| ||||||||||||
|
BT GLOBAL CHALLENGE - SUNSHINE AND SLIGHT SEAS IN THE FURIOUS FIFTIES Southampton (UK), Saturday December 7th 1996 Since rounding Cape Horn earlier this week, the fleet of the BT Global Challenge has been subjected to severe weather conditions, including strong westerly winds, ice cold spray and rain, and the biggest waves seen so far on the race. Yesterday however the yachts were taken by surprise when they were granted a 24 hour respite from Southern Ocean conditions. The fleet is currently sailing in what is known as the Furious Fifties (ie. in the 50 - 59 degree latitude zone), an area renowned for strong westerly gales and difficult sailing conditions. Below this is the Screaming Sixties, where few sailors dare to venture - although Pause to Remember and Concert did briefly yesterday before coming back up to rejoin the rest of the fleet in the Fifties. A weather fax from the Chilean Navy had predicted that the wind would be to the north, and some of the fleet had charted a more northerly course accordingly. Save the Children skipper Andy Hindley watched others including Global Teamwork heading north to join him in a bid to avoid the band of low pressure that was tracking east, only to find a frustrating lack of wind that resulted in Save the Children becoming becalmed and losing her lead to Group 4, who sailed 35 miles further than the former fleet leader in 8 hours. Hindley summed up his feelings in his daily report : "I hate it when there's no wind... Where are we? Calmsville, South Atlantic. I thought it was calm, but that's nothing compared to now... why do we punish ourselves this way? We work for 3 or 4 years getting ready for this chance to sail a yacht in a round the world race, then subject ourselves to the torments and fickleness of nature..." Commercial Union had worked hard to improve her place from 10th to 7th the previous day, only to see herself slip back to 10th position in the early hours of this morning. These feeling were shared aboard Heath Insured II; "yesterday was a day of mixed emotions - relief at a short respite from the heel, wet and pounding, time to do repairs and catch up on cleaning... but on the other hand frustration at the lack of wind and finding we had slipped back to 14th position." However, some welcomed the break from typical Southern Ocean weather. A report from 3Com states that "all those nasty little jobs that are so awkward at 35 degrees can be addressed and willingly executed. General tidying up has been done after a period of fraught housekeeping, in preparation for the next batch of chaos... can we count on such spells of calm every few days, please?" The good weather and flatter seas have meant that life on board has been less of a struggle, and the Commercial Union crew member on "mother watch" (responsible for cooking and general housekeeping duties) even managed to bake a variety of fresh breads. On Courtaulds International, the first dry sunny day since leaving Rio saw the crew eagerly drying foul weather gear and the inside of the yacht, while on Motorola the crew celebrated the 36th birthday of crew member David Rose with a huge chocolate cheesecake decorated with three candles (the others having already been used to wax the zips of their dryskin suits). The barometric pressure in the area is reported to be dropping, indicating that fiercer weather may be on the way; the weather forecast issued by the Meteorological Office in Bracknell (UK) predicts that high pressure to the north and low pressure to the south of the yachts' route will maintain the general westerly airflow. There is a feeling amongst the fleet that this is perhaps the calm before the storm; a crew volunteer on Motorola has "an unerring sense that we should make the most of these past few hours before the wrath of the Southern Ocean really hits us." At 07.50 hrs GMT today, new fleet leader Group 4 had 4263 miles to go before reaching Wellington (NZ); 170 miles separated her from new backmarker Heath Insured II. Save the Children was lying in 2nd place, 15 miles behind Group 4, with Concert in 3rd, only 3 miles behind her. Global Teamwork had slipped back to 4th, another 3 miles behind Concert; however, her disappointment at losing ground to other yachts has been offset by a sighting of Save the Children's stern light (Global Teamwork has pulled back some 10 miles on her rival over the last few days), and the fighting spirit on all yachts remains high. For updated information on the BT Global Challenge : Internet site : http://www.btchallenge.com Fax database : 0990 321123 (+44 990 321123 from outside UK) Recorded telephone information line : 0891 505550 Public enquiry line : 01703 212124 (+44 1703 212124 from outside UK) Ceefax page 388 |
 Let's Talk |
 |
Copyright British Telecommunications plc 1996.
Notices| (i) | Copyright British Telecommunications plc 1996. |
| (ii) | Access to this information/data or any part of this page via the World Wide Web must only be by linking to the relevant page on the BT Global Challenge Web Site. (http://www.btchallenge.com/results/latest/latest.htm) |
| (iii) | This information/data was originally produced by "BT's Race Information System". BT shall not be liable for use of any part of it. Subject to (ii), you may use the information/data alone provided this notice is included. |
| (iv) | You may copy and use any part of this page, other than on the World Wide Web, provided you include all of these notices. You must not charge for public use and before such use you must inform BT by facsimile to 0171 777 7444 or email to h.brierley@btinternet.com stating the intended use. |
| (v) | Inform BT (as in notice (iv)) if your platform is not world wide web. |
| (vi) | Map data was produced using MundoCart/CD (a digital product of Petroconsultants Group). BT shall not be liable for use of any part of it. |