Rubber banding it

The distance between the Volvo leaders continues to fluctuate

Positions at 1000

PS	Yacht	Lat	Long	DTF	DTL	DTL-C	SMG	CMG
1	illbruck	17 43.76N	061 40.72W	1161	0	0	11.7	322
2	Assa Abloy	17 31.68N	061 34.48W	1172	11	-6	12.6	320
3	Tyco	17 30.04N	061 31.88W	1175	14	-6	12.5	319
4	SEB	16 18.84N	060 43.76W	1258	97	-19	14.8	313
5	Amer One	15 52.64N	060 05.84W	1302	141	-16	14.3	308
6	News Corp	15 46.40N	060 00.16W	1310	149	-17	14.4	311
7	Amer Too	15 26.76N	059 29.64W	1345	184	-10	12.8	316
8	djuice	15 18.08N	059 03.80W	1369	208	-14	13.9	310

Weather situation for 1200GMT 23 March



The front runners in the Volvo Ocean Race look set to round the 'turning' mark off the Caribbean island of Barbuda later this morning as they peel off the miles north west to Miami. The rubber banding goes on between the three leaders. Last night illbruck was mile by mile slowly pulling away from Assa Abloy and Tyco placed second and third respectively. But this morning illbruck had lost miles to them again. And the race is by no means over yet...

The weather map for Saturday (above) shows that the conditions are likely to go soft for the front runners has they have to tackle a slow moving cold front. This will see the wind veer to the south east, putting them on a light air run and the crews will have to work hard on their gybing angles to maintain a good VMG to the next turning mark - the Sombrero Light at 18deg 36'N, 063deg 26.0W - until they are through the front and back into the north easterlies.

This will give the tailenders who will continue to stay in the regular north easterly trade winds, the opportunity to catch up a little and will give the navigators (most of whom have been on the rail for the last few days) some work to do. The outcome will depend on whether there is a difference between how the front affects those at the front and those at the back of the fleet.

In the regular reaching conditions with little to do tactically and few sail changes to be made and without the horrors of bumping into icebergs, the main concerns of the crews have been ensuring that they have enough suntan lotion on and that they keep enough water inside them. Otherwise they have been contemplating their navels or engaging in 'weather rail banter'. On the next page SEB's Jon Gundersen, recently jumped ship from News Corp, gives some insight on how in an international team such as theirs they are not just talking about girls, beer, boats and sport.

On Amer Sports Too, the girls have managed to fix their watermaker. The boats only carry safety reserves of water and must rely on a watermaker for all their drinking, cooking and occasional washing requirements. This watermaker desalinates the salt water by forcing the water through a very very fine filter that allows water molecules to pass through, but not the larger salt ones.

Into the Trades with SEB. Note the twin hatch configuration which nearly caused her to sink (were it not for her dismasting) on the last leg