After some tough sailing to the Shetland Islands, Dee Caffari and Aviva are on the final straight of the Calais Round Britain Race.
After some tough sailing to the Shetland Islands, Dee Caffari and Aviva are on the final straight of the Calais Round Britain Race. Aviva is now sailing in much more suitable breezy, downwind conditions and the crew are slowly recovering from the tactical error that cost them ground on the rest of the fleet.
The crew are hoping that some of the boats ahead will be caught up in the patches of light wind forecast for the North Sea, so they can close the gap before the finish. Morale onboard has improved as the stronger winds accelerate Aviva towards the finish in Calais and the crew have their fingers crossed conditions will work in their favour at last.
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"We're now finally heading south and in the same direction as the rest of the fleet. It is psychologically much easier now, as we are heading towards the finish line and the other competitors.
"The weather will be delivering some interesting parking zones along the North Sea and, if some of the other boats get caught in the light wind patches, that will allow us to catch up a little and reduce the distance between us. This race is definitely not over yet and we have set our spinnaker and are giving it everything to sail as fast as possible to rejoin the gang.
"As we rounded Muckle Flugga in the early hours this morning, the night sky remained the colours of twilight and we watched the sun set and then rise almost immediately. The rugged coastline of the Shetland Islands is very reminiscent of Cape Horn and Tierra del Fuego in Chile. In fact, rounding this most northern part of this course is further north in latitude than we generally go south in the Southern Ocean on the Vendée Globe, no wonder we have been so cold for the last few days!
"The good thing about sailing downwind now is not only is it faster and more fun but it is warmer too."
Dee, Chook, Frog, Pants and Hugo
-ends-
For further information contact:
Caroline Ayling
Telephone: +44 (0)20 7202 2840
Mobile: +44 (0)7801 351950
E-mail: carolinea@karen-earl.co.uk
Kelly Russell
Telephone: +44 (0)20 7202 2862
Mobile: +44 (0)7786 516570
E-mail: kellyr@karen-earl.co.uk
Notes to editors:
Aviva Ocean Racing summary
After setting a world record last year sailing around the world against the prevailing winds and currents, Caffari is one of the newest recruits to the highly competitive world of Open 60 racing. The Calais Round Britain Race is her first step on a very steep learning curve towards achieving her ambition of competing in the Vendée Globe 2008/9 and becoming the first woman to sail around the world, solo, in both directions.
Calais Round Britain race
Starting and finishing in Calais, the race is 1850 nautical miles around the British coastline, featuring some of the world's most technical waters with ever-changing weather conditions, tidal flows and adverse land effects. Extra vigilance is needed to keep a watchful eye out for shipping and other obstructions, such as oil rigs in the North Sea, throughout this race.
There are 11 entries and the front runners are expected to take between six to seven days to complete the course. In a change from normal Open 60 racing the boats will be crewed by five people rather than solo or double-handed.
For this race Caffari's full crew will be:
Dee Caffari - skipper of Aviva (British)
Nigel King - experienced yacht racing coach (British)
Liz Wardley - professional sailor on Figaro circuit (Papua New Guinea)
Simon Clarke -professional sailor and former boat captain of Hugo Boss (British)
Laurent Mahy - sail designer for North Sails and professional sailor (Belgian)
Aviva
Caffari's sponsor Aviva plc is the leading writer of life and pensions business in Europe with substantial positions in other markets around the world, making it the world's fifth largest insurance group based on gross worldwide premiums at 31 December 2005.
Aviva's principal business activities are long-term savings, fund management and general insurance, with worldwide total sales of £41.5 billion and assets under management of £364 billion at 31 December 2006.
Further information on Dee Caffari and her Aviva Ocean Racing campaign can be found at www.avivaoceanracing.com/