Local winners

A report from the final day of the F18 Archipelego Raid in Sweden

After four days and four nights of hardships in the Stockholm and Åland archipelagos, 11 of the 14 starting catamarans finished this afternoon at the Gustavsberg Marina outside Stockholm. The talented Swedes Anders Lewander and Calle Hennix on Tidermans took victory after an incredibly even battle between the five frontrunners. Since the start at 10.00 local time (08.00 GMT) last Tuesday, Tidermans, Sogeti, Jobman Workwear and the two Nokia boats Adilstam and Kempff have been fighting for the lead. Tidermans sailed smart and strong and won overall with 80 points, three points ahead of second boat Sogeti (77 points), skippered by last year’s winner Magnus Woxén (with Rodney Ardern). Third place went to Nokia Adilstam, only one point behind Sogeti. Jobman Workwear missed the podium with one disappointing point.

During the four days and nights the competitors have sailed more than 350 miles, divided on five legs with a total of 25 check points to pass. The results are based on a point system per leg. The Archipelago Raid is the world’s longest sailing orienteering and a tough challenge for the brave competitors. Bodies are tired, faces are weather-worn and the stomachs empty, but the sailors are happy after a unique adventure in the archipelago.

"The Raid is a powerful experience. An odd mix of great nature and wild sailing. A mix of meticulous planning and a sailing experience with both good and bad all the time. One can never give up and it is really important to constantly encourage each other on board," said a happy Anders Lewander after the finish, skipper of the winning team Tidermans.

After a tight battle Sogeti (Woxén/Ardern) was first to cross the finish line at 16.19.44 (local time) in Gustavsberg’s Marina outside Stockholm and won the last leg from Wasahamnen in central Stockholm to Gustavsberg’s Marina. After adding the points from the five legs Tidermans won the total victory.

The competitors, who have sailed in teams of two on a Formula18 (18 foot catamaran), have experienced a broad spectrum of wind and weather conditions: strong winds, calm, sun, rain, and both bright and covered nights. The question is still to be answered if the light or strong winds have been the most demanding – at light winds the competitors have used their paddles to advance faster in the archipelago, and during stronger winds the sail manoeuvres have been much more demanding. The sailors have had some fabulous fast rides, two of them passing the open stretch between Åland and Sweden last night and the northern part of the Stockholm archipelago early this morning, with an impressive boat speed of 15-18 knots.

Since the start, the Archipelago Raid has been characterised by the incredibly even racing. "It is amazing to finish in Wasahamnen after the fourth leg, only second’s apart, after 14 hours of racing over the open stretch of the Åland Sea and the northern Stockholm archipelago, since the restart of leg four late last night! It’s great. It has been very exciting both for the sailors and for those following the race," commented race organiser Christine Salén Guillou from Atlant Ocean Racing.

The ocean racing couple Neal and Lisa McDonald finished on eighth place overall. "There has been quite a bit of paddling, and the strong Vikings were much faster than us on that part. But the sailing was great! Of course we had a slight disadvantage not knowing the archipelagos as well as the other guys, but it is a great race. A real challenge," said Neal McDonald rushing away to the airport to catch the first plane to England. Tomorrow the couple is on the starting blocks for the Admiral’s Cup!

Ellen MacArthur and Nick Moloney on Omega retired after the first night of racing. MacArthur sustained an accidental injury to her leg by a knife, cutting her shin during a manoeuvre on board and could not continue.

Final Rankings:
The Archipelago Raid is based on five legs. The teams gather a number of points depending on position on arrival at the last check point of each leg. So far the competitors have completed three legs and the rankings are:

Pos	Team	Leg 1 - points	Leg 2 - points	Leg 3 -    points	Leg 4 -    points	Leg 5 -    points
		Gustavsberg Nynäs Havsbad	Nynäs - Fejans Krog	Fejan - Mariehamn	Mariehamn -
					Stockholm	Stockholm - Gustavsberg	Tot
1	Tidermans	17	15	15	17	16	80
2	Sogeti	14	14	16	16	17	77
3	Nokia Adilstam	16	17	13	15	15	76
4	Jobman Workwear	14	16	17	14	14	75
5	Nokia Kempff	15	8	14	12	11	60
6	Macfreeze	12	13	12	10	10	57
7	GB Glace	11	9	10	13	13	56
8	ASSA ABLOY	7	12	11	11	8	49
9	Addicom	10	10	1	0	9	30
10	Playground	8	7	1	0	12	28
11	Suunto	9	6	8	1	0	24
12	Nynäs Havsbad	6	11	1	0	0	18
13	Omega	3	1	0	0	0	4
14	Realsailing	1	0	1	0	0	2