Clipper Race: Late for the party

Published on October 22nd, 2017

Cape Town, SA (October 22, 2017; Day 18) – Unicef crossed the Clipper 2017-18 Round the World Yacht Race finish line yesterday at 21:19:27 UTC, arriving into Cape Town as the 11th team to complete the 3,560nm second leg from Punta del Este, Uruguay.

Only PSP Logistics remains on the course after their delayed start due to rudder damage early in the race. Currently making good progress at 10.2 knots directly to Cape Town, with less than 1400nm to go, the team’s priority is to make it into port with time to rest, recuperate and make any necessary repairs ahead of the start of the Southern Ocean Leg.

Skipper, Roy Taylor, reports: “We have been moving along quite nicely for the past couple of days and yesterday was lovely and sunny – a welcome opportunity for drying some kit after the excitement of the previous day.

“The team is tired but keep plodding on without complaint – helm, log, bilges, heads clean, etc. They are a good bunch and I would love to be able to give them all a day off, but we must keep the wee boaty moving, keep her pointing towards Cape Town, keep the routines running, knock off the miles one by one.”

Thoughts today on board PSP Logistics are currently with the rest of the fleet, who will have their Prize Giving ceremony this evening. Skipper Roy Taylor and the PSP Logistics crew passed on their hearty congratulations to Greenings and Skipper Andy Woodruff on its second win, to Skipper Dale Smyth and Dare To Lead on securing second place and doubling its race points and to Skipper Gaëtan Thomas and his ‘pirates’ on board Garmin for securing third and their first podium finish.

Clipper Race Meteorologist Simon Rowell reports what lies ahead for PSP Logistics: “The next front should be over the team around now, and the strongest bit of it is further south, so I expect the team will be seeing 40 knots gusts instead of 50. After that the next low rolling down the front from South America will bring some tactical problems and quite quickly changing weather down the line, but it doesn’t look as if it’s going to be particularly strong.”

Will the weather ahead mean that the team can continue to make good speed towards Cape Town and possibly grab some bonus points from the Elliot Brown Ocean Sprint? That would be a nice prize for this challenged squad.

For the ETA of the teams into Cape Town… click here.

The 12 teams started leg 2/race 2 – the 3,560nm leg from Punta del Este, Uruguay to Cape Town, South Africa – on October 4, and is due to finish between October 19 and 22 and will be berthed at the Victoria and Alfred Waterfront until October 31.

Event details – Race facts – Race viewer – Facebook

Background: Held biennially, the Clipper 2017-18 Round the World Yacht Race got underway August 20 for the fleet of twelve identical Tony Castro designed Clipper 70s. The 40,000nm course is divided into 13 individual races with the team having the best cumulative score winning the Clipper Race Trophy. Each team is led by a professional skipper with an all-amateur crew that signs up for one, some, or all the races. The 2017-18 race, expected to take 11 months, has attracted 712 people representing 41 nationalities, making it the largest to date.

Race Route – Race Schedule and Miles