The Calais Round Britain race is nearing its conclusion as the 11 boats head towards the entrance of the English Channel for the final dash from Dover to Calais.
The Calais Round Britain race is nearing its conclusion as the 11 boats head towards the entrance of the English Channel for the final dash from Dover to Calais. The changeable weather conditions are making exact arrival times very hard to predict and none of the boats are taking their current position for granted. Aviva has held on to some good breeze throughout the night and Dee Caffari is still aiming to catch up with the back of the fleet before crossing the finish line.
Dee Caffari's latest diary:
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"All night we sailed in the semi-darkness of twilight, amongst the ghost town of the North Sea. All around us we could see oil rigs, those in use and lit up like Christmas trees and also those left standing derelict, unpopulated for some time.
"The spinnaker was changed several times, when the wind strength or our apparent angle to the wind changed. We were keen to maintain our speed in the hope of reducing our deficit behind the leaders by as much as possible. In just 24 hours we have made up close to 100 miles on the rest of the fleet, but looking at the course and the distance left to run we may just run out of time to continue making an impact. The other contributing factor is that as we close the gap on our rivals the weather systems we are in become more alike and if we are moving then it normally means that our rivals are moving towards the finish line as well.
"We hope that today will continue to allow us to sail in good pressure whilst those ahead struggle so we can continue to close the gap."
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 were 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 http://www.avivaoceanracing.com/