The fleet of 5 IMOCA 60s are all set for the second leg of The Ocean Race to Cape Town, with light winds expected to frustrate the fleet over the first few daysWith the first leg of the much-delayed The Ocean Race now concluded, teams are readying themselves to set off on the second leg of of the race, which starts today, Wednesday 25 January. The leg will see teams racing from the Cape Verde islands to Cape Town.
\nPer the recent changes to the event, the VO65s which raced alongside the IMOCA 60 fleet on the opening leg of The Ocean Race 2023 from Alicante to the Cape Verde islands will not set off on Leg 2 and will now return to Europe where their competition for The Ocean Race Sprint Cup will continue for the final two legs of the course later in the year.
\nAfter a week of solid trade wind action in Cape Verde, the forecast for the start of Leg 2 is much more benign with light northeasterly winds of 5 to 8 knots due for the opening hours of the second leg of the race.
\nIn fact, the weakening trade winds are likely to impact the fleet all the way down to the doldrums, which should make for a fascinating, if slow, start to the leg.
\n\u201cFirst we\u2019ll have to manage the windshadow from the islands as they are so tall and the wind is light,\u201d said Robert Stanjek, the skipper of GUYOT environment \u2013 Team Europe.
\n\u201cIt looks like we need to get west to be efficient for passing through the doldrums. That\u2019s the conservative option. So that\u2019s the first days.\u201d
\n\u201cWith the trade winds sort of breaking down, the doldrums get a bit bigger,\u201d said 11th Hour Racing Team\u2019s Simon Fisher. \u201cIt\u2019s three or four days to get down there and the trades should be rebuilding again. Getting out of here and picking up the beginning of the rebuild efficiently is quite important.\u201d<\/p>\n
Start time for Leg 2 is 1710 local time (1810 UTC) which is about 90-minutes before sunset, so the crews will be into that first night watch nearly immediately.
\nWhile the teams have been in Cape Verde, for this short stopover, there have been significant limits place on them in terms of boat maintenance, with no new material allowed on or off the boat and only the crew who sailed on the Leg 1 allowed to perform maintenance tasks onboard, with no technical team help allowed.
\nHowever, the teams do have the option of mixing up their crew for the next leg of the race and four of the five competing IMOCA 60 teams have chosen to do that. For some these are planned changes and for others these have been enforced.
\nBoris Herrmann (Team Malizia) and Benjamin Dutreux (GUYOT environnement \u2013 Team Europe) will both hand over their skipper roles for Leg 2. Boris was injured when he burned his foot with boiling water during a mishap on Leg 1.
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\u201cThe pot fell over and splashed boiling water on my foot. I wiped it off quickly but once we got here and went to the hospital we realised this is a severe burn we need to care of so therefore I can\u2019t do [Leg 2],\u201d he said. \u201cBut I will be in good shape for Leg 3.\u201d
\nWill Harris will step up to the role of skipper for Leg 2, while Yann Elies will join the team as a substitute sailor. A three time winner of the Solitaire du Figaro and a fifth place finisher in the Vend\u00e9e Globe, Elies is an accomplished addition to the team.
\nAlso stepping away for Leg 2 is Benjamin Dutreux from GUYOT environnement \u2013 Team Europe. He will be replaced by Sebastien Simon in a scheduled rotation. Robert Stanjek will take over as skipper on the leg.
\nThere is another crew rotation on the European boat: Annie Lush steps off with Anne-Clair le Berre in as replacement.
\nOn 11th Hour Racing Team, it will be Justine Mettraux coming in for Francesca Clapcich in another scheduled crew rotation.
\nBoth Malizia and Guyot will see new crew members on board for leg 2. Photo: Sailing Energy \/ The Ocean Race
\nAnd in a similar move, the Leg 1 winning team, Holcim-PRB, will have Susann Beucke in for Abby Ehler.
\nPaul Meilhat\u2019s Biotherm is therefore the only team planning to start with the same lineup. \u201cI think it\u2019s important for us to have the same crew because we have so many things to learn,\u201d Meilhat said. \u201cIf we change the minimum of settings, in this case that includes the people, it is easier to see the impacts and to learn.\u201d
\nFor leg one winner Kevin Escoffier on Holcim-PRB, it is a matter of continuing to do the things that pushed his team to get the most out of the boat en route to a victory.
\n\u201cWe\u2019ve known for a while that the boat is quite fast, or at least competitive with the other boats,\u201d Escoffier said. \u201cThe main thing is that I am really happy with the crew. For us it was the first time we were sailing offshore together. We had a lot of fun on board. It was a very good mood. At the same time we had a good result. But it was the first one. It doesn\u2019t mean anything. There is plenty still to come and we are focussing on the next one.\u201d<\/p>\n
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The fleet of 5 IMOCA 60s are all set for the second leg of The Ocean Race to Cape Town, with light winds expected to frustrate the fleet over the first few daysWith the first leg of the much-delayed The … <\/p>\n