westernaustralia2011.com, one of the ten yachts competing in the Clipper
07-08 round the world yacht race, has been dismasted in the Pacific Ocean during the leg from
Qingdao to Hawaii.
At 0600 GMT on the 11th day of the 4,400-nautical mile leg, the
team representing Western Australia reported that their 81-foot (24.5
metres) mast had snapped approximately halfway down whilst sailing in
approximately 10-15 knots of wind under spinnaker.
There are no injuries onboard and the crew of 12, including the professional
skipper, has cut away the trailing rigging using hydraulic cutters to
prevent damage to the 68-foot yacht¹s hull. The yacht remains seaworthy and
a full assessment of the damage is underway.
Skipper Martin Silk said: “At 0600 GMT the starboard cap shroud lower fitting sheared on our rigging and our mast
folded at the mid point. Nobody was hit by the mast or rigging. We have now
detached the rigging and cleared the lines and although darkness has stopped
us from continuing to jury rig at this stage, we will continue at first
light.”
The yacht is currently approximately 700 nautical miles east of
Yokohama, Japan in the Pacific Ocean. Due to strong winds from the west, the
yacht will continue towards Hawaii under jury rig. The Clipper race team is
looking at options for refuelling en route and it is likely that
westernaustralia2011.com will head for the island of Midway approximately
1,400 miles from the current position.
Clipper race director Joff Bailey said: “westernaustralia2011.com's skipper,
Martin Silk, telephoned me early this morning soon after the incident. It
was obvious that the skipper and crew were very calm and dealing with the
situation in a professional and orderly fashion.
“The top half of the rig has
now been cut away to prevent any risk of further damage to the hull. The
crew are resting overnight before setting about the task of making a jury
rig and continuing sailing.
“It is a testament to the skipper and crew, and the Clipper training that
they have all received, that they have dealt with a very difficult situation
so well and so calmly. The race team is making plans to get
westernaustralia2011.com safely to port in the quickest and safest way and
get the team racing again as soon as possible.”
Clipper Ventures is in the process of sourcing a new mast section and
rigging for the yacht so that westernaustralia2011.com can resume racing as
soon as is practicably possible.
The reigning champions from Clipper 05-06 are currently lying in sixth place
overall after six of the 14 legs in the ten-month round the world race.
When the dismasting occurred the team was in ninth place with 2,648 miles to
run to Hawaii.
