Race 5 Day 5: Derry~ Londonderry~ Doire take the lead in Race 5

It’s been all change at the top of the leaderboard in the last 24 hours as OneDLL has relinquished its lead in Race 5 to Sydney, leaving Derry~Londonderry~Doire to storm ahead of the fleet.

Former leader of the pack OneDLL, the front runner since race start in Albany, Western Australia has lost its lead for the first time in Race 5, leaving Derry~Londonderry~Doire to take the lead with Henri Lloyd chasing its heels in second place. With less than 20 miles separating the top three competitors and with almost 1,000 miles still to go to Sydney, the race is remains anyone’s for the taking.

Sean McCarter, skipper of Derry~Londonderry~Doire describes his teams focus and determination, to maintain its lead. “We've also been battling for every small gain we can get on OneDLL and Henri Lloyd not to mention the chasing pack that is hot on our heels.

“We have been busy moving down through the gears as the wind increased with reefs and headsail changes, all of which take time and energy. “

With the low front failing to deliver the 60 knots of wind the fleet expected, skipper Matt Mitchell, explains that the 45 knots of wind on board Mission Performance ‘barely tickled the crew’. It would seem after competing three legs of the Clipper Race, the gale Force 9 conditions undaunted the once amateur crew who left London on Sunday, 1 September.

With GREAT Britain and PSP Logistics making good gains on the rest of the fleet, thoughts of Race 6 and participating in the Rolex Sydney Hobart Race is already playing the mind of Australian skipper, Chris Hollis. Although seemingly out of the running for a podium position into his home port, both teams are doing all they can to train, discipline and coach the new crew ahead of competing in one of the world’s most prestigious regattas. 

Chris Hollis explained how hard his team have been working, “We have had quite a large influx of new crew for the leg, and with aspirations of glory in the Rolex Sydney Hobart Race, the training and slick crew will be the key. We are going back to basics, and working our way up.”

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