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TIME AND TIDE - THE FIRST DISABLED CREW TO SAIL AROUND THE WORLD ARRIVES IN BOSTON Boston (US), Thursday June 12th 1997 The BT Global Challenge yacht Time and Tide arrived in Boston yesterday at the end of the fifth leg of the race, crossing the finishing line at 23;20 hrs GMT (7.20pm local time) to complete the fleet's arrival in the US. She has been expected for many hours. Time and Tide's supporters went out on a Boston Police boat in the early afternoon to welcome the yacht in, but they were in for a long wait; Time and Tide didn't cross the finish line until over five hours later, as the sun was going down over the still waters of Rowes Wharf. The wind died almost completely in the afternoon as temperatures soared into the 90s, and Time and Tide's crew spent a long, hot sticky afternoon waiting for the wind to fill in. When they finally came alongside, to a loud and enthusiastic welcome from all the other crews, Time and Tide's fourteen crew looked hot but happy. Their final day on leg 5 had started as a very cold one; the crew wore their thermals as they worked on deck before sunrise, and weather forecasts predicting sweltering temperatures later in the day were greeted with scepticism. However, by midday all thermals had been discarded in favour of shorts and T-shirts as the thermometer climbed even higher, and the wind continued to drop. Most of the crew were up from 3am onwards, some on watch while others prepared the boat - and themselves - for their public. When they were within sight of Rowes Wharf they donned their coming home kit" (clean shirts all round) and prepared for the cameras. Waiting for them on the dockside were a few surprises, including a bouquet of flowers for Carol Sear, Brendan West's parents, and skipper James Hatfield's sister. Crewman Stuart Boreham, back on the boat after an absence of almost five months expressed great relief and great disappointment. He and his fellow crew members were more than happy to have finished what turned out to be an extremely long and rather dull leg, but their happiness was tinged with disappointment at arriving in 14th place. However, although Time and Tide was the last yacht to complete this leg, her crew are nevertheless the first disabled crew to complete a round-the-world sailing trip. Time and Tide sailor Paul Burns described the leg as " a walk in the park compared to some of the others", but despite this, Time and Tide still had to make nine sail repairs during her trip, which was marred by the failure of several of their navigational instruments, including the all-important wind speed indicator. Whit the fifth leg completed by all the yachts, Time and Tide is now in 14th place overall with a combined time of 159 days, 3 hours, 5 minutes and 6 seconds (subject to ratification by the Race Committee). The combined times of all the BT Global Challenge yachts are posted on the race web site (http://www.btchallenge.com) under "Combined Times" The next leg of the race starts on June 29th and it will be a milestone for Time and Tide skipper James Hatfield; it will be his 25th atlantic crossing! In the meantime, race fans can follows the Boston stopover by reading the Race News reports which will be posted on the web site on weekdays during the stopover. 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 (UK only) Public enquiry bureau : 01703 212124 (+44 1703 212124 from outside UK) Ceefax page 388 (UK only) |
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