The ten-strong Clipper 11-12 Round the World Yacht Race fleet has left one mountain-dominated skyline for another. The yachts and their non-professional crews have set sail from Rio de Janeiro at the start of Race 3 of the 40,000-mile circumnavigation, the world’s longest ocean race.
As Sugar Loaf Mountain and Corcovado fade into the distance on the west coast of the South Atlantic, three weeks and 3,300 miles later, Table Mountain will appear over the horizon on the east coast as the teams race towards Cape Town, South Africa.
In a lively south easterly breeze, the race started in Guanabara Bay, Rio de Janeiro, at 1400 local time (1700 UTC). It was a case of last in first out as Derry-Londonderry, who finished Race 2 in tenth place, were fastest out of the starting blocks, closely followed by New York, Qingdao, Gold Coast Australia, De Lage Landen and Singapore, all of whom had timed their run to the start line impeccably and, after a bit of jostling, turned across it within seconds of each other. Edinburgh Inspiring Capital approached the line from the far end moments later, followed at the other by Geraldton Western Australia and Visit Finland.
Welcome to Yorkshire was slightly delayed as they dropped their sails half an hour before the start and returned to the marina to drop off one of their crew members, Keith Pickering, who had fallen ill and needed medical treatment ashore. The Race Committee held the start line open and the 15-and-a-half minute delay has not damaged the English boat’s chances in the 3,300-mile race as the rest of the fleet had to change their course to avoid a tanker coming into the harbour. At the first mark Gold Coast Australia was in the lead with New York, Singapore and Visit Finland on their heels. An hour after race start the fleet was still visible on the horizon from Copacabana beach.
The Clipper Round the World Yacht Race is the only global competition where people from all walks of life can step out of their comfort zones and sign up to race 40,000 miles around the world. They come from backgrounds as varied as marketing executives, nurses, bankers, carpenters, IT specialists, engineers and chief executives who represent more than 40 nationalities. Almost half of them have never sailed before embarking on their training for the world's longest ocean race.
The Clipper 11-12 Round the World Yacht Race started from Southampton on the south coast of the UK on 31 July 2011. The route takes the crews of the ten, identical 68-foot yachts via Madeira, Rio de Janeiro, Cape Town, Geraldton Western Australia, New Zealand, Gold Coast Austraslia, Singapore, Qingdao in China, California, Panama, New York, Nova Scotia, Derry-Londonderry in Northern Ireland and the Netherlands before returning in July 2012 to the south coast of England.
For more information, visit: www.clipperroundtheworld.com
Daniel Zeppe/onEdition