Richard Mason checking the tension of the topmast before hoisting the masthead zero onboard Ericsson 3, on leg 6 of the Volvo Ocean Race, from Rio de Janeiro to Boston. Image copyright Gustav Morin/Ericsson 3/Volvo Ocean Race.
by Eivind Melleby (helmsman)
The drag race is on.
I think we are out of the Doldrums now. It was very windy this time around. Now we race through the trades. Full on.
We had a few issues on the boat that we thought we could easily fix in the Doldrums when everything was nice and quiet, but we soon found ourselves increasing speed and had to do it when the boat was bouncing around. Well, we managed even though it was a bit difficult.
The competition is lined up, apart from Telefónica Blue, on a nice line and there are not many miles between us. We have nice conditions so far and have put the helmets on. I always wear a helmet as a helmsman.
We are currently doing about 20 knots average and the sun is shining. We need to push hard to pass our sistership Ericsson 4, whom we can see down here to leeward. This is fun. A couple more days of this I guess. Hope that we will not get any squalls that will kill us and let the others go by. We need to keep an eye on that situation. We have the Squall Management Group here onboard and they are having repeated meetings to assess the situation at all times.
So far so good on Ericsson 3. We will soon put in our last gear. That’ll show them I think!
Volvo Ocean Race
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