Review

Team Alvimedica first into pit-stop

The youngest crew gave themselves a massive chance of securing a premium finish into Gothenburg when they arrived at The Hague more than an hour and a half ahead of second-placed Dongfeng Race Team.

It was a complicated race from Lorient to The Hague and skipper Charlie Enright believed the turning point to be the numerous tidal gates they navigated through the English Channel. "Just a couple of miles can turn into a pretty big margin if you get it wrong,” he explained. “I think the timing of those tidal gates relative to which side you chose was pretty crucial."

The fleet split, with three boats heading north of the 130 mile exclusion zone towards the English coast while four, including Team Alvimedica, remained south, hugging the French coast – and ultimately the reward of a good head start for the Turkish-American team.

As the first boat to arrive, Team Alvimedica became the first boat to resume the leg at 10:00 UTC the following day, with the rest of the fleet restarting with the same delta with which they finished.

While in The Hague, the fleet had to remain in the water and nothing could be removed from or taken onboard the boat, including power; however, the crew were able to go ashore. Any repairs to the boat had to be done onboard by the crew who were racing on the current leg, only using spares and equipment already onboard for that leg.

Team Alvimedica was the first to resume Leg 9  at 10:00 UTC the following day, with the rest of the fleet restarting with the same delta with which they finished, chasing down the leaders to the finish of the leg and the race in Gothenburg.