Saturday 30 May will feature some of the highlights of the Volvo Ocean Race festival. An action packed programme of events includes music from Sharon Shannon and a host of activities for children in the race village, street theatre and circus acts.
The popular air display act the Red Arrows will put on a show in Salthill Saturday at 11:30. These nine jets perform acrobatic sequences and often include coloured plumes of smoke in their performances that weave into formations or shapes. They will put on a show as the the Volvo boats sail to their racing area in Galway Bay.
At 1pm all eyes will be on the screens in the race village and in Salthill as the boats compete in the in-port racing which will take approximately 1hr, roughly 15mins per race. This exciting event will give spectators the opportunity to see all seven boats in close formation racing. Screens with commentary will show the action live in the race village and in Salthill.
The in-port racing takes place at every stopover and allows the teams the chance to secure valuable points. It is a critical component of the VOR as it awards 20% of the total race points on offer (half as much points at stake as in the offshore legs). They are an integral part of the spectacle of the race. The mapped out race courses are very short, ensuring close-quarters and intense action. The course is designed with a ‘pinch’ in the middle, a gate the teams must pass through as they make their way up and down the race course. This enhances the closeness of the racing, and allows the spectators to get a better look.
The spectators will see the teams battle it out for points by jockeying for position where teams will try to ‘squeeze’ out their competition, forcing them into a poor start, or even pushing them onto the wrong side of the starting line. A boat starting early will have to return to the other side of the line, or if many of the boats in the fleet are early, the Race Committee will make a General Recall to re-start the entire fleet. A team starting early in the subsequent start may be disqualified from the race. The start sequence is 10 minute warning (sound signal) - 5 minutes preparatory (sound signal) - 1 minute (sound signal), then the Start.
For the in-port race the teams are allowed to add two additional crew members compared to the offshore legs. In most cases, teams will add one specialist in-shore tactician and one big, strong grinder to assist working the winch systems. The in-port races require more and faster manoeuvres and therefore it's helpful to have an extra pair of strong hands. The tactician's role is to position the boat on the race course and instruct the helmsman where to steer and when to make a manoeuvre. Out of the 13 crew members 10 are required to be onboard for either the previous or the next offshore leg, so in total each team is allowed just three crew members who are only there for that in-port race. And among the 13 crew is one media crew member who is filming and transmitting video ashore.
Scoring for each in-port race is as follows: first place – 4 points; second place - 3.5 points; third place - 3 points; fourth place - 2.5 points; fifth place - 2 points; sixth place - 1.5 points; seventh place - 1 point.
The Pro-Am racing will take place in the bay Sunday at 12 noon. This will be much the same set up as Saturday In-Port racing except it is not for points so there isn’t as much of a competitive edge. Again there will be a series of races, probably three in all.
Saturday 30 May
1000 Race Village opens
1030 Volvo Open 70s departure ceremony from the Race Village
1100 Take the Green Dragon route to Salthill – entertainment for all the family
1130 Red Arrows aerial display
1300* In port racing start – screens in race village and in Salthill
1840* Volvo Open 70s return to Galway Harbour
1930 Volvo Ocean Race in port racing prizegiving, Topaz main stage
2130 Sharon Shannon on the Topaz main stage
* Please note that all sailing race times,viewing areas and arrivals in harbour area are subject to weather conditions.
