Dave Kneale / Volvo Ocean Race
What a perfect day, spinnaker up all the way down the river, the sun is out. There are worse things in the world...
Monday 27 April 2009 17:10 GMT
LEG 6 FINISH BLOG
Dockside reaction from Green Dragon skipper Ian Walker: "I just had a chat with the lads at the end and I said, 'a lot of crews wouldn't still be together after the tough last leg, running out of food and the problems we've had to overcome, and then this leg, finishing last and slipping futher and further behind on the long reaching sequence...' But I think the fact that we're all here, we're all smiling, that speaks volumes.
"We seem to have done better on the legs where there is a lot of downwind sailing or the legs that have been tougher. I think the best hope for us is a completely horrendous Atlantic crossing in 40 or 50 knots and then hopefully we'll come through."
And that will be it for the finish blog. A final wrap-up story for the Green Dragon arrival, will be published shortly.
16:15 GMT update
The Dragons have landed! Ian Walker and his team finish in seventh place on the leg into Boston, earning two points for their efforts. Their finish time was 16:08:10 GMT (12:08:10 local time). That translates to a leg time of 15 days, 22 hours, and eight minutes.
15:45 GMT update
The Dragon is on final approach to Boston Harbor. There's a sharp, cool breeze blowing into the harbour which has allowed the final miles to pass quickly.
We'll bring you dockside reaction from Ian Walker and his men shortly.
11:10 GMT update
Green Dragon remains the only boat at sea and with less than 30 miles to run, Ian Walker's crew is expected within three hours.
Dockside, Fernando Echavarri, the skipper of Telefonica Black said: "We made quite a lot of mistakes during this leg, but at least we had a good ending. We passed Delta Lloyd and all the miles we lost, were mostly arriving towards the exclusion zone. But at the end, this approach in was quite good. We could pass Delta Lloyd and we are happy about this."
Roberto 'Chuny' Bermudez, the skipper of Delta Lloyd said: "I am really happy with this leg. We were fighting until the end and there is a good feeling onboard. All the new people on the team did a really good job... The boat is better now. Nothing important has broken and it's better prepared. We still have two months to try and improve more."
09:50 GMT update
Telefonica Black crossed the finish line in Boston in fifth place at 09:48:15 GMT, or 05:48:15 local time. Delta Lloyd is expected in sixth place in a few minutes, while Green Dragon is some four hours away. We'll have dockside reaction shortly.
09:10 GMT update
Very close now, with Delta Lloyd within a mile of Telefonica Black, who is just four miles from the finish line. Will bring you the finish details and dockside reaction right here. Meanwhile, Green Dragon is 46 miles behind, which translates to about a five hour gap.
08:15 GMT update
With dawn approaching, Telefonica Black is holding on to their two mile lead over Delta Lloyd... Less than 10 miles to go now.
04:15 GMT update
The close finishes may not be over yet. Telefonica Black and Delta Lloyd have been dueling down the coast all night, usually separated by less than two miles. At 04:00 GMT the Black boat had the upper hand, but conditions are very patchy in terms of wind strength. So position changes, and shifting ETAs are very likely.
Green Dragon is some 50 miles behind.
23:55 GMT update
Reaction from PUMA skipper Ken Read dockside: "It wasn't from lack of effort. It was one of those legs where nothing seemed to go our way. I wish I could say it was effort, or the boat, or the sails, but we just kept tripping over little problems that we didn't trip over on legs past.
"But I don't think anybody cares right now. I just think everybody is happy to be here in what we call home."
23:15 GMT update
PUMA come home in fourth place, crossing the line at 23:12:42 GMT. The result drops the team to third overall on the leaderboard. We'll have reaction from the PUMA sailors on coming home shortly.
22:45 GMT update
PUMA is roaring towards the finishing line now and is expected to finish within half an hour.
Dockside, Magnus Olsson, skipper of Ericsson 3, spoke about his condition and his team: "Of course we are really happy. My back is not too bad, the pain at the beginning was a lot, but my crew did all the work. Telefonica Blue was coming in from behind and we kept watch on them. We have all had our problems and Ericsson 4 didn't have a watermaker, but we wouldn't have beaten them, but maybe next time."
And Telefonica Blue skipper Bouwe Bekking said: "We had a really good comeback after two horrible days. Passing PUMA and nearly catching Ericsson 3 was great. It has been fantastic and it is really nice to be back here. We have had some shocking times, but we have come back to a real high."
22:00 GMT update
The finishing times for the top three in leg six:
Ericsson 4 - 21:05:10 GMT
Ericsson 3 - 21:17:58 GMT
Telefonica Blue - 21:23:02 GMT
21:55 GMT update
Torben Grael, skipper of Ericsson 4, speaking dockside: "It feels fantastic. I think we had a very good leg. We were always very close to the other boats, even Delta Lloyd sailed a fantastic leg.
"I think it was very important - a key position - when we gybed a few days ago. After that, there wasn't many transitions there. We just managed to keep the front, which was not easy. Even here at the end, when it looked like it was alright, winds were very light with the seabreeze fighting the land breeze.
"So it was a very hard job. But a very good result for us. It couldn't be better. It's one more step towards our objective. Normally, regattas in the States give me luck. This is another one of them."
21:45 GMT update
An incredible finish here in Boston. That cold front we told you about earlier arrived a little later than expected and whipped up the winds in Boston Harbor just as Ericsson 4 was finishing.
Suddenly, hot on the heels of Ericsson 4 crossing the line were sistership Ericsson 3 and Telefonica Blue. The three boats all finished within just 18 minutes. It would have been even closer if Telefonica Blue hadn't broached half a mile from the finish line. Skipper Bouwe Bekking then elected to drop the headsail and the team finished under mainsail alone.
21:05 GMT update
Ericsson 4 crossed the finish line just off Fan Pier in Boston to win leg six of the Volvo Ocean Race. The victory further consolidates the team's position atop the leaderboard. Ericsson 4 collects eight points for the leg win and now sits top of the table with 77.5 points.
We'll have full dockside reaction, as well as the latest from the boats fighting for second place - Ericsson 3 and Telefonica Blue - shortly...
20:15 GMT update
Ericsson 4 has nearly finished it off. Just four miles from the Fan Pier finish line at the top of the hour, the team will finish shortly, to take their first leg win since Cochin.
Telefonica Blue is closing in fast on Ericsson 3. The latest positions have her just two miles behind, with both boats within 10 miles of the finish line. This final hour or so could get very, very close.
19:00 GMT update
Light winds continue to haunt the leaders as they close in on Fan Pier and the finish line in Boston Harbor. Ericsson 4 is 10 miles out and making a shade over 5 knots in boat speed. Wind is varying between nearly dead calm and six or seven knots.
The situation is the same for the first four boats, while those chasing from behind are benefitting from more favourable wind strengths.
18:00 GMT update
Ericsson 4 is strongly positioned to pick up their first leg win since they held off Telefonica Blue to arrive first into Cochin. It's been a long time between drinks for the overall race leader.
At 18:00 GMT, Torben Grael and his men were 15 miles from the finish line, but the wind had dropped considerably. The team is making just over 5 knots through the water. Sistership Ericsson 3 is five miles behind but, worryingly for Torben and company, they are making better speed.
Telefonica Blue appears to have shaken free of PUMA for the time being, easing into a postion nearly 18 miles clear of the hometown favourite.
17:00 GMT update
Ericsson 4 continues to set the pace on the final sprint in towards the finish line off Fan Pier in Boston. It's sunny and unseasonably warm; one of the first breaks in the weather after a long winter, so all of Boston is outside today. There's a great buzz in the Race Village.
But race forecasters Matthew Sanders and Jennifer Lilly have a word of warning. A cold front is forecast to pass over the Boston Harbor area mid-afternoon, right near the finish time: "When the front crosses Boston this afternoon you can expect an ABRUPT shift to the Northeast and a brief period of 15-25 knots of wind with gusts of 25+ knots. Winds will then settle down to 10-15 knots with a trend to the East. The wind shift may be accompanied by a brief shower and a rumble of thunder is also possible."
15:30 GMT update
With the finish approaching, and the tension on board rising, personalities are being put to the test once again. On board Ericsson 3, injured skipper Magnus Olsson, never short of words, gives us his insight into the behaviour of his crew, in this video posted today.
15:15 GMT update
It's shaping up to be a terrific finish here in Boston. With the leading four boats all storming down the New England coast with the Whale exclusion zone to their left, land to the right, and the finish line now dead ahead.
Ericsson 4 has managed to eke out an slight lead from sistership Ericsson 3. Both teams have filed reports from on board today, with Guy Salter on the leading Ericsson 4 saying, "It's getting a little tense with four boats fighting hard for the three podium places - at this stage we lead them in but you can see your buffer reduce in moments in these fickle conditions - so it's a real nail biter onboard - just hope we can hang on - Lots of sailing left til the finish - we hope we don't make it too exciting for you! Sorry!"
The chasing Ericsson 3 has been hampered on this final push by not having the correct sail, according to navigator Aksel Magdahl. They ran it over a few days ago, and without it, haven't been able to keep pace with the leader.
"We sailed within throwing distance of Ericsson 4 today," he wrote. "Back to two boat testing, except this time testing ended early as they did a ‘horizon job' on us in a couple of hours. And PUMA and Telefonica Blue got inside our horizon from behind. We were missing our downwind sail that we sailed over a few days ago. I don't have words that can describe how disappointing that was. And still is; we may need to use it again before the finish. It does not make it easy for us to sail with a handicap against these strong teams."
Telefonica Blue and PUMA remain in the mix here as well, sailing neck and neck, both about 10 miles back of Ericsson 3.
Behind, there's a good fight going on for the minor placings as well. Delta Lloyd, Telefonica Black and Green Dragon are within 30 miles of each other, but over 100 miles back of the leading group.
We'll have full reports from the finish here in Boston, including all the dockside reaction. Stay tuned.
Dave Kneale/Volvo Ocean Race