Tentative leader

Ian Walker updates us on Green Dragon's progress

After a disastrous passage through the Canary Islands, Ian Walker and his crew on board the Chino-Irish backed VO70 Green Dragon have spectacularly recovered, pulling off a massive coup from their westerly route south from the Cape Verdes. Despite not being one of the obvious favourites for the race, over the weekend they pulled into the lead in the Volvo Ocean Race and are still clinging on to this as they negotiate a particularly tricky passage through the Doldrums.

"We have had a pretty good last few days," Ian Walker told thedailysail last night. "I now understand why they call them 'the Doldrums': We have averaged 1 knot for the last hour. We've had calms and squalls and we've been trying to dodge the clouds, trying to get on the right side of the rainy ones. A couple of them have really ruined us."

The tactics we are told is to head for the ominous black rain clouds and avoid like the plague the white fluffy postcard-style cumulous clouds as these are the ones that becalm you. Obviously at night this operation is harder and the only tool to rely on is the radar which can spot where the rain is.

According to Walker going west was always in their gameplan. "There was a tropical wave moving and we were trying to get more right hand breeze in that. We knew the Doldrums was going to be a nightmare thanks to the tropical wave - 250 miles of no wind basically. We thought we had a route way out to the west at about 32°W, but we lost a bit of time and that window is closing so we’ll be in the soup like everyone else."

However going west did put them on the inside of a right hand shift, the same tactics they had hoped to employ at the Canary Islands before they bailed out and headed through the islands.

But at present the race has effectively restarted and the west is not looking as favourable as it once was. "Everyone is back in it now," says Walker. "We are still hoping there’s going to be more wind out here. We are moving again right now, but we have a position report coming through in 10 minutes and the first hour and a half of this sched we didn’t move."

To get the boat going they are artificially heeling her to reduce wetted surface area - they the keel canted to leeward and have even been stacking and having the crew perched on the low side.

At the time of our conversation last night, Neal McDonald's watch was up on deck including bowman Justin Slattery, Anthony Merrington and Tom Braidwood. "Down below - it is as hot as hell," continued Walker. "Andrew McLean and Phil Harmer are fast asleep in the leeward bunk. Ian [Moore, navigator] is about to get the latest run on the weather. It has been hectic with a lot of sail changes. Otherwise it is good. It stinks and its hot but it is dry."

A positive of entering the Doldrums has been the prospect of a fresh water shower and some temporary semblance of cleanliness. "Neal [McDonald] has a big aversion to that!" But the deluges they have encountered since have not been so welcome.

So how does Walker feel Green Dragon is fairing against the competition? "I think we struggle at times, especially against Puma. We did well out of the Med, through tactically staying to the north. We had a good period against Telefonica running in 16 knots. We might be weak upwind but we haven’t had much of that and we haven’t done any reaching. So far it has been a tactical race. We haven’t seen another boat for six days."

Weekend before last, the start had not gone entirely according to plan as they sailed the first beat with their canting keel centered. "We had a mess up. The media gear had only just been fitted and the PLC [the control unit for the hydraulic systems] went haywire." In addition they were unable to fly their J4 (as the rest of the boats were] because Walker reckons the halyard must have got caught, breaking the lock strop before they'd left Alicante harbour. However since then neither have been an issue. "We have had the J4 up for days. Other than that we are all good. We spent a lot of time waterproofing the boat - the bunks and the storage and the head, etc. All that has been good." Unlike some boats they haven't had any sail damage and the sowing machine has yet to make an appearance.

Interestingly Walker is completely in the dark about what has been going on on board the other boats - he doesn't know about Telefonica Blue's rudder or sail damage or Tony Mutter being taken off Ericsson 4 with a knee injury. And we aren't allowed to tell him.

As to the crew, Walker confirms that they are all in good shape, including Neal McDonald's who's wedding ring had to be snipped off when it injured his finger. "He is fine now. Other than that I don’t think Doctor Braidwood has been too busy. We've been pretty careful with our hygiene, trying to keep all the cuts to a minimum, although I expect my the personal hygene might take a dive." When they finally reach the Equator Walker will be among the first timers to cross the Equator and will thus have to undergo the traditional initiation into King Neptune's kingdom, account for his crimes, etc before he is tied to the mast/covered in the last few days slop and other unimaginable horrors. He says he has tried pointing out to the crew that he is their employer but has been warned that King Neptune doesn't take heed of mere issues of rank.

"Right now we are about 50 miles west of everyone else. Puma and E4 have dived west. We are trying to get through this mess. It is going to be days of mess. Then it will be a drag race to Fernando [de Noronja, the scoring waypoint off the Brazilian coast]. After that it could be quite complicated. It will be a case of first one down to the Southern Ocean."

However a potential problem with their westerly position is that when they do finally emerge from the Doldrums and into the southeasterly trades they will be on a tighter (slower ) angle by something like 20 degrees to get to the scoring gate than Delta Lloyd out to the east.

Can the underdog hang on? It would be nice, but we suspect they will be outgunned in the drag race that is to come.

See video from Green Dragon here

More photos on page 2...