Regata Velux 5 oceans.

2006

Galerna in the seas of Galicia

Hardest galerna triggered on the Cantabrian forces to repair the sailboats of Unai Basurko, Alex Thomson, Mike Golding, and Sir Robin Knox-Johnston.

Facts:

Winds of maximum hardness. Up to 70 knots and waves of 14 meters 5 OCEANS have turned the beginning of the VELUX into the worse possible scene for navigation, comparable to a hurricane.

The conditions to which they have had to face up skippers are similar to which brought about the death of six regatistas in Rolex Sydney Hobart of 1998.

The four sailboats, with serious damages in candles and mastings, will be able to continue regata with a penalty of 48 hours.

Alex Thomson has arrived at Gij'on to 2 of this dawn, to Mike Golding is expected to him in A Corunna around the 5 of afternoon, Unai Basurko will berth tonight in the Sport Port of Getxo, and Sir Robin will take between one and two days in arriving at Galicia.

Previous the weather messages when coming out of Bilbao pointed difficulties for navigation, but no anticipated that the winds surpassed the 60 knots.

Bilbao, 24 of October of 2006. Four of the six sailboats Open 60 who initiated Sunday regata alone returned to world VELUX 5 OCEANS have seen forced to realize an unexpected scale to repair the serious damages suffered in the course of the first days of competition. The hardest conditions of the sea, with winds of up to 70 knots and waves of 14 meters, have turned the Cantabrian into a comparable scene to the one of a hurricane.

Previous the weather forecasts when coming out announced bad weather and difficulties for the navigation of this type of sailboats, but in no case winds that reached the 70 knots of speed. In these conditions, the participants in the VELUX 5 OCEANS have suffered one galerna of proportions similar to which in 1998 ended the life of six regatistas in Rolex Sydney Hobart.

Whereas Swiss Bernard Stamm and the Japanese Kojiro Shiraishi continue ahead, without until the moment they have reported damages of gravity in his boats, Unai Basurko, Alex Thomson, Mike Golding and Sir Robin Knox-Johnston have suffered damages in candles and mastings that made their continuity in the test without carrying out repairs impossible. The regulation of regata contemplates this possibility, although it takes prepared a penalty of 48 hours, time in which will not be able to leave port even though they have finalized the repair.

Throughout the past night they had to put prow to port Alex Thomson (“Hugo Boss”), that went first in arriving at earth, concretely at Gij'on, towards the two of this dawn; Mike Golding (“Ecover”), to which it is expected approximately in A Corunna to 5 of this behind schedule; and Unai Basurko, that hopes to tonight reach its base in the Sport Port of Getxo. Later, Sir Robin Knox-Johnston has been forced to make identical decision, although its present rear position its arrival to A Corunna between one and two days.

Sir Robin Knox-Johnston returns to port

Sir Robin Knox-Johnston informed this morning that its boat “Insurance Saga” has suffered serious damages during the night, while it sailed with winds of more than 60 knots. Sir Robin goes to Corunna to realize urgent repairs to the rail of the mast and the systems of communication. Its arrival in 1 is expected or 2 days, where it will be with his ground equipment. The information available at the moment is limited, due to the damages suffered in the communication systems, but Sir Robin confirms that it is well.

5 OCEANS soothe of the VELUX received the following email of Sir Robin to the 11:30 (peninsular hour) this morning:
“last night I upset.” Part of broken rail mast. I cannot clear screws so it guards hooked. I go to Corunna but equal I take even of days. Pf to find section long of Antal rail and to send to Corunna. Instruments mast without service for sound alarms. SatC continues doing “bip” By other all well. RKJ”

The VELUX 5 OCEANS is regata returned to the world alone of greater continuity. With the strong sport history, regata comes celebrating every four years from 1982, known previously like “VOICE Challenge” and “Around Alone”. The latest in human persistence - more people have scaled the traveled Everest and to the moon that those that has completed a circumnavigation alone. In 1969, Sir Robin became the first man in circumnavigating the planet without scales when winning proclaiming itself of regata Sunday Times Goleen Globe.

In this state of things, only Bernard Stamm (Cheminées Poujoulat) and Kojiro Shiraishi (Spirit of Yukoh) are respectively in competition, first and second place. In spite of to have also undergone problems in its greater candle, first of them stays solid to the front of the test and has been the first competitor in crossing the Cabo de Finisterre. On the other hand, according to the last position report, Kojiro Shiraishi follows to him a distance of approximately 50 miles, in the middle of meteorological conditionses slightly more adverse than those of Stamm.

Declarations of Alex Thomson in earth

As “atrocious” it described this morning Alex Thomson the meteorological conditionses that during the last hours have whipped to the fleet of the Velux 5 Oceans in their passage throughout the North coast Spanish way of waypoint located in the Cabo Finisterre. Already in earth, and more concretely in the port of Gij'on, where the English landlord of 32 years saturated at night of yesterday realizing the necessary repairs in its Open 60, Thomson was “surprised” by the hardness and the “aggressiveness” of the wind and the sea in these first compasses of the competition.

The incident that has forced Thomson to maintain course to earth happened in afternoon of yesterday after wind gusts of wind of more than 50 knots of intensity would destroy one of his more important candles of prow. After verifying the magnitude of the problem and the total impossibility to sail in fitted, the English landlord decided to ignite the motor and to go to earth, where she has met with his ground equipment.

Now, the priority is to work as rapidly as possible in the preparation of the new candle and in the complete control of the boat with the aim of preventing new failures, action in which the ground equipment of Thomson is being used thoroughly. On the other hand, the English landlord recognized this morning that “in spite of all the nautical miles that I have to my backs, never had seen the wind tear of that way the waves”. Asked on the score, 0 to 10, that it would grant to him to the hardness of the lived conditions, Thomson I do not doubt in responding: “11”.

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