At a little after 0500 hrs this morning, a shattered crew onboard Global Yacht Racing Incisor brought home their Corby 45 to a very respectable finishing place of ninth on the water. Andy Middleton’s team have battled through some horrendous conditions in the Sevenstar Round Britain & Ireland Race as well as some frustratingly light breezes on the final stretch so there was a palpable sense of relief onboard having completed this coastal classic race. Stepping ashore briefly at the new Trinity House landing pontoon on the Parade at Cowes, the crew received their well-deserved bottle of champagne from the RORC before heading home for some long hot baths and dry beds!
Meanwhile just behind and within sight of the finish is Andrew Pearce’s IMX40 Magnum II that is expected to cross the finish line at the Royal Yacht Squadron before midday on Sunday. Further back in the fleet there have been a few minor incidents to report with Tom Hayhoe’s Mostly Harmless putting in to Dover to transfer two crew members ashore on medical grounds. Reports are sketchy and we will try to bring more news in the afternoon update.
Onboard the Murray 41 Predator of Wight the mood was upbeat overnight despite a series of set-backs with one crew member reporting by text saying: “Our favourite kite that we called ‘the bullet,’ a 0.5oz runner was completely shredded in the night although we’re glad the wind has finally pulled through as we were looking at eating mackerel and drinking bilge water if the light winds had continued! Our sliding hatch is now sicoflexed permanently in place to stop the water getting in so we climb in and out like the Dukes of Hazzard.” However this morning the crew have reported some rigging problems and may be forced to retire from the race. Currently Predator of Wight is heading towards Sunderland to effect repairs ahead of some expected strong winds coming down the North Sea. If they receive outside help unfortunately they will be forced to retire and again the RORC will hopefully have more details on this in our afternoon web update report.
As the race comes to its conclusion the RORC will continue to bring daily updates and position reports from the boats highlighting the highs and lows of this premier coastal yacht race. All yachts competing in the Sevenstar Round Britain & Ireland Race have been fitted with a tracking device developed by the RORC in conjunction with OC Technology. Yacht positions will be updated hourly and can be followed on the Royal Ocean Racing Club’s dedicated micro site accessed via www.rorc.org
