VOR: Leg 10 - Finish

by Volvo Ocean Race media

Saturday 27 June 2009

07:30 GMT UPDATE

We've finally managed to connect to Ian Walker for all of you Green Dragon fans: "It didn’t feel like the fire and brimstone finish that we might have expected. But we did have a good race with Delta Lloyd at the end there.

"If we go back to our original goals we wanted third so we would have to be relatively disappointed with fifth, but we can be proud. We finished every leg and that was important to me and the team.

"I’m not sure there are any losers in this race; it just feels great to have sailed around the world. You do worry about losing someone, about someone getting ill, about the future of the project and right now we have finished and nothing untoward has happened and we have some incredible memories."

And we can also tell you the fleet is making its way up river and is now just over an hour so away from arriving at the customs dock. Everything is on schedule for later this afternoon too.

05:30 GMT UPDATE

Well, it's getting awfully quiet around here suddenly. We're going to shut things down for a couple of hours, catch a few winks, and get geared up for this afternoon.

Riath Al-Samarrai will try to touch base with the crews when they reach the custom/immigration dock, which should happen around 13:00 local time here in St. Petersburg. He'll get the more considered reaction from the sailors there and file a finish report this afternoon.

Then beginning after 17:00 local time, the boats will pass under the bridges (which are never raised during the day, so we're told) that lead to the race village area and there will be a lap of honour as they head for the pontoon.

03:45 GMT UPDATE

Here's what Delta Lloyd skipper 'Chuny' Bermudez told Amanda Blackley after they finished: "We made a good job and everyone enjoyed their time. Everyone is happy and that is the most important thing. It started well but then there was some fighting with the Dragons. They did a fantastic job with the manoeuvres and I say congratulations to them for that. It has been fun."

03:30 GMT UPDATE

For those of you wondering about Kosatka and Team Russia, we can tell you that they weren't far behind Delta Lloyd. They haven't been tracked as such by the race office, but had been sending in their position every few hours so we could know where they are. They will be part of the festivities here, which will kick off around 17:00 local time, or 13:00 GMT, when the fleet leaves the custom/immigration dock and passes under the bridges which connect the different parts of the
city. They'll then parade in front of the race village.

03:25 GMT UPDATE

Here's the vital stats from Leg 10, along with an elapsed time for the overall race:

1st TELEFONICA BLACK - 00:41:25 GMT; Elapsed 1d 12h 41m 25s; Combined 87d 1h 31m 20s
2nd IL MOSTRO - 00:42:48 GMT; Elapsed 1d 12h 42m 48s; Combined 129d 16h 23m 01s
3rd TELEFONICA BLUE - 00:51:55 GMT; Elapsed 1d 12h 51m 55s; Combined 134d 21h 49m 30s
4th ERICSSON 3 - 01:04:48 GMT; Elapsed 1d 13h 04m 48s; Combined 145d 9h 17m 37s
5th ERICSSON 4 - 01:31:49 GMT; elapsed 1d 13h 31m 49s; Combined 127d 07h 46m 17s
6th GREEN DRAGON - 02:57:56 GMT; Elapsed 1d 14h 57m 56s; Combined 135d 05h 53m 3s
7th DELTA LLOYD - 03:00:57 GMT; Elapsed 1d 15h 00m 57s; Combined 106d 00h 35m 21s

03:15 GMT UPDATE

And that's a wrap. The 2008-09 Volvo Ocean Race is over. Green Dragon has held off a hard-charging Delta Lloyd to finish sixth in Leg 10 of the Volvo Ocean Race. We'll have all the finish details for the fleet in a moment.

03:00 GMT UPDATE

Not far to the finish line for our remaining pair still racing. Green Dragon has a slender lead over Delta Lloyd with about a mile to go to the finish. They should be finished in a few minutes. Don't worry, we haven't forgotten them!

02:25 GMT UPDATE

Guy Swindells has just spoken with Torben Grael, Ericsson 4 skipper: "I think it is a mixed feeling because we know this is the end of the story for the project. It’s a funny feeling because some of these guys you have never met before and you become like brothers. Now we go our own ways and it’s a strange feeling.

"On the other had it has been a long race. It was a very long race around the world. We are completely drained and tired so I think everyone is looking forward to a nice rest. We have had a wonderful time. We enjoyed our training time in Lanzarote and the race as well. We have had our ups and downs, but it has been fun. After we won it
was a bit of a relaxing leg. It has been so intense and so consuming so I think it is normal that after you achieve your goals you relax. I am very glad for Black and Fernando and his guys for winning this last leg."

His team won the Volvo Ocean Race with a leg to spare.

Here's their vitals:

5th ERICSSON 4 - 01:31:49 GMT; elapsed 1d 13h 31m 49s; combined 127d 07h 46m 17s

02:05 GMT UPDATE

Green Dragon is reporting they're fully engaged in a tacking duel with Delta Lloyd, just six miles from the finish. Nobody wants to finish last on the final leg of the Volvo Ocean Race!

02:00 GMT UPDATE

Magnus Olsson, Ericsson 3: "I feel so tired I cannot say anything! Everybody is happy because they have sailed around the world, but also very tired. After a day or two we can say more intelligent things. You always want to do well in every leg but this was special because it was the short one and the last one. We were up there so we are happy, but we couldn’t keep up until the finish. They beat us fair and square."

01:50 GMT UPDATE

Bouwe Bekking on Telefonica Blue: "We're tired and hungry!

"It has been full on. Lots of tacking. It was a beautiful leg in that it was sunny. But we have been a bit unlucky. That’s how it goes. But well done to the Black boys, they deserved to win. They had a superb leg. Good for them. We were all very close. It is a very nice feeling to have finished and got all the boys home safely. We had a podium finish which is nice as well."

01:40 GMT UPDATE

1st TELEFONICA BLACK - 00:41:25 GMT; Elapsed 1d 12h 41m 25s; Combined 87d 1h 31m 20s

2nd IL MOSTRO - 00:42:48 GMT; Elapsed 1d 12h 42m 48s; Combined 129d 16h 23m 01s

3rd TELEFONICA BLUE - 00:51:55 GMT; Elapsed 1d 12h 51m 55s; Combined 134d 21h 49m 30s

4th ERICSSON 3 - 01:04:48 GMT; Elapsed 1d 13h 04m 48s; Combined 145d 9h 17m 37s

01:30 GMT UPDATE

Ken Read, PUMA skipper: "The habit is over. We have just sailed around the world. We don’t have to do this anymore for a while.

"Hats off to Telefonica Black. I was actually having a beer with Fernando the other night and told him for some reason I thought this would be his leg. He said ‘I really hope so’. I didn’t realise I was a prophet. I was digging my own grave on that one!

"Congratulations to all those guys, they have worked very hard for their first leg win. We will take our second and our second overall. You know what? We just sailed around the world. I guess I said 100,000 times that we know no way but to make it hard. Shame because we usually win these close battles and today we didn’t.

"The big picture is we finished this race, everyone is safe, the boat has been spectacular. We flew the flag well for Volvo and I think we flew the flag well for PUMA. We have everything to be proud of. Relief is the right word. Right now it is relief and as always we are a pretty tired group onboard. Let the celebrations begin because all of group deserves it."

01:25 - GMT UPDATE

Here's the reaction from Leg 10 winning skipper Fernando Echavarri from Telefonica Black:

"It’s a prize for all of the crew, all of the shore crew. We have been trying to do it in all the legs but couldn’t; this was our last chance. We had a nice battle with PUMA in the last 100 miles. We are really happy.

"It has been really difficult. We prepared the boat for light conditions and the first 150 miles we had more wind than expected so we suffered a lot. Then it got lighter and we got faster. We have been fighting with PUMA and Blue and Ericsson for the last 250 miles. Really close. It has been like a match race. I don’t know how many tacks we have done! It is a great way to finish the Volvo Ocean Race. I am really proud of everyone in the group. They have done an excellent job."

01:20 - GMT UPDATE

Ericsson 3 is in now as well. We've got the radio team madly conducting interviews with the skippers.

Here's the critical stats for leg winner Telefonica Black, the fifth leg winner in the race:

1st TELEFONICA BLACK 00:41:25 GMT - Elapsed leg time 1 day, 12 hours, 41 minutes 25 seconds - Total Race Time 87 days, 1 hour, 31 minutes 20 seconds

01:00 - GMT UPDATE

And Telefonica Blue has just finished in third place, with Ericsson 3 coming in behind them. There are about 25 boats out there, it’s 05:00 local time. And that’s late enough for me, this is Cassie and Mark Chisnell signing off. Peter Rusch will be here with Riath Al-Samarrai to talk the rest of the boats in, and bring you all the quotes and reaction.

And that, as they say, is that. It’s been a blast, thanks for all the emails and support, for the TEN ZULU and the blogs – wouldn’t have been half as much fun without you.

00:48 - GMT UPDATE

Leg 10 is wrapping up here, we’ll track the rest of the boats in, and Riath Al-Samarrai will be chasing the skippers for quotes and reaction.

00:46 - GMT UPDATE

PUMA crossed the line in second, with Telefonica Blue comfortable in third, Ericsson 3 will be in fourth and Ericsson 4 appear to be safe in fifth.

00:43 - GMT UPDATE

We’re on the final run-in to the finish, Telefonica Black on starboard crosses in front of PUMA by 2.5 boat-lengths, and allows PUMA to carry on out to the south and tack on what looks like a layline to the finish.

Telefonica Black tacks onto port, and now has to maintain enough of their early advantage to cross clear in front as they come back together, as Ken Read has the right of way now PUMA has tacked to starboard.

Telefonica Black crosses in front of PUMA and tacks. Ken Read goes for speed and tries to get through to leeward. Both boats can sail straight to the finish, so it’s all about who has their bow forward. It’s Telefonica Black, quicker, and pulling out to a couple of lengths lead. It’s Telefonica Black, taking Leg 10.

00:34 - GMT UPDATE

The tacking duel goes on, but Telefonica Black look comfortable. Telefonica Blue's watch captain Jordi Calafat told me recently that he thought their boat had dominated inshore because it accelerated a little quicker and was a bit easier to sail in different ‘modes’. The same would be true of Black, and I think it’s that advantage that we are seeing now in this inshore race to the finish.

00:28 - GMT UPDATE

Telefonica Black still holding the advantage, they are maybe four boat-lengths in front. But Ken Read and PUMA are still tacking and trying to wriggle free. Fernando Echavarri and his team look to be playing a canny game, they are not being pressured into an error, as were the Ericsson 3 team at the end Leg 9.

00:25 - GMT UPDATE

The FleetBroadband Express reports that they are both tacking simultaneously, with Telefonica Black tacking to cover PUMA, as Ken Read desperately tries to struggle free. Now Ken Read double-tacks, and Telefonica choses to extend before she goes back. This is a full-on match race, with both boats tacking well, but Telefonica Black is a tad faster and has the lead. We reckon that Telefonica Black has a mile to go.

00:20 - GMT UPDATE

The suspense is killing me, but we just have to wait until someone out there who can see what’s happening gets a signal and can enlighten us. Just like the old days really, watch them sail over the horizon and wait for them to come back...

00:15 - GMT UPDATE

We still have Telefonica Black in front by a gnat’s hair, nothing in it at all with just over three miles to run. Desperate stuff, particularly as the FleetBroadband Express now appears to have driven into the threatened area of mobile phone black hole. We’re falling back on the Race Management System, and getting the occasional simultaneous Position Report, but it’s so tight that it’s hard to call from the Media Centre... Arghhh!

00:10 - GMT UPDATE

The wind speed is still in the low-to-mid-teens, with the direction slowly creeping south of east. That’s why the two leading boats are unchallenged by the pair, Telefonica Blue and Ericsson 3 that split away to the north.

The close race is still Telefonica Black and PUMA, with Telefonica Black holding a narrow advantage.

Sleep, what an old fashioned notion. Who needs it? Actually, I do.

00:03 - GMT UPDATE

Telefonica Black got the better of the boat speed duel, they pulled out to an advantage of about 1.5 boat lengths downwind, and about two boat lengths forward of them. Ken Read decided that he didn’t like the way that looked, and PUMA have tacked away from them, back to port tack, going north-east.

00:00 - GMT UPDATE

The FleetBroadband Express reports that Telefonica Black have tacked back to port, towards PUMA. Ken Read tacked right in front of them, but Black are trying to blast through to leeward, and the two of them are now bow-to-bow, no more than a boat length apart – ‘like they are coming off the start line’ says Mark Covell.

Both Telefonica Blue and Ericsson 3 are coming in from the northern side of the course, and this looks like a settled match. Telefonica Blue has a good lead over the Nordics. Ericsson 4 is equally comfortable in fifth, with Delta Lloyd leading Green Dragon by plenty.

So, it’s all about PUMA and Telefonica Black, can Ken Read and co. get their second leg win on the trot, or will Fernando Echavarri and his boys pick up their first?

Just over five miles to go.

23:50 - GMT UPDATE

Just seven miles to the finish, and PUMA and Telefonica Black have separated. Black has pushed forward, going faster with a wider wind angle. PUMA have kept it tight on the breeze, and edged away to windward. To the north-west, Telefonica Blue have tacked back to the leading pair, and at the moment it doesn’t look like they’ve done
enough out there to get past. But it all depends how the breeze shifts in these final few miles.

The FleetBroadband Express reports that the sky is darker to the south over the land. In the words of Mark Covell, it looks like Bognor Regis to the south, St Tropez to the north. Mark also felt that there might be more wind to the south. And there are a lot of ships around, it’s busy out there.

It’s an interesting question the extent to which professional sport should be dictated too by the commercial interests that actually er, pay for them – I could cite the ridiculous time that football games often start in England, because it’s what the television companies want.

23:30 GMT UPDATE

No sooner had I written that last blog than PUMA and Telefonica Black tacked. PUMA are to windward. They are both close in to the south coast, with Telefonica Blue and Ericsson 3 paired up and also heading offshore, but six miles away to the north-west. Lots of separation now, so anything could happen – further back, Ericsson 4 is following PUMA’s southern route close to the coast, while Green Dragon is chasing Delta Lloyd down the second leg of the triangle.

The bad news is that only half the cavalry is arriving, they pulled the bridges up in St Petersburg and it looks like you’ve got me for the duration.

23:00 GMT UPDATE

PUMA and Telefonica Black have both sailed away from the mark on port tack, heading for the shore and are still going, PUMA holding a narrow lead. I think Telefonica Blue rounded next, with Ericsson 3 right on their heels, then Ericsson 4. These last three look to be headed offshore in a final roll of the dice before the finish.

Rick Deppe reported from the battle at the front of the fleet, just before they rounded the bottom mark. “We've been having a great scrap with Telefonica Black for the last few hours. At the moment, PUMA seems to be holding them off as we approach the bottom mark of the course extension triangle.

“At one point Telefonica Black sailed right up to our transom, I could clearly see their crew sitting on the foredeck. Luckily we got a little extra puff that allowed us to slip away from them and get into a little more breeze giving us a buffer of about 500 meters, which we still hold.” Rick then added, “Il Mostro led Telefonica Black around the final mark of Leg 10 by 100 meters.”

22:30 GMT UPDATE

PUMA and Telefonica Black are round the bottom mark and on the final straight, the last 20 miles of 37,000. The red and black boat’s lead is just a couple of hundred metres. Both have extended from Telefonica Blue, and I can confirm that Blue now has Ericsson 3 breathing down their necks.

Media crew, Gabri Olivo writes in from Telefonica Blue to explain what happened. “First downwind [MC: leg of the triangle] was a chaotic one. As soon as we rounded the top mark, we started gaining on PUMA and Telefonica Black, but within 10 minutes we ran out of breeze and we parked up.

“In the meantime, Ericsson 3 that wasn't far away, did a gybe set at the mark [gybing back to the south, towards the shore, as they hoisted the spinnaker] and she gained very dangerously on us to leeward. She kept gaining until we got the new breeze and basically they never stopped. It was quite frustrating, the leaders are gone and we see the guys behind us catching up on us. Stressful time... Hopefully there will be another opportunity for us to catch up, never say never.”

While it is shifty out there, the wind is oscillating around the mid-teens and coming from the east, so no fundamental change in conditions yet. Green Dragon is on the triangle, a mile behind Delta Lloyd, and Ian Walker writes, “The whole idea of this triangle was to slow us down so the spectators could see us during daytime. Hmmm, didn't work out as planned...” Too damn fast, these boats, that’s the problem. That and the wind’s adamant refusal to drop as forecast. There, I’ve done it now, glass out on the way.

We are starting to get eaten alive in here, we need the sun to come back up and dispatch the bloodsuckers. This place was built on a marsh, apparently.

22:00 GMT UPDATE

Welcome to the Leg 10 Finish Blog, the Final Finish Blog, the finish blog to end all finish blogs. It’s nearly done, the Volvo Ocean Race that is – I’m Mark Chisnell, ably assisted by Cassie and bringing them home for you. At least until the cavalry arrive in the shape of the arrivals team, Peter Rusch, Riath Al-Samarrai and their cohorts in crime, riding over the hill just as we slump into an exhausted stupor.

You can catch up with the last ten hours of action in the Day Two, PM blog. But what you need to know right now is that PUMA leads Telefonica Black towards the final mark of the triangle, leaving them just over 20 miles to the finish line. This pair is chased by Telefonica Blue and the two Ericsson boats, with 3 having the advantage over 4 at the gybe mark.

Saturday 27 June 2009, 00:10 GMT

Welcome to the Leg 10 Finish Blog – Mark Chisnell has been holding the fort (the Peter and Paul fort, to be precise) on the evening shift. But with the fleet in the final miles the call has gone out, the web squad are rising prematurely from their slumbers to bring you full coverage of the end of Leg 10, and the end of the race - hard to believe, but true...

00:10 - GMT UPDATE

The wind speed is still in the low-to-mid-teens, with the direction slowly creeping south of east. That’s why the two leading boats are unchallenged by the pair, Telefonica Blue and Ericsson 3 that split away to the north.

The close race is still Telefonica Black and PUMA, with Telefonica Black holding a narrow advantage.

Sleep, what an old fashioned notion. Who needs it? Actually, I do.

00:03 - GMT UPDATE

Telefonica Black got the better of the boat speed duel, they pulled out to an advantage of about 1.5 boat lengths downwind, and about two boat lengths forward of them. Ken Read decided that he didn’t like the way that looked, and PUMA have tacked away from them, back to port tack, going north-east.

00:00 - GMT UPDATE

The FleetBroadband Express reports that Telefonica Black have tacked back to port, towards PUMA. Ken Read tacked right in front of them, but Black are trying to blast through to leeward, and the two of them are now bow-to-bow, no more than a boat length apart – ‘like they are coming off the start line’ says Mark Covell.

Both Telefonica Blue and Ericsson 3 are coming in from the northern side of the course, and this looks like a settled match. Telefonica Blue has a good lead over the Nordics. Ericsson 4 is equally comfortable in fifth, with Delta Lloyd leading Green Dragon by plenty.

So, it’s all about PUMA and Telefonica Black, can Ken Read and co. get their second leg win on the trot, or will Fernando Echavarri and his boys pick up their first?

Just over five miles to go.

23:50 - GMT UPDATE

Just seven miles to the finish, and PUMA and Telefonica Black have separated. Black has pushed forward, going faster with a wider wind angle. PUMA have kept it tight on the breeze, and edged away to windward. To the north-west, Telefonica Blue have tacked back to the leading pair, and at the moment it doesn’t look like they’ve done
enough out there to get past. But it all depends how the breeze shifts in these final few miles.

The FleetBroadband Express reports that the sky is darker to the south over the land. In the words of Mark Covell, it looks like Bognor Regis to the south, St Tropez to the north. Mark also felt that there might be more wind to the south. And there are a lot of ships around, it’s busy out there.

It’s an interesting question the extent to which professional sport should be dictated too by the commercial interests that actually er, pay for them – I could cite the ridiculous time that football games often start in England, because it’s what the television companies want.

23:30 GMT UPDATE

No sooner had I written that last blog than PUMA and Telefonica Black tacked. PUMA are to windward. They are both close in to the south coast, with Telefonica Blue and Ericsson 3 paired up and also heading offshore, but six miles away to the north-west. Lots of separation now, so anything could happen – further back, Ericsson 4 is following PUMA’s southern route close to the coast, while Green Dragon is chasing Delta Lloyd down the second leg of the triangle.

Somehow, as well as writing blogs for us, the media crews are sending back audio commentary of the action, and some stunning images - keep checking those pages for updates, as I may not remember to remind you.

Uwe Liermann writes in to ask about the problems with the Predicted
Route on the Race Viewer. An easy one to answer – the calculations are
intended for open water legs. Although they can cope with headlands
and geographic features, and with waypoints that more or less aim in
the same direction, the relatively short legs of the triangle were too
much for it.

The bad news is that only half the cavalry is arriving, they pulled the bridges up in St Petersburg and it looks like you’ve got me for the duration.

23:00 GMT UPDATE

PUMA and Telefonica Black have both sailed away from the mark on port tack, heading for the shore and are still going, PUMA holding a narrow lead. I think Telefonica Blue rounded next, with Ericsson 3 right on their heels, then Ericsson 4. These last three look to be headed offshore in a final roll of the dice before the finish.

Rick Deppe reported from the battle at the front of the fleet, just before they rounded the bottom mark. “We've been having a great scrap with Telefonica Black for the last few hours. At the moment, PUMA seems to be holding them off as we approach the bottom mark of the course extension triangle.

“At one point Telefonica Black sailed right up to our transom, I could clearly see their crew sitting on the foredeck. Luckily we got a little extra puff that allowed us to slip away from them and get into a little more breeze giving us a buffer of about 500 meters, which we still hold.” Rick then added, “Il Mostro led Telefonica Black around the final mark of Leg 10 by 100 meters.”

22:30 GMT UPDATE

PUMA and Telefonica Black are round the bottom mark and on the final straight, the last 20 miles of 37,000. The red and black boat’s lead is just a couple of hundred metres. Both have extended from Telefonica Blue, and I can confirm that Blue now has Ericsson 3 breathing down their necks.

Media crew, Gabri Olivo writes in from Telefonica Blue to explain what happened. “First downwind [MC: leg of the triangle] was a chaotic one. As soon as we rounded the top mark, we started gaining on PUMA and Telefonica Black, but within 10 minutes we ran out of breeze and we parked up.

“In the meantime, Ericsson 3 that wasn't far away, did a gybe set at the mark [gybing back to the south, towards the shore, as they hoisted the spinnaker] and she gained very dangerously on us to leeward. She kept gaining until we got the new breeze and basically they never stopped. It was quite frustrating, the leaders are gone and we see the guys behind us catching up on us. Stressful time... Hopefully there will be another opportunity for us to catch up, never say never.”

While it is shifty out there, the wind is oscillating around the mid-teens and coming from the east, so no fundamental change in conditions yet. Green Dragon is on the triangle, a mile behind Delta Lloyd, and Ian Walker writes, “The whole idea of this triangle was to slow us down so the spectators could see us during daytime. Hmmm, didn't work out as planned...” Too damn fast, these boats, that’s the problem. That and the wind’s adamant refusal to drop as forecast. There, I’ve done it now, glass out on the way.

We are starting to get eaten alive in here, we need the sun to come back up and dispatch the bloodsuckers. This place was built on a marsh, apparently.

22:00 GMT UPDATE

Welcome to the Leg 10 Finish Blog, the Final Finish Blog, the finish blog to end all finish blogs. It’s nearly done, the Volvo Ocean Race that is – I’m Mark Chisnell, ably assisted by Cassie and bringing them home for you. At least until the cavalry arrive in the shape of the arrivals team, Peter Rusch, Riath Al-Samarrai and their cohorts in crime, riding over the hill just as we slump into an exhausted stupor.

You can catch up with the last ten hours of action in the Day Two, PM blog. But what you need to know right now is that PUMA leads Telefonica Black towards the final mark of the triangle, leaving them just over 20 miles to the finish line. This pair is chased by Telefonica Blue and the two Ericsson boats, with 3 having the advantage over 4 at the gybe mark.

Volvo Ocean Race