By Brian Hancock
And so it happened and who would have thunk. The country of pickled herring and, well every now and then, a reindeer steak, won the first leg of the McIntyre Ocean Globe Race. They dusted the fleet. They did it by catching a small low pressure system coming up from the south and scooted into first place. Congratulations, or as they say in Finland, ‘Onnittelut’.
Their spectacular finish was just as I expected. After 39 days at sea and having dealt with everything that Mother Nature (I don’t like that term so I am not sure why I am using it but never mind) they rocketed across the finish line at, well, two knots. Grand entry and welcome to Cape Town and enjoy everything that this beautiful country has to offer.
Pen Duick VI is about to finish, or may have already finished by the time this is posted. I usually fall asleep just after writing these posts but that’s because I get up early, but congratulations to them as well.
This morning, looking at the Race Tracker, I started to have a craving for Italian food. It’s a mess of spaghetti out there, but like a good pasta puttanesca (one of my most favorite words) it will all come together in Cape Town.
Maiden is rocking, Translated 9 is rocking, but Outlaw still seem to want to be an outlaw and may be looking to stop in Namibia. They have cheap diamonds there and that may be the reason. Having said that they have the inside lane and may pull off something in the next few days. Evrika just turned a hard right, not sure why, but sometimes that’s what happens in a boat race. Sterna, no real mention here because you know what they are setting up for. I can’t say it here because I get some hate mail, but GO BOKK…. I am a rugby fan but only when South Africa wins.
I would watch Galiana WithSecure. They will soon be cooking with gas as they enter some northerly winds which means that the wind will be on the beam, as on the left side, which is the fastest point of sailing unless you are sliding down the front on a big Southern Ocean swell, but that’s coming up on the next leg to New Zealand. Same to with L’Esprit d’équipe and Triana who are starting to dip their toes into some real wind, but Neptune and White Shadow are well, how do we put this delicately, a little bit screwed. They ran into a a small high pressure zone and the wind, well it disappeared.
But seriously, congratulations to the crew on Spirit of Helsinki. That was some awesome tactics and you have won the first leg of the McIntyre Ocean Globe Race and the seals in Cape Town were clapping for you; say nothing of those beautiful welcoming dancers and musicians. Makes me homesick.
