Following a 48-hour tune-up in the pit lane in Wellington, Hugo Boss rejoined the Barcelona World Race overnight Friday and has since taken up the task of chasing down race leader Paprec-Virbac 2 with vigour.
By the end of the day Saturday, Paprec-Virbac 2 had extended its lead to 923 miles as Hugo Boss struggled to break free of the New Zealand coastline and out into the offshore conditions where she revels. But since then, skippers Alex Thomson and Andrew Cape have driven Hugo Boss like a freight train. At 14:00 GMT on Sunday, the lead was down to less than 800 miles and Boss was still sailing 5.5 knots faster.
The main reason for the 48-hour pit stop was some trouble with the rudders on Hugo Boss. There was movement in the rudder cassettes and the 'pop-up' rudders were developing a tendency to swing up at inopportune moments.
The standout performance of the week must go to Educacion sin Fronteras. Skippers Albert Bargues and Servanne Escoffier have battled hard all week in difficult Southern Ocean conditions. They finish the week with the best 24 hour run, and over the past seven days, Educacion sin Fronteras made up over 200 miles on the race leader - by far and away their best week at sea yet.
Meanwhile, third-placed Temenos II is closing in on New Zealand, where they will be forced to make a pit-stop to deal with their damaged keel. Skipper Dominique Wavre says until the boat is hauled out and the experts look at the keel, it is impossible to say how long they will be forced to stop. But over the course of this week, they have gained over 50 miles on the race leader. They are expecting to be in Wellington on New Years day.
Day 50- December 30, 14:00 GMT - Position report with distance to leader
1. Paprec-Virbac 2 - Jean Pierre Dic K / Damian Foxall - 0
2. Hugo Boss - Alex Thomson / Andrew Cape - 793
3. Temenos 2 - Dominique Wavre / Michele Paret- 1541
4. Mutua Madrilena - Javier Sanso / Pachi Rivero - 2064
5. Educacion Sin Fronteras - Servane Escoffier / Albert Bargues - 2846
Abandoned - Veolia Environnement - Roland Jourdain / Jean Luc Nelias
Abandoned - Estrella Damm - Guillermo Altadill / Jonathan Mckee
Abandoned - Delta Dore - Jeremie Beyou / Sidney Gavignet
Abandoned - Prb - Vincent Riou / Sebastien Josse
www.barcelonaworldrace.com
