The need for speed

They may have broken the 24 hour run record for the Volvo Ocean race, but Jez Fanstone's News Corporation have not been able to hold on to the lead.

While Fanstone's crew were keeping the pedal to the metal, Knut Frostad and his hard charging team aboard djuice were turning up the turbo pressure. Djuice is now just three miles ahead.

News Corp navigator, Ross Field was delighted by the 24 hour record run. "It was bloody hard work but very rewarding. The 24 hours sailing was right on the edge. We had the right boat, great sail combinations, excellent crew work and the best weather to wring the hell out of the boat." Despite the evident satisfaction at having broken the record, Field is confident there is more to come yet, suggesting that more than 460 miles might be possible if the weather had continued. As a man who has seen just how wrong things can go when the boat is pushed to and sometimes beyond the limit, Field closes his message by saying pointedly, "Above all, we didn't make any mistakes.

With ten miles between the boats on the water it is unlikely that they are in sight of one another but they may be visible to each the other on Radar. Not that either team will have much time to keep an eye on what the other is doing. Both are fully intent on putting the miles under their keels.

While it would be easy to think of leg two as a simple blast through the desolate wastes of the roaring forties and furious fifties, there are still some hard navigational decisions to be made. Despite the wonders of modern weather forecasting and satellite communications, the available data for the Southern Ocean is not as good as for more well travelled routes. Simple old fashioned navigators skills come into play.

For example there is the small matter of the tiny Kerguelen islands in the middle of a vast ocean. Simple you might think. Don't hit them. But there is more to it than that. illbruck navigator Juan Vila outlined the tactical dilemma of passing them. "The main reason for our northerly option is to keep into stronger breeze ahead of a low pressure wave that is forecasted to develop in the vicinity of the Kerguelen tomorrow. If this happens, breeze should be lighter south of this wave, with winds building from the north. On the other hand, forecasts in this area are not as reliable" says Villa, adding "in case of doubt, go south."

The remainder of the fleet split 50/50. Leaders djuice and Team News Corp (three miles astern), followed by Amer Sports One stuck to their fast southerly path while illbruck, Team SEB and ASSA ABLOY opted for a northern route past the lone Southern Ocean island.

Nor is the wind consistent in the open ocean. Amer Sports Too have fallen behind once again and they are paying the price in a big way. A small trough of low pressure has come out to grab them and with lighter winds they can do very little to get back in touch with the fleet.

Not that the results of the leg are settled yet. With the weather traditionally coming in from behind, unlike on leg one, the boats at the back are the ones with the tactical options. As the fleet approaches Eclipse Island (a mark of the course off the south west tip of Australia) high pressure systems will take over from the lows of the deep Southern Ocean. "I still think it will be a close race at the end of this leg. We are most likely going to run into high pressure off western Australia, which should compress the fleet," says John Kostecki from aboard illbruck. "We are still a week away from that so a lot can change." History shows that it is the boat that can best negotiate the final 100 miles to Sydney that will win the leg.

Position Report.... page two