#vor – Team Vestas Wind, with Kerry's Brian Carlin onboard, gambled – and lost big time – during a night of movement and a lead change in the fleet. Now the lead is taken by pre race favourite Abu–Dhabi with Cork bowman Justin Slattery.

The boats had all been sailing very close to the African coast to pick up the prevalent breeze there and at one stage Team SCA went as close at 0.5 miles from the shores of Morocco.

Then the Danish boat decided to make a bold move, sailing west in the opposite direction to the fleet. It was the wrong decision but it took Team Vestas Wind longer than the rest of the fleet to realise it.

At 0500 UTC, Team Vestas Wind were in last position, some 15 nautical miles from the leader and nine miles from the their closest rivals, Team Brunel, in sixth position.

Meanwhile, up ahead, Abu Dhabi Ocean Racing regained the lead ahead of Team Alvimedica with Dongfeng Race Team hot on their heels at 0500 UTC.

The 15 nautical miles separating first and last was the biggest gap since the start of the race.

Justin Slattery carrying out a sail change on Abu–Dhabi racing

The forecast does not seem to be improving in terms of wind speed to push the boats on their way with light breeze expected for the next few hours.

Sailing away from the coast is not an option where the wind has dropped away altogether. If the conditions continue, the boats will not pass through the Canary Islands until tomorrow afternoon local time.

Now the big question is which side of the Canaries will they take: west or east. If the forecast stays like this, they will probably go east, the channel between the islands and the African coast

#VOR - More than two years in the making, the 12th edition of the Volvo Ocean Race finally gets under way with the first leg from Alicante to Cape Town tomorrow Saturday 11 October.

Seven teams comprising 66 sailors and 18 nationalities will set sail in identical one-design Volvo Ocean 65 racing machines that will this weekend plough through the wave of the Atlantic, headed south some 6,500 miles to South Africa's Cape of Good Hope.

Among them is Team SCA, the first all-women entry in the gruelling round-the-world yacht race since 2002, and late entrant Team Vestas Wind, who had just six weeks to prepare for the race start.

That team also has an Irishman on board in the shape of noted photographer and filmmaker Brian Carlin, who will serve as the boat's on-board reporter for the nine months at sea.

Another Irish participant is Justin Slattery, a four-time VOR veteran and a previous race winner in 2006 with ABN AMRO ONE, who rejoins Abu Dhabi Ocean Racing for another crack at offshore sailing's crowning achievement.

Other teams in the running include China's Dongfeng Race Team; Dutch entry Team Brunel; US hopefuls and the youngest of the bunch, Team Alvimedica; and Spanish contingent MAPFRE.

#VOR - It's been a whirlwind few weeks for Team Vestas Wind, the seventh and final entry in the next Volvo Ocean Race, which sets sail around the world in just 18 days' time.

And it's been no less hectic for the team's onboard reporter, experienced Irish sailing photographer and filmmaker (and frequent Afloat contributor) Brian Carlin, who writes here about his surprising selection for the race's 'dark horse' team and recent Leg 0 winners...

It was something I really wanted and the opportunity came. I had applied just like the other 2,500 people in February 2012 for a job as onboard reporter for the Volvo Ocean Race. It doesn't come bigger and better than this.

I patiently waited for almost 18 months with little to no news on my progress only to say I made it into the top 5% of candidates. It's not just about being good at your job (photos, filming, writing), it's important that you can are motivated to work the toughest job on the planet (as it was described by VOR, and I can confirm it's far from easy). It' about being good with people, too. You need the right attitude.

Pretty much out of the blue it all unfolded. I had a call from Chris Nicholson mid July to see if I was interesting in joining his late entry team. I think I might have said "Of course" before he finished asking the question. I was one of four onboard reporters he was interviewing. One Skype call later, and interview complete. I had to wait four days for a reply. I got the reply: a thumbs up from the skipper.

The team was being selected. I had to keep it quiet; not easy at all. I had little time, in fact I recall having to sort my entire life out in six days before I was flying to Southampton to start work with Team Vestas Wind.

We had at least three weeks in Green Marine, Southampton. We put the boat together, started the gym programme (I was so far from being fit) and I began to get my head around the fact I was sailing around the world in the most extreme race there is with the best off-shore sailors you can find on this planet. I was too busy to stop and process it all. Not an overwhelming feeling my any means; I had a lot on and a lot to do.

We did some testing on the Solent and had a photo shoot with the helicopter and TV from Volvo. It was then on 31 August when we docked out for the last time in UK waters. VOR had set a minimum 2,000-mile qualifier for all teams. We sailed into Alicante on 8 September just in time for the cut-off window.

It was a nice change from rain to sun. We didn't have much time off, really; it was a case of getting ourselves and the boat ready for Leg 0, the trail test and practice for the race start. I had all my comms checks, onboard live feeds, etc. The 470-mile round trip from Alicante to Palma, Majorca took us under two days. It was fast and pretty damn hot below decks.

Now I'm sitting in the team base where this morning we took the boat out of the water for a mandatory period of 14 days. This time will be spent doing fleet-wide changes and tweaks. All the boats will have new generation cameras fitted also.

So for now I have a couple of days off. I plan on sleeping as much as I can. It will be later this week that I start prepping 24 days' worth of food and getting my camera cleaned and serviced. The race is coming around so fast. I wish I had more time.

Still looking for the time to process. I'm about to do the world's most extreme yacht race. It's still not sinking in. Maybe it's a good thing.

#VOR - The last team to be confirmed for the next Volvo Ocean Race proved their 'dark horse' label all too true as they sailed to victory in Leg 0 in Alicante.

In the final significant test of the new one-design fleet's capabilities before the race proper begins next month, Team Vestas Wind surprised the more experienced contingents – besting the Dutch side Team Brunel over the line by 10 seconds.

Despite it being 'only a practice race', it's a remarkable achievement for the Danish team that was only confirmed as an entrant last month and has had just four weeks of on-the-water testing.

Meanwhile, Dongfeng Racing Team put their teamwork to the test in their dramatic scramble to retrieve their sail after it slipped into the water during stacking.

However, the primary purpose for many crews sailing on Leg 0 was getting a leg up on the competition.

As the video above demonstrates, 'learning from the enemy' was all important – especially with everyone sailing the same yacht, which means that individual team strategies will make all the difference this time out.

#VOR - Over on the official Volvo Ocean Race website, Jonno Turner comments on some of the latest scuttlebutt among the seven teams that will compete in the next edition of the race, which sets sail in just 39 days' time.

The gossip comes two weeks after the final entry was confirmed in the form of Denmark's Team Vestas Wind, skippered by six-time world champion Chris Nicholson.

They go into the 2014-15 Volvo Ocean Race at a distinct disadvantage with less than two months to make all their preparations for the first in-port race in Alicante.

But maybe their 'dark horse' prospects will pay off when the fleet takes off on their gruelling nine-month voyage.

#vor – Iker Martínez will again be leading the Spanish challenge for the Volvo Ocean Race in 2014-15, his team confirmed today.

The 37-year-old Basque sailor, who has just been crowned European champion in the Nacra 17 multihull class, is looking forward to his second campaign as a skipper following the Team Telefónica entry in 2011-12.

On that occasion, Martínez had the luxury of many months of preparation that helped propel the Spanish boat to a big early lead in the last Volvo Ocean Race before being overhauled by eventual winners, Groupama of France. Telefónica eventually finished fourth.

This time, he does not have so much time to oversee the Spanish team's challenge as it was only announced last month.

Martínez, Olympic 49er champion in 2004, is still relishing the opportunity, however.

"I am very happy to be skipper of this project again, flying the flag of our country," he said. "It is a big challenge – not only because the Volvo Ocean Race is such a long and tough race for all the crew members – but also because we know we do not have much time left before the first leg start on October 11.

"We know that we're really pressed for time and the other teams are far ahead in terms of preparation but we are working hard to make up the difference."

He will once again have his best friend and trusted long-time competition partner Xabi Fernández alongside him as watch captain. The pair won Olympic gold together in the 2004 Olympic Games in Athens and then silver in 2008 in the 49er class.

Additionally, Ñeti Cuervas-Mons, who was also a member of the Telefónica crew, and fellow Spaniard Rafa Trujillo have been named in the Spanish boat's team for 2014-15 plus French navigator Nico Lunven.

The team has also announced today that they have recruited the biggest name in French sailing, Michel Desjoyeaux, to help guide the crew's preparations.

Martínez said: "It's lucky for us to have Michel available to help us prepare for this campaign. We called him for different reasons, but above all for his great knowledge. Michel is fundamental in helping us prepare this project in the best possible way in such a short amount of time.

"Some of our crew, had previous commitments before the start, in my case, the Nacra and the world championships in Santander so we needed his support."

Desjoyeaux is one of the leading figures of global single-handed ocean racing having twice won the Vendée Globe plus the Solitaire du Figaro on three occasions and the Route du Rhum. He also competed in the Volvo Ocean Race/Whitbread Round the World Race in 1985-86 (Cote d'Or), 1989-90 (Charles Jourdan) and 1993-94 (La Poste).

On Saturday, the Spanish team whose title sponsor has yet to be announced, compete in the Round the Canary Islands race in their Volvo Ocean 65s against Volvo Ocean Race competitors Team Brunel and the all-female crew of Team SCA.

The Volvo Ocean Race 2014-15 will begin on October 4 with the Alicante in-port race followed by the start of the first leg on October 11 to Cape Town.

#VOR - Wired gets on board with Team Alvimedica to peruse the state-of-the-art Volvo 65 as training progresses ahead of the next Volvo Ocean Race later this year.

Already described as 'a tougher beast all round' by those in the know, Wired's Tim Moynihan takes a look at the new one-design racing yacht from a logistical as well as a tech and design perspective.

The article comments on the immense planning involved in keeping eight people fit and sane in such cramped conditions, not to mention keeping them well fed as they race around the world.

"Too much food will add unwanted weight to the boat," writes Moynihan. "Too little of it would be disastrous during a slower-than-expected leg. During the last Volvo Ocean Race, the American PUMA Ocean Racing team ran out of food a day and a half from port on one leg."

The boats this time round will also be mini broadcasting powerhouses, each equipped with five cameras linked to a computer-driven media centre for swift editing of video packages.

Wired has much more on the story HERE.

#vor – Spain is back for the Volvo Ocean Race 2014-15 with a boat spearheaded by two of the country's leading sailors, Iker Martínez and Xabi Fernandez who will be aiming to help claim their nation's first victory.

It's the eighth time out of the 12 editions of the race that Spain has been represented in the 41-year-old event.

The campaign, which is being mounted by Galician sailor/businessman Pedro Campos, is the sixth crew announced so far for the Race which begins in Alicante on October 4 with the in-port race there followed by the departure on leg one to Cape Town a week later.

The Campos team, which will be announcing their title sponsor and skipper shortly, has already taken possession of their one-design Volvo Ocean 65 boat in Southampton, England and is currently preparing the boat to be launched.

Previous Campos teams to compete in the Volvo Ocean Race are movistar (2005-06), Telefonica (two boats in 2008-09) and Team Telefonica (2011-12), the latter skippered by Martínez.

The team's sponsors are expected to be announced in the next months and the campaign will also be supported by Spain's National Sports Council and the Royal Spanish Sailing Federation.

#VOR - Team New Zealand is giving this year's Volvo Ocean Race a miss, instead fixing their sights on the America's Cup.

As the New Zealand Herald reports, the team that finished second in overall points in the last edition of the VOR - and claimed victory in the final leg to Galway - was planning to mount another challenge at the round-the-world yachting title.

They would have joined a field filled with newcomers to the race, including the first all-woman squad for a decade and one of the youngest ever teams to compete.

But "in the end, time was against us," said team CEO Grant Dalton.

"Every passing day magnified the impact that preparations for a round-the-world race would have on Emirates Team New Zealand's other operations."

Those operations, more specifically, are the team's preparations for the 35th America's Cup, the defence of which is scheduled to take place in 2017.

Dalton added: "The team exists to win the America's Cup."

#VOR - Scuttlebutt Sailing News reports on the American-led Team Alvimedica, the latest - and youngest - team to hit the water running in their preparations for this year's Volvo Ocean Race start.

Spearheaded by young guns Mark Towill and Charlie Enright - Brown University alumni who first met on the set of a Disney sailing movie seven years ago - the team is essentially a metamorphosis of the company sailing squad formed two years ago by the title sponsor, a Turkish medical device firm.

Team Alvimedica launched its yacht out of Green Marine in Southampton earlier this week, and is now actively recruiting sailors to join its crew with six months to go till the first in-port race in Alicante.

Towill and Enright join Dutch prospects Team Brunel, China's Dongfeng Race Team, the all-women Team SCA and the returning Abu Dhabi Ocean Racing - featuring Irishman and past race winner Justin Slattery among its crew - in the line-up for the 2014/15 round-the-word yachting challenge.

Scuttlebutt Sailing News has more on the story HERE.