route north so far skipper Ian Walker commented, “We were quite keen on the easterly route, I think if we had been able to get outside Staten Island off Cape Horn then we probably would have gone outside of the Falklands.  But we had to drop a spinnaker in a lot of wind off Cape Horn and we ended up getting sucked up close to the land and it would have cost us a lot of miles to get back round Statten Island and out to the east.  Having gone through the Le Maire straits it lines you up to the west. In trying to get to the west of the Falkalands the breeze is headed and we have had to actually tacked to get up around the Falklands.  I have to say it is quite an incredible morning we are surrounded by all these islands with clouds popping off the top of them”. Listen to the audio in full here Update from onboard: “Before my grandfather passed away he gave my mother some handwritten letters written by her grandfather when he was shipwrecked on the Falkland Islands as a boy probably around 100 years ago. I keep copies of these letters and from time to time I read about how he had to swim ashore as the ship went down close to shore. Well this morning at first light we were having to tack to pass around the Northern edge of the Falklands and I found myself dodging the unmarked reefs. Every mile we had to sail on starboard tack to clear the island was a mile lost to the opposition as we needed to head east. Wouter and I checked the chart and found a very tenuous passage inside some islands and through some reefs that would cut 10 miles off our course. Wouter was very confident in the accuracy of the charts (’the British Navy would have surveyed every inch of these islands’) and after consulting with Damian and Neal we decided to take it on. I have to admit the thought of explaining how a second member of the family had become shipwrecked on the Falklands had crossed my mind but with some short tacks and some weaving we safely found our way through. Well done Wouter - I never doubted you! The Falkland Islands look to be a wild and inhospitable place with drizzle, strong winds and grey skies (and this is summer here) but there is a wild attraction to the place, not unlike the West Coast of Scotland. On the race course still we lose miles to the opposition as they sail in a more lifted breeze ahead of us but I am confident our time will come if we can keep some pressure on. As I write this blog the breeze is finally starting to lift and we should see our speeds rise. Speed now is crucial to get around the High Pressure before it spreads across our path and forces us further off course. Onboard conditions slowly improve and everyone is catching up on sleep. It won’t be too long now before the first pair of shorts and T-shirts come out”. - Skipper Ian Walker. Leg Five Day 35: 1300 GMT Volvo Ocean Race Positions (boat name/country/skipper/nationality/distance to finish) Ericsson 3 SWE (Magnus Olsson/SWE) DTF 1, 207 nm Ericsson 4 SWE (Torben Grael/BRA) +87 PUMA Racing Team USA (Ken Read/USA) +193 Green Dragon IRL/CHI (Ian Walker/GBR) +272 Telefónica Blue ESP (Bouwe Bekking/NED) +738 Delta Lloyd IRL (Roberto Bermudez/ESP) DNS Telefónica Black ESP (Fernando Echávarri/ESP) DNS Team Russia RUS (Andreas Hanakamp/AUT) DNS Race Team 2009-03-20T14:26:10+00:00 http://www.greendragonracing.com/en/news/article/from-high-to-low/ http://www.greendragonracing.com/en/news/article/from-high-to-low/#When:15:45:33Z The leading boats have hit a high pressure zone as they all battle north to Rio.  The low pressure systems and roaring forties of the Southern Ocean are now a distant memory, but all four boats are caught in this system as they negotiate their way around the Falkland Islands.  As a result there isn’t much change on the positions in terms of miles gained or lost in the last 24 hours. The leading boats have hit a high pressure zone as they all battle north to Rio.  The low pressure systems and the roaring forties of the Southern Ocean are now a distant memory, but all four boats are caught in this system as they negotiate their way around the Falkland Islands.  As a result there isn’t much change on the positions in terms of miles gained or lost in the last 24 hours.  Green Dragon are still holding fourth and they are sailing at 100% and chasing hard to try and close the gap on PUMA who lay 100 miles ahead.  At present the upwind stretch has kicked in and Green Dragon are pushing north in 25 knots. Whilst the weather options for Green Dragon are limited over the next few days spirits onboard remain high and the race isn’t over until they cross the line, “Finishing this leg will be a great achievement for the whole team but it would be far sweeter if we could get on the podium in Rio,” commented Ian Walker. Green Dragon’s navigator Wouter talked through his passage around Cape Horn, for him it was the second time around, but he is still no closer to actually seeing it in all of its majesty! “Nope, I didn’t even see a glimpse of it. My second rounding of the Horn, and out of luck again. None of the glamorous pictures of a yacht blasting along the green rocks in bright sunshine for us. On the contrary we were hanging on for dear life in 40 knots of wind in a pitch black night. The waves were so bad we even had to drop the fractional spinnaker and went to the smaller blast reacher. Cold, wet, overcast and stormy is a better description of Cape Horn if you ask me”. In terms of the conditions ahead and a route it Rio, he said, So now it is all good news as we are heading north towards Rio de Janeiro. The weather looks to be a right mess, which suits us very well as it will provide us with some snakes and ladders to try and overtake Puma. This marathon is not over until we cross the finishing line, which is for sure. The 10, 000 miles behind us has been the warm up for the grand finale which is about to start!” Asked whether he would do the trip again and take on Cape Horn he commented, “Absolutely, I have to at least SEE this rock that everybody is raving about, right?” Read the rest of his update here Leg Five Day 34: 1300 GMT Volvo Ocean Race Positions (boat name/country/skipper/nationality/distance to finish) Ericsson 3 SWE (Magnus Olsson/SWE) DTF 1, 621 nm Ericsson 4 SWE (Torben Grael/BRA) +50 PUMA Racing Team USA (Ken Read/USA) +136 Green Dragon IRL/CHI (Ian Walker/GBR) +236 Telefónica Blue ESP (Bouwe Bekking/NED) +636 Delta Lloyd IRL (Roberto Bermudez/ESP) DNS Telefónica Black ESP (Fernando Echávarri/ESP) DNS Team Russia RUS (Andreas Hanakamp/AUT) DNS Race Team 2009-03-19T15:45:33+00:00 http://www.greendragonracing.com/en/news/article/battling-the-doldrums/ http://www.greendragonracing.com/en/news/article/battling-the-doldrums/#When:14:17:22Z As the fleet continue to battle through the doldrums, the majority of the boats have made a new decision as they head towards Fiji, everyone apart from Telefónica Blue. The current leader Ericsson 4 has found some steady conditions as they have extended their lead from the pack behind and are now 47 miles ahead of second placed PUMA.  As the fleet continue to battle through the doldrums, the majority of the boats have made a new decision as they head towards Fiji, everyone apart from Telefónica Blue. The current leader Ericsson 4 has found some steady conditions as they have extended their lead from the pack behind and are now 47 miles ahead of second placed PUMA. Whilst Green Dragon believed they were through the doldrums, the reality is not so clear cut. The next 48 are going to be interesting tactically. Green Dragon is expecting very complicated weather conditions over the coming week. You can hear Ian Walker talking about it here. Volvo’s race expert Mark Chisnell explains the situation: “In the Pacific, and particularly in the area that the fleet is now sailing through, the easterly trade winds are well formed so well formed that the fleet is sailing at 15 knots in them. So another definition of Doldrums would be a substitute for the term convergence zone. After all, the convergence zones are where we find all the clouds and squalls that we really associate with Doldrums weather.  So, Ian Walker is correct in saying that Green Dragon is through the Doldrums, if by that he means the ITCZ. But after transiting the easterly trade winds, he might normally have to expect a second band of Doldrums in the South Pacific Convergence Zone or SPCZ. Or you could view – as I was and other people writing in boat emails may well do – the whole area between the two convergence zones as the Doldrums”. Green Dragon’s navigator Wouter talks through the route to Fiji below, whilst it is clear that the fleet is splitting, it is also clear that not everyone will pick this track towards the Fijian Islands.  Either way there will be some serious gains and losses for everyone over the next week. “What it looked like a promising highway south three days ago, now has turned into a dirt track with some very nasty potholes. Risk of a complete stop is about 70%, and the less than 30% chance of a swift arrival at the other end are making it look less than ideal. It is not a surprise that the fleet has made a sharp left hand turn and that prefers a close look at Fiji over the no doubt beautiful islands of Vanuatu. The limited weather info package we are receiving (the satellite rearrangement upstairs is interfering with our comms) gives us only a tantalising hint of what is going on in the Southern Ocean, and for a days the route south was a mystery.  The weather studies that we worked on before the start with weather expert, Jean Yves Bernot, and fellow navigator, Ian Moore, already showed a more easterly route along the Marshall and Kiribati islands to be favourable, but also some more risky options for a direct southerly route with huge benefits. So we have so far chosen the more conservative easterly route. It already gave us stronger winds and a better wind angle in the North East Trades, and yesterday a swift doldrums crossing. Now with the southerly route blocked we have a great chance to cut the corner and get back in touch with the fleet too!  The reverse isochrones (lines of equal time to the mark) to Fiji are actually showing us ahead of the fleet.  We will be modest and happy with being in touch with the fleet near Fiji. It really looks like a 1,000 nm drag race up there with not too many options. It is a case of being as fast as you can! In the meantime down in the dungeons Ian Walker and myself will be rattling our brains on how we are going to get to the westerlies of the Southern Ocean. Every grib file shows a little window, but we know that the weather models are generally overestimating the development of the low pressure systems. Sure enough, the next grib file we get in the low is less intense. The promising winds have disappeared and we are moving our waypoint further east waiting for the next opportunity. Eventually it will come and we feel confident. In the meantime we are enjoying the great gains to the fleet of the last days. The Green Dragon team is a happy bunch with a good dose of determination. We have 3,600 fast miles under our belt and only 9,000 miles to go. We are in with the bunch and are going to give these guys a good fight. Hey guys, you might be fast down there, but be aware the Dragon has sharp claws to fight back with all the way to Rio!” See the latest images from onboard here. Leg Five Day 11: 1300 GMT Volvo Ocean Race Positions (boat name/country/skipper/nationality/distance to finish) Ericsson 4 SWE (Torben Grael/BRA) DTF 9,036 nm PUMA Racing Team USA (Ken Read/USA) +47 Ericsson 3 SWE (Magnus Olsson/SWE) +50 Green Dragon IRL/CHN (Ian Walker/GBR) +105 Telefónica Blue ESP (Bouwe Bekking/NED) +123 Delta Lloyd IRL (Roberto Bermudez/ESP) DNS Telefónica Black ESP (Fernando Echávarri/ESP) DNS Team Russia RUS (Andreas Hanakamp/AUT) DNS Race Team 2009-02-24T14:17:22+00:00 http://www.greendragonracing.com/en/news/article/day-9/ http://www.greendragonracing.com/en/news/article/day-9/#When:18:35:22Z The fleet have compressed overnight as the front runners slow, the rest of the fleet are playing catch up.  The Doldrums are on the horizon and for PUMA their lead has been diminished. Green Dragon are now in joint third and the most westerly boat of the fleet, some 70 miles from PUMA. The fleet have compressed overnight as the front runners slow the rest of the fleet are playing catch up.  The Doldrums are on the horizon and for PUMA their lead has been diminished. Green Dragon are now in joint thrid and the most westerly boat of the fleet, some 70 miles from PUMA. Ian Walker reports, “it is a complex weather situation and anything could happen at the Doldrums”. And it usually does.... Green Dragon’s Trimmer Phil Harmer fills us in on life aboard the mighty dragon! Greetings all from the Green Dragon!!!!  After week 1, the racing is still close and as interesting as it was day 1 which is great and intense but the sailing has been great. I should start at the beginning, thank you so much everyone involved the start was a great event and a real privilege to be a part of. I emailed my fiancé Charlotte a few days ago, saying that it didn’t feel like the start of the Volvo Ocean Race until about 1 hour before we left, when this amazing feeling came over the village and we all started saying our goodbyes, its hard enough saying goodbye to Charlotte and her family, I cant begin to imagine how it feels for our guys with young kids..... The start was full of drama for us with gear failure, something that has never happened to us before we just got another position report and we are slowing getting a bit back on the leaders which is nice to hear after a few days of not really knowing how we are positioned.... As for life onboard, the days are really flying by, which is good and the sailing really is magic. Everyone onboard is in really good spirits and gets on very well, I think it shows the quality of the crew as a group. Our only real worry has to be Neal Mac, he hurt his knee a few days ago which has been a concern but he is being treated by medic Tom, following some great advice by doctor Tommo, its really great to have people like that literally at our finger tips. Neal also had a shocker the other day, wearing a his wedding ring, it got stuck and cut his finger, not very badly, but enough to look slightly infected, swell up and force us to cut his ring off (sorry Lisa if you are reading this before he writes to you....) Apart from that, we have had the occasional attack from flying fish, hitting myself a few times and who ever dares stick their head above the stack!! the water is warmer and the temperature is getting hotter every day, downstairs is a bit of a sweatbox, which is good for the few of us athletically overweight!!! Well guys not much more to report, might go and have another of our beautifully prepared meals and fill it full of flavour with everybody’s favourite, TABASCO!!! Hope this finds you all well, and ill write to you again from the Southern hemisphere! cheers Race Team 2008-10-18T18:35:22+00:00 http://www.greendragonracing.com/en/news/article/day-7-a-tough-24-hours/ http://www.greendragonracing.com/en/news/article/day-7-a-tough-24-hours/#When:12:17:19Z It has been a tough 24 hours onboard Green Dragon.  The approach south has seen the Dragon lose some crucial miles, but with just under 5000 miles to go the feeling onboard is positive and there is still a long road ahead.  The next obstacle ahead is the Doldrums.... It has been a tough 24 hours onboard Green Dragon.  The approach south has seen the Dragon lose some crucial miles, but with just under 5000 miles to go the feeling onboard is positive and there is still a long road ahead.  The next obstacle ahead is the Doldrums.... Mark Chisnell filled us in on the weather systems ahead. “So this is a big moment – they have to balance four different factors: the wind shift to the east; getting a clean path through the Cape Verde Islands (benefiting from any local effects and not getting stuck in the lee of any islands, or hitting any rocks); their position relative to the rest of the fleet; and, last but not least, getting the right line through the Doldrums, which they could hit as little as 48 hours after the gybe” Update from Ian Walker “I feel a bit odd today - maybe its because I have just had 4 hours sleep - my longest stint of the trip so far and the first time I have slept through 2 position reports. The reports haven’t made great reading recently so I am glad to have missed them. Its tricky out here - I have no idea how it can be so shifty so far out to sea. We are focusing on lining up for the Doldrums right now and there is a ‘tropical wave’ ahead of us (please note that onboard whenever anybody says ‘tropical wave’ everyone else does a Mexican wave!), is this the first sign of madness onboard I wonder?. This will mean a fast transition for some and could spell trouble for others. Right now it looks like the further ahead you are the better shape you will be in - we need to keep pushing hard. Anyway spirits remain high and were boosted when Damian got hit in the face by a flying fish in the night. I am not sure what was funnier the direct hit or Damian trying to get it out of the cockpit. I am going to start spending more time on deck as I spend so much time watching the computer and studying weather info that I feel the race is more of a ‘virtual experience’ right now. Whenever you are on deck it is fantastic sailing - we haven’t seen any other signs of human life since the Canaries and very little wildlife. Thankfully only a few small pilot whales and various dolphin. Thanks for following the Green Dragon as she heads South and nears the Cape Verde Islands”. Race Team 2008-10-17T12:17:19+00:00 http://www.greendragonracing.com/en/news/article/green-dragon-takes-the-lead/ http://www.greendragonracing.com/en/news/article/green-dragon-takes-the-lead/#When:17:23:11Z After nearly 1000 miles at sea Green Dragon has taken pole position of the eight boat fleet.  They have extended a small 6 mile lead over Ericsson 4 with the rest of the pack close behind. The next 24 hours will prove challenging, as the navigators choose the route south through the Canary Islands.  After nearly 1000 miles at sea Green Dragon has taken pole position of the eight boat fleet.  They have extended a small 6 mile lead over Ericsson 4 with the rest of the pack close behind. The next 24 hours will prove challenging, as the navigators choose the route south through the Canary Islands. Update from Green Dragon Navigator Ian Moore Its day 4 according to the food bag we opened today and I can’t decide whether it feels like more or less than that.  After a frantic first 48 hours when Ian and I managed only a few hours sleep between us things have settled down into a bit more of a routine.  The weather every six hours gives me something to look forward to as I wrestle with the contraption called the ‘media station’ to get online and download two zip files with all the weather information that we are allowed.  In theory under ideal conditions in an office in Swindon, this takes about 20 minutes but it really depends on what new trick the contraption is going to play on us.  Finally you manage to get the data out and look at it, and I’m guessing that all the other navigators have the same issues because as soon as we got the data this morning we decided to gybe.  Puma’s contraption must be working slightly better because they gybed about 15 minutes before us… Well I guess we are doing ok as after nearly 1000 miles of racing, and it feels good to take pole. The boat seems to prefer a bit more wind in running conditions, we have tweaked out a small lead over Ericsson 4, but I am still worried about our reaching performance against the boats with max keel weight.  The Canary islands are looming in the future and we will all have to make some tough decisions on whether to risk passing through the islands and getting stuck in the light airs behind, or commit to one of the longer passages round the end of the island chain.  I guess we will see tomorrow what boats go where and who has made the right call. The Canary Islands Also known as the Spanish archipelago. The archipelago consists of seven major islands, one minor island, and several small islets. They are of volcanic origin and can be found in the North Atlantic Ocean. These islands are located just off the coast of the north-western portion of the African continent/mainland, nearest the political divide of Morocco and Western Sahara. They form the autonomous community of the Canary Islands. The Canary Islands were formed by the Canary hotspot. The status of capital city is shared by the two cities of Santa Cruz de Tenerife and Las Palmas de Gran Canaria. Race Team 2008-10-14T17:23:11+00:00