received 15.12.08 0610 GMT
"Max daggerboard down, please"
This rare call in the race so far marks the beginning of the 1000 NW beat to the top of Sumatra. To give you an idea of just how long a beat that is, it is as far as Miami to New York, slightly shorter than Sydney to Auckland or from Holland to the very most southern tip of Italy. Wow, that is more than a two-day drive!
It is not like we haven't been warned though. The statistics from the weather studies were daunting when we first got them. Whereas previous Volvo Ocean Races have been mainly a downwind and reaching trip around the planet, this edition we are in for a good beat(ing). Both this leg and the next leg stick out like a sore thumb with this one being the light to medium upwind stretch and the next leg to China the big breeze beat.
So the daggerboards that have been mostly dead weight so far in the race are now getting a chance to do their bit. Code Zero's are max trimmed in, and I don't think we will see the traveller much below centreline over the next days.
Getting the last percentages out of the boat is going to be crucial, and there is no better reference on how we are doing than the other boats. Fortunately, we have both Green Dragon and Ericsson within sight. As the conditions are still highly variable, changing gears well is where we can make the biggest gains. So we have the hand bearing compass and binoculars out to judge how we are doing.
"This high mode works well." "Little gain here with some more traveller up." "Nice work guys, the boat feels well balanced now." The speed team circle of the trimmers and driver is doing a great job and by the looks of things, they are going to be busy the next days!
As for us in the nav station, little differences in wind direction and wind speed have a large impact on our progress. Much more so than with the high speed reaching and downwind sailing that we have done in the previous legs.
Over the next days, the crucial question is when to tack north. It is clear that there is consistently is more wind up there in the Bay of Bengal, but we want to find a good opportunity get there. Go further east to get that better right hand shift, or go earlier to get to the stronger wind first. It will be all to play for once we get clear of the second Sri Lanka waypoint.
Wouter Verbraak - navigator
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