Green Dragon (first at the scoring gate) Ericcson 4 (second) and Puma (third) all have 6 points. Telefónica Black (estimated fourth) and Telefónica Blue (estimated fifth) were also expected to total 6 points after clearing the scoring gate. (As of this writing the two Telefónica boats had yet to clear the gate, but their positions seemed established.)
Ericsson 4 cleared the scoring gate to the west of the Brazilian archipelago at 1359 GMT. The International crew gained on main rival Puma by holding an approach to windward of the U.S. boat, which had to tack to clear the western end of the scoring gate. That gave Grael and crew the opportunity needed to jump into second and claim an extra half-point. Green Dragon led the fleet through the gate at 1224 GMT, 13 to 14 nautical miles ahead of Ericsson 4.
"It's really hard work onboard as we beat in a very choppy seaway in 20 to 25 knots of wind. Everything takes three times as much effort as the boat pounds into the waves," said Ericsson 4 media crewman Guy Salter. "The strain of being a man down is showing in the harder conditions but we seem to be coping, although if Tony were here we would probably have that extra gear he often provides us with."
Further back in the fleet, Ericsson 3 continues to slice away at its deficit after a maddening passage through the Doldrums. At today's 1300 GMT position report, skipper Anders Lewander and the Nordic crew were 153 nautical miles behind the fleet leader, having reduced their deficit by 30 miles in the past 24 hours.
The Nordic crew was trapped in the Doldrums for 15 hours longer than Ericsson 4 and lost significant mileage in an uncontrollable situation. Some of the crewmembers were so maddened by the light winds they might've preferred spending time in the dentist's chair. Unfortunately for Denmark's Stefan Myralf, he'll have to live through both.
Myralf (48, Hellerup, Denmark) yesterday broke a tooth eating breakfast. His meal: a bowl of muesli. The culprit: a hard bit of muesli. The incident required the attention of watch captain Richard Mason, the sometimes trimmer, sometimes helmsman, sometimes onboard medic. Such is the versatile life of a VO 70 crewmember.
With Myralf planted in the cockpit, mouth agape and mates watching, Mason affixed a crown over the broken base. The procedure lasted approximately 20 minutes.
"It all went very smoothly," said Ericsson 3 media crewman Gustav Morin. "It was the first time I experienced something positive to lay still in the Doldrums."
With the scoring gate clear, approximately 3,300 nautical miles remain to the finish in Cape Town. The last major obstacle to contend with is the St. Helena High, or South Atlantic high-pressure system. This massive, counter-clockwise system stretches virtually from South America to Africa.
Navigators will be seeking to plot a course to the west of the high pressure, looking for east/northeasterly winds down the western edge of the system, and westerlies along the bottom. The westerlies are the conveyor belt to Cape Town. Hit them and it's (almost) smooth sailing to the Leg 1 finish.
"The good news is that the route looks VERY friendly at the moment with excellent breeze much of the way and no park-ups currently on the horizon," said Chris Bedford, team meteorologist.
"The biggest risk for any significant slow down appears to be associated with a minor ridge and front crossing off the southeast coast of Brazil and again within about 300 miles of Cape Town," Bedford continued. "It's still too early to get too detailed on that, but those are the potential potholes in what otherwise appears to be a very good weather pattern for the last half of the leg."
An incredibly tight race got even tighter today with the passage of the scoring gate. Now that the top five crews are all tied, it'll be a mad dash to Cape Town to grab the outright lead in the global circumnavigation race.
VOLVO OCEAN RACE LEADERBOARD
(Oct. 23, 2008, 1300 GMT)
1. Green Dragon 3,354 nautical miles to finish
2. Ericsson 4, 13 NM to leader
3. Puma, 16 NM to leader
4. Telefónica Black, 31 NM to leader
5. Telefónica Blue, 96 NM to leader
6. Ericsson 3, 153 NM to leader
7. Delta Lloyd, 174 NM to leader
8. Kosatka, 197 NM to leader
