Brad and Derek go west, Gutek goes east – who will reach Wellington, New Zealand, first?
View from Gutek's boat. Image copyright onEdition/VELUX5OCEANS.
by Sarah Hames
To go east, or not to go east – that is the question facing the VELUX 5 OCEANS skippers as they approach the south of New Zealand, less than 1,000 nautical miles from the finish line in Wellington. After four gruelling weeks at sea sailing through one of the most inhospitable oceans in the world, the end might be in sight for the tired ocean racers but the race is by no means over.
At the front of the fleet Brad Van Liew, Zbigniew ‘Gutek’ Gutkowski and Derek Hatfield are separated by less than 400 nautical miles. Despite being exhausted from extreme sleep deprivation and the sheer physicality of the Southern Ocean, all three must now make one of the toughest decisions of the leg so far, one that could mean the difference between victory and defeat – whether to get to Wellington by sailing west of New Zealand through the Tasman Sea and then the Cook Strait, or via the less traditional route round the tip of the South Island and up the east coast.
Brad Van Liew pointing the way to Wellington. Image copyright onEdition/VELUX5OCEANS.
“When setting the course we purposely left it up to the sailors to decide their own route into Wellington as a final test for them,” VELUX 5 OCEANS race director David Adams explained. “Each route has its benefits and its drawbacks. The Tasman Sea can be pretty fickle and the Cook Strait is notorious for its funnel effect, channelling strong winds down in between the North and South islands. The easterly route however is also pretty tricky – it would see the skippers sailing due north into the strong, seasonal Wellington northerlies.”
As the VELUX 5 OCEANS race tracker shows, race leader Brad Van Liew in Le Pingouin and Derek Hatfield in Active House appear to have opted for the westerly route through the Tasman while Polish skipper Gutek on Operon Racing has split to the east in a gutsy tactical move.
Weather predictions for 14th January 2011. Image copyright PredictWind.
Weather predictions for 15th January 2011. Image copyright PredictWind.
Weather predictions for 16th January 2011. Image copyright PredictWind.
“West of New Zealand looks quite confused right now,” added David, a former VELUX 5 OCEANS winner. “A high pressure is coming through the Tasman which will bring some pretty light winds of five to ten knots. However, once through it, they will be able to make the right turn into the Cook Strait and blast into Wellington with strong winds behind them.
Derek Hatfield's ActiveHouse. Image copyright onEdition/VELUX5OCEANS.
“The easterly route looks very constant, with winds of about 15 to 20 knots from the south west – perfect sailing conditions. But by Sunday things will have changed totally and Gutek will have 40 knots of breeze on the nose. It’s a bold move by Gutek to choose the easterly route – he’s throwing all his cards on the table. It’s a gamble that could pay off for him but equally he could lose it all. These guys have been at sea for 28 days, they are really tired and this decision-making process will be really difficult for them. Coming into Wellington in 40 knots of breeze will not be pleasant but Gutek is hoping he can sneak in just in front of Brad and Derek. It is all gearing up to be a very exciting finish to ocean sprint two.”
GUTEK GOES FOR BROKE IN SPRINT TO VELUX 5 OCEANS FINISH
Polish skipper takes on race leader in final push for victory
by Sarah Hames
INDOMITABLE solo sailor Zbigniew ‘Gutek’ Gutkowski has made a break from the leading pack in the second sprint of the VELUX 5 OCEANS as the finish line draws close. While rivals Brad Van Liew and Derek Hatfield have chosen a more direct course to Wellington along the west coast of the South Island, the gutsy Pole has split to the east, opting to take an unconventional route around the South Island and up the east coast of New Zealand in a last ditch attempt to snatch victory.
Gutek on board his boat. Image copyright onEdition/VELUX5OCEANS.
It’s a bold and risky move by the second-placed sailor but one that just might pay off if Gutek can take advantage of the strong south westerly winds round the back of the South Island. But in order to beat Brad into port Gutek will have to punch through 40 knot headwinds forecast to develop in the Cook Strait towards the end of the week.
“The plan is to go round the southern side of the South Island so I will be entering Wellington from the Pacific Ocean,” said Gutek, 872 nautical miles from the finish line according to the 00h00 UTC position report. “Brad is sailing the opposite way and he still has a lead of 300 nautical miles. There is a chance that if I push very hard and make my boat perform to her best, I could maybe fight with him. I am very curious to see what weather Brad will get. Looking at the GRIB files it looks like it will ok for him and for me but as for how it will be for real we'll have to wait and see.”
View from Gutek's boat. Image copyright onEdition/VELUX5OCEANS.
Gutek’s yacht Operon Racing is, at 19 years old, the oldest boat in the VELUX 5 OCEANS fleet and is seven years older than Brad Van Liew’s Le Pingouin. After a 7,500 nautical mile dogfight with Brad in the first ocean sprint from La Rochelle to Cape Town Gutek has been a constant threat at the front of the fleet during ocean sprint two from Cape Town to Wellington despite a host of problems including unreliable autopilots. Despite the high-pressure climax to the leg Gutek reported that he was enjoying the sailing as he blasted towards Wellington.
“For the first time on this leg the weather is perfect,” he said. “There is not a cloud in the sky, and if it wasn’t for the big waves that are being created by a big storm about 100 miles away I would have said I was sailing in the Mediterranean. If we had conditions like this all the time there would be as many sailing boats in the world as cars - it is that perfect.”
VELUX5OCEANS fleet positions 13th January 2011.
Ocean sprint two positions at 00h00 UTC 13th January 2011:
Skipper / distance to finish (nm) / distance to leader (nm) / distance covered in last 24 hours (nm) / average speed in last 24 hours (kts)
Brad Van Liew, Le Pingouin: 508.2/ 0 / 310.5/ 12.9
Zbigniew Gutkowski, Operon Racing: 871.9/ 363.7 / 231.7/ 9.7
Derek Hatfield, Active House: 1078.8/ 570.6/ 122.1/ 5.1
Chris Stanmore-Major, Spartan: 1842.3/ 1334.1/ 189.9/ 7.9
VELUX5OCEANS
