11:31 PM Tue 12 Jan 2010 GMT
"Fortune has changed the face of the race a number of times and still I am sure there is more to come," says Team Finland's skipper Rob McInally. He's not wrong there, with just 50 nautical miles separating all ten boats and 750 nautical miles still to go it's anyone's guess which team will secure the top spot into Singapore.
Unfortunately fortune did not favour the Finnish team last night as they got stuck in the confused winds under a large bank of cloud. "At midnight we went for a gybe and as Becs (Rebecca Marks) turned the wheel the weather gods played their own version of 'Carry on Yachting,'" says Rob. "The wind just died and then teased us from one side and then the other. For hours there was wind and waves but the boat would not advance in any direction. The heavens then opened as we made the best of three knots of wind we still couldn't get out from underneath the cloud. I am sure that there will be others in a similar situation and well done to those who managed to wriggle away."
Amongst those that have shared Team Finland's frustrations last night include Uniquely Singapore and skipper Jim Dobie admits that it is hard for his team to keep their spirits up.
"Watching boats that were only a few miles away suddenly taking ten to fifteen miles over night is hard to take on board," he says. "However we have the company of Hull & Humber and Qingdao at the moment so we're not on our own and doing our very best to keep Uniquely Singapore moving."
Hull & Humber has managed to keep moving but not always in the right direction as the team's skipper, Piers Dudin, explains. "In our final night of crossing the Monsoon Trough before reaching the Sunda Straits, one final hurdle was thrown in our path. Squall action is often most significant at dawn and dusk, but our heaviest down pour came early in the morning." Along with the rain, squalls also bring with them a localised change in wind direction and Hull & Humber suddenly found themselves requiring an immediate change to their sail plan as the wind swung through 180 degrees.
"As we had our light weight kite up at the time, we had no choice but to turn right around," explains Piers. "Now we were heading in the wrong direction with a building wind, sheet rain starting to fall, pitch black and charging along at 10 knots. I took the helm and gave Della (Parsons) her orders, 'Right then Della, we need the kite down, the pole down, the anti wrap net down, then the Yankee Two up and the staysail... as quickly as possible!' Undaunted Della and her crack squad set to work producing a brilliant kite drop and once we were set up and moving nicely everyone managed to go below and warm up and dry off."
California's skipper, Pete Rollason, was also quick to praise his crew in his report to the race office this morning, as two unscheduled spinnaker drops kept the team busy overnight. "The crew dealt with each amazingly, such is the level of determination on board California. It was great to see that although we lost miles as a result, this morning showed that we had regained the third place we have held for a while."
By the 0900GMT position poll California had slipped back to fifth place behind Spirit of Australia and Cork and this changing of positions is likely to continue until the teams reach the more consistent northerly winds of the Java Sea.
This moment won't come too soon for skipper Matt Pike and his crew on board Edinburgh Inspiring Capital. He says, "The whole fleet is suffering with wind holes and squalls but we seem to be getting more than our fair share! The wind has circled twice already this morning, that's a 720 degree wind shift in five hours! It is hard on the watch to keep up with the sail plan and we all agree the cold beer in Batam will be well earned."
It has also been a busy night on board Cape Breton Island as the Canadian team's skipper, Jan Ridd, and his crew also work hard at keeping up with the correct sail plan for the conditions.
"I think that it has been the busiest watch so far, we have had five different sails flying and some of them of them have been up and down twice!" exclaims Jan. "We have spent several hours struggling to sail with wind speeds under 2 knots and then a gentle breeze filled in. As I type this we are heeled over at 30 degrees with two reefs in the main sail and 25 knots of wind. Unfortunately it is billowing from exactly where we want to go and after so many days of light wind it feels strange to be crashing through the waves again."
Positions at 0900 UTC, Tuesday 12 January
(*DTF = Distance to Finish, *DTL = Distance to Leader)
1 Jamaica Lightning Bolt 733nm
2 Cape Breton Island 733nm 0nm
3 Spirit of Australia 737nm 3nm
4 Cork 744nm 11nm
5 California 751nm 17nm
6 Team Finland 757nm 24nm
7 Hull & Humber 762nm 28nm
8 Uniquely Singapore 770nm 37nm
9 Qingdao 778nm 44nm
10 Edinburgh Inspiring Capital 783nm 50nm
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