Hull & Humber has won Race 9 of the Clipper 07-08 Round the World Yacht
Race, crossing the revised finish line at 2022 GMT on Tuesday 6 May. It is
the team¹s third individual stage victory of the 35,000-mile race which is
being contested by ten internationally-backed 68-foot yachts.
Skipper Danny Watson says, ³It was incredibly close racing from start to
finish. Gybing under spinnaker at night with Glasgow: Scotland with style
Clipper a quarter of a mile away on our beam was pretty exciting stuff!
Routing repositioning meant you dropped from first to mid-fleet within a
sched. We needed to have belief in our navigation which ultimately paid off.
The crew of Hull & Humber come first across the revised finish line at Gate Angel at the end of Race 9 of the Clipper 07-08 Round the World Yacht Race. photo onEdition³Keeping Hull & Humber moving in the lightest of airs required a tremendous
team effort from all but everyone brought something to the table. We have
belief and pride in abundance!²
Hull & Humber was one of a group of boats which also included New York,
Qingdao, Nova Scotia and Uniquely Singapore who have been matching each
other move for move in the bid for a podium position and the all-important
points to add to their overall tally and for much of the race from Santa
Cruz several of them have been within sight of each other.
The crew of Hull & Humber at the start of Race 8 from Hawaii to Santa Cruz in the Clipper 07-08 Round the World Yacht Race/photo Douglas Peebles on Edition
Crew member Natalie Booker, 28, from Beverley, East Yorkshire, joined the
crew in Santa Cruz for the last two legs of the race back to Liverpool. She
says, ³It was very frustrating trying to keep the boat going in light airs
but it turns quickly into perseverance to keep going forward. It gets
increasingly exciting when another Clipper boat is in view. It gives you
that extra energy and adrenaline to put in more and more effort to be able
to push harder!²
Qingdao was second across the finish line at 2313 GMT, followed nine minutes
later by New York in third place at 2322 GMT.
Marcus Cholerton-Brown, skipper of Qingdao said, ³All through the race we
kept having close quarters racing with various boats, the most memorable
being with Nova Scotia. They overtook us one morning before light winds
settled in, then we fought back all day and ended up eight nautical miles
ahead of them after some very slick sail evolutions from the crew.²
Skipper of the US entry, Duggie Gillespie, commented, ³It was very good
sailing for most of the race until we came across this light winds - that
was frustrating, very frustrating and a lottery at times. I said to the guys
that there would be winners and losers given this race finish amendment and
the time scale. Still, we are always pleased to be on the podium in this
competitive fleet. The team work on board reached new heights with the
continual spinnaker work. They did really well.²
The crew of Qingdao come second across the revised finish line at Gate Angel at the end of Race 9 of the Clipper 07-08 Round the World Yacht Race.
photo onEdition
The results are provisional until all the skippers have submitted their race
declarations for scrutiny by the race committee. If the results remain as
they are Hull & Humber¹s victory will take them into overall first position,
one and a half points ahead of second placed New York.
Clipper Race Director Joff Bailey says, ³As much as this has been a
thrilling race for us to watch unfold at home, with the variety of tactics
being played out and the really close racing, this has been a difficult one
ace for the crews taking part. There is great skill involved in keeping a
yacht moving in the kind of light airs they¹ve been experiencing and Danny,
Duggie and their teams have done very well.²
Because of the lighter than expected winds that the fleet has been
experiencing since leaving the Californian port, and the forecast for the
coming days, yesterday the Race Committee made the decision to shorten the
course for Race 9, in accordance with the Sailing Instructions. The finish
line is now off the coast of Mexico at OGate Angel¹, one of several
pre-determined gates included in the Race 9 course. The rest of the fleet is
expected to cross the finish line over the next 36-48 hours and will then
motor sail towards Panama, with the arrival of the first yachts anticipated
on 13 May.
Berths are now available for the Clipper 09-10 Round the World Yacht Race.
For more information on applying to become a crew member email
[email protected] call the Crew Recruitment Manager on +44
(0) 2392 526000. The Clipper Race is open to anyone over the age of 18 and
there is no upper age limit.
