Dave Kneale / Volvo Ocean Race
Thursday 9 April 2009, 21:00 GMT
Ericsson 3's Richard Mason is expecting a boat speed battle when he returns to the water for the leg six race from Rio de Janeiro to Boston.
The Australian missed leg five because of a prolapsed disc in his back, but has now been recalled to the team in place of Arve Roaas.
It has meant postponing back surgery until the summer, but Mason is just relieved to be back onboard as his team chase successive leg wins.
"I'm happy to be joining the boys and getting back in there," he said. "It was a bit brutal being sat on the couch last time, not being able to fight the fight. Pretty keen to get back in the field and ready to go, follow up what the guys did in the last leg."
To do that Mason believes they will need good boat speed on the 4,900-nautical mile trip.
"This leg will have a bit of everything; maybe a little more straightforward than the last leg," he said. "There doesn't look like there'll be an enormous amount of passing lanes. There will be a lot of emphasis on getting out of here in good shape and hooking into the trade winds for a drag race up round Fernando de Noronha and probably two-thirds of the way up the Atlantic.
"Then it will be the Gulf Stream to negotiate and it will be quite tricky the last 1,000 miles, maybe some passing opportunities.
"There will be periods when it's just a drag race about boat speed and pulling an extra mile out here and there. We are respectful of the opposition but we feel pretty comfortable with our boat."