Day 02, Sunday April 11, 1999

While the position report shows only a mile of separation for the distance to the finish line between Giovanni Soldini and Marc Thiercelin, they are in fact far apart. Shortly after the start Thiercelin turned east-northeast while Soldini stayed to an easterly course. Only the future would show whose tactics are right.

Class II leader J.P. Mouligne was even farther south and farther east than Soldini. With the entire fleet on the their western side and with an east-southeasterly course Soldini and Mouligne hoped to benefit from a better angle on the wind than the boats which headed towards the north.

The forecast for the next two days called for northwest winds ranging from 9 to 15 knots. Winds should clock south. If all works as planned, Soldini and Mouligne could benefit by ticking off the easterly miles they need now to get away from the Uruguay coast.

Despite the different tactics six hours after the start the fleet was still closely bundled. Five boats were within one nautical mile of each other and twenty-four hours after the start, boats still zigzagged across the water seeking favorable winds. Even J.P. Mouligne abandoned his lead up the coast, and tacked east, seeking breeze.

© Photo Richard Konkolski

The wind was light, but the sea very choppy. Garside reported that for the first time ever he had all four ballast tanks filled to give the boat the weight it needs to punch its way through the waves. It was working for him, but the hull and rig were taking dreadful punishment. The sailing was not pleasant at all. Neal Petersen mailed: "I am very seasick and not feeling well at all. Hopefully tomorrow things will be better. It's too dangerous to write at the moment."

At 1 p.m. local time (1600GMT) Brad Van Liew reported that a sudden squall had dismasted his Balance Bar. At that time he was 90 miles off the Uruguayan coast and J.P. Mouligne was diverted to his position in case Brad needed assistance.

In a short report, Van Liew was not sure exactly what had happened, but that the boat was caught in squall when he heard a loud crack on deck. By the time he got on deck, he could see that his mast had broken off six feet above the deck and the rig was hanging overboard in the water. He was sailing with three reefs and a staysail when the dismasting occurred.

Van Liew requested assistance because of his concern about the attached rig causing major damage to the boat's hull. The closest competitor at the time of the dismasting was the J.P. Mouligne in Cray Valley. Mouligne was 18 miles from Van Liew's position, doing 10 knots and he should arrive on the scene by 2000 GMT. Under race rules, to remain in the race Van Liew may not motor to port. Instead, he must build a jury rig and sail to within 10 miles of port. If he motors or is towed more than 10 miles, he faces disqualification.

© Photo Richard Konkolski

Positions:

Class 1

Class 2

Copyright © Richard Konkolski
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