It’s a little hard to fathom how hard these Volvo Ocean Race boats, and crews, are being pushed. Yet, here’s video evidence.
And if the video doesn’t do it for you, maybe these stills courtesy of Rick Tomlinson and Volvo will:
And the race? Alvimedica with American Charlie Enright skippering, led past Cape Horn, followed closely by Abu Dhabi and shortly thereafter by Mapfre and Brunel. Dong Feng broke its mast and is currently in Ushuaia reconfiguring the rig to enable them to stabilize the stump and allow sailing under reduced sail. As of now, the plan is to drop out of the race and motor-sail to the finish at Itajai where a replacement rig can be fitted. The women on board SCA have fallen woefully behind dealing with the aftermath of their broach and some electronics issues. They have yet to get ’round the Horn.
And this shot? Well, that has to be one of my all time favorites, Rick Tomlinson’s shot of Brunel under triple headsail rig.
