| RIO DE JANEIRO, BRZAIL-(5-5-2005) The VO 70 “movistar” arrived to Rio de Janeiro, Brazil. Since she left
Newcastle, Australia, on March 23rd, the Spanish Volvo Ocean Race boat
has sailed a whopping 8.100 nautical miles, has crossed the always
menacing Cape Horn, and has broken a world record by sailing 530.19
nautical miles in 24 hours. It was a journey in which the “movistar”
yacht has had to battle many adversities, including winds gusting over 40
knots, snow, humongous waves and a collision while sailing at speeds of
over 20 knots. “It has been a typical Volvo Ocean Race leg –says “
movistar’s” Skipper, Bouwe Bekking, while grinning after experiencing 4
other prior editions of the VOR–. We have lived through the best and
worse of ocean racing, but the final outcome couldn’t be better”.
“Everyone in the team is very excited with the results of the first leg
–continues saying the General Manager and Inshore Helmsman, Pedro
Campos–. The journey from New Zealand to Rio de Janeiro is the most
demanding one of the entire Ocean Race, and we have completed it in an
impecable manner”. “ Now, the crew will take a well deserved break to
gain back strength, to spend time with their families, and to get ready
for the next leg that will take them from Río de Janeiro to Galicia,
Spain, where they will arrive in the beginning of June”.
The colossal VO 70 “movistar” arrived to Rio de Janeiro shadowed by
massiv thunderstorm with 40 knots winds that propelled the Spanish boat
during her last few miles. “After rounding Cape Horn, we gradually
noticed that we were dressed overly warm; for which we were grateful for
– recalls Olympic gold medalist, Xabier Fernández -. “In a few days we
went from 5ºC to almost 30ªC. Only on the final home stretch did we
experience strong winds”.
“Most of us have sailed this race more than once before –continues
Bekking–, but I must admit that on this occasion it has proved to be
especially tough, as we have to get used to push to boat with a relativ
smaller amount of crewmembers than on the Volvo 60”.
“The shorecrew has been working flat-out since the arrival to Río –adds
Bekking–. The boat has been out of the water, the rig has been taking
apart, new appendages have been installed and all systems have been
serviced, all according in the same timeframe as the next years
stopover”.
On board diary: From Cape Horn to Rio
2.400 miles to Rio: “Navigation from Cape Horn started offin harsh
conditions, a very gusty wind blowing from the snowcovered mountains,
very choppy seas, 25 to 30 knots of breeze, and extremely cold”.
2.000 miles to Rio: “Early this morning the weather was clear, a clear
blue sky, 15 knots and the Falkland Islands were in sight. It is
incredible what a little sunshine can do to people’s mind. Even though
it is still quite cold on deck, the water temperature has gone up a bit”.
1.750 miles to Rio: “We have had a few days with almost no wind,
somewhere between 5 and 10 knots, so we aren’t going as fast as we hoped.
1.750 miles in the Southern Ocean this would take us about three days and
half, now it will be double. But that’s the way it is, we can’t change
it. We just know that every mile more North means it is getting warmer…”.
1.000 miles to Rio: “The water temperature is already 21ºC; it is a
bonus to be able to take layers of clothes off. Last night, at last, the
wind began to blow and we have been moving again fast miles towards our
destination”.
500 miles to Rio: “Today has been slow, the breeze is coming again on
the nos and very soft in pressure, plus a very nasty swell, it made
navigation very uneasy. But now, we are starting to move again …
“The temperature is almost 25ºC, but we still need to have the
foullies on, I tried not wearing them, big mistake. The three waves that
hit us today, managed to hit me; so it is best that we all keep wearing
them”.
“It is almost a full moon and we are enjoying the sight of a
fascinating display of lightning of massiv thunderstrom far on the
horizon. It is a beautiful show, but we are all thinking the same thing;
‘please don’t let it reach us’ ”.
180 miles to Rio: “We are in the middle of a huge thunderstorm and for a
change; we have 25 knots of breeze… from behind!! We are “smoking” fast,
doing 20+ knots straight to the barn”.
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