Clipper Race: The sprint results are in

(October 5, 2019; Race 2, Day 20) – The results are in for the Dell Latitude Rugged Ocean Sprint for this race of the Clipper 2019-20 Round the World Yacht Race and what a sprint it was. Only three hours and 21 minutes separated all eleven teams and the winner has been announced.

Punta del Este was the fastest by just over one hour, a two-in-two victory in ocean sprints and another three points for the team. Ha Long Bay, Viet Nam grabbed two points for second place and there was hot competition for third, with just 1 second separating two teams. Visit Sanya, China scooped the remaining third place bonus point, snatching it from Dare To Lead in fourth.

Full results below:
29:53:00 Punta del Este
30:54:11 Ha Long Bay, Viet Nam
31:06:40 Visit Sanya, China
31:06:41 Dare To Lead
31:12:00 Zhuhai
31:15:53 WTC Logistics
31:18:00 GoToBermuda
31:57:38 Imagine your Korea
32:16:39 Qingdao
32:33:00 Unicef
33:14:23 Seattle

Jeronimo Santos Gonzalez, Skipper of Punta del Este said of their victory in the sprint, “To achieve this all crew have had the eyes on the ball, their concentration on making the most of both the wind conditions and the boat performance. Every member of the crew performing their duties to the best of their abilities. Our motto on Punta del Este, when doing a manoeuvre, is; ‘do it fast’, ‘do it now’, and ‘do it right’ (which is different from Nike’s ad ‘just do it’).”

Dare To Lead have been pragmatic about missing out on a point, by the narrowest of margins. Says Skipper Guy Waites, “After 31 hours of racing we finished fourth, a whole second behind Visit Sanya, China! Undeterred, we have continued our seemingly endless course south.”

On the rest of the race down to Punta del Este he continues, “It’s a rhumb line procession, a drag race, all lined up like little ducks, each six hourly scheds a comparison of SOG (speed over ground), the gains and losses are minimal when you consider the distances between each boat.”

After an intense period of racing, all attention is paid to on deck, however, it’s life below that is fueling energy levels of competitive sailors. Cooking on a consistent angle is a lesson in endurance for the galley chefs and it has not gone unnoticed.

“Even with the galley flying around at a 45 degree angle, the guys still make great bread every day and bake the occasional cake,” reports Skipper David ‘Wavy’ Immelman, of GoToBermuda. “Thanks Gerry Glover, even if it was lopsided because the oven did not gimble enough, it was still lovely.”

To follow the ETA for when the fleet is due to arrive into Punta del Este, click here.

Race 2 began September 15 and will take the 11 teams along a 5195 nm course from Portimão, Portugal to Punta del Este, Uruguay, with their expected arrival between October 12 and 16.

Race details – Skipper list – Race route – Tracker – Facebook

About the Clipper Round the World Yacht Race:
The Clipper Race was established in 1996 by Sir Robin Knox-Johnston, the first person to sail solo non-stop around the world in 1968-69. His aim was to allow anyone, regardless of previous sailing experience, the chance to embrace the thrill of ocean racing; it is the only event of its kind for amateur sailors.

Held biennially, the Clipper 2019-20 Round the World Yacht Race gets underway September 1 for the fleet of eleven identical Tony Castro designed Clipper 70s. This 12th edition has attracted 688 crew representing 43 nationalities for the 41,000+ nm course. The race finishes on August 8.

The course is divided into 8 legs and 15 individual races, with some of the crew in for the entire circumnavigation while others will do individual legs. The team having the best cumulative score over the entire course will win the Clipper Race Trophy.

The Clipper 2019-20 Race Route:
The fleet departs from London, UK to Portimão, Portugal; across the Atlantic to Punta del Este, Uruguay; the South Atlantic to Cape Town, South Africa; across the Southern Ocean’s Roaring Forties to Fremantle, Western Australia; around to the Whitsundays on the east coast of Australia, back into the Northern Hemisphere to China where teams will race to Qingdao, via Sanya and Zhuhai; across the mighty North Pacific to Seattle, USA; to New York via the famous Panama Canal; to Bermuda and then it’s a final Atlantic crossing to Derry-Londonderry in Northern Ireland; before arriving back to London as fully proven ocean racers.

Source: Clipper Round the World Yacht Race