Thursday 26 March 2009

VOR: PUMA Still at Sea and Longing for Rio

40 days at sea and counting


The crew of PUMA Ocean Racing discussing food rations, on leg 5 of the Volvo Ocean Race, from Qingdao to Rio de Janeiro. Image copyright Rick Deppe/PUMA Ocean Racing/Volvo Ocean Race.

by Kate Fairclough

The PUMA Ocean Racing team continues to make painfully slow progress towards Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, on their 40th day at sea on leg five of the Volvo Ocean Race 2008-09. The longest ever leg of the Volvo Ocean Race is becoming longer and longer as all of the teams in the fleet have encountered light winds off the coast of southern Brazil, agonizingly drawing out the leg’s finale. Still with 379 miles to go, PUMA is now expected to cross the finish line off Marina da Gloria in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, tomorrow afternoon (local), Thursday 26th March.

Forecasts for the next 24 hours look to offer some reprieve for the PUMA team, with increasing south easterly winds expected later today. The PUMA shore team and the team’s families are ready and waiting in Rio, with the sailors longing to see their loved ones, fill their stomachs with real food, take a shower and sleep in a real bed for the first time in 40 days. Whilst these dreams are in the back of their minds, the team are still racing at 150 percent, pushing their boat il mostro for every ounce of speed in the battle to overtake one of the two Ericsson teams placed just ahead.

PUMA Ocean Racing
Volvo Ocean Race

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