Stormhoek Race to the Cape of Storms gets underway

Race 2: The Stormhoek Race to the Cape of Storms is underway off the Brazilian coast today on its 3,417 nautical mile voyage to Cape Town, South Africa.

Teams departed in glorious sunshine and 28’C temperatures today from the Rio 2016 Olympic sailing venue, Marina da Gloria. After parading out of Guanabara Bay and past the stunning backdrop of Sugarloaf Mountain, teams reached the picturesque beachfront at Copacabana where the Start Line was located, although moved around half a mile further offshore at the request of local authorities today.

Commenting from his start line position on the Committee Boat,Deputy Race Director Mark Light said: “The visibility was good for the race start with teams experiencing 22 knots True Wind Easterly (Force 5 to 6) with a moderate sea state and perfect blue skies.

“Derry~Londonderry~Doire crossed the start line at 1800 UTC (1500 local time) off Copacabana Beach first ahead of Visit Seattle and were closely followed by ClipperTelemed+.

"Two boats, Unicef and Da Nang-Viet Nam, both started On Course Side (OCS) meaning that they were the wrong side of the line during the final minute before race start. However teams exonerated themselves by coming back around either end of the line before re-crossing (race rules state teams are not allowed to cross the start line from the wrong side of the course and then re-cross the line to start racing) so no penalties apply.”

As at 1915 UTC, Mission Performance is in the lead with Visit Seattle and Derry~Londonderry~Doire just 0.2 miles behind. The rest of the fleet is within two nautical miles of each other at this early stage.

LMAX Exchange and Qingdao are anticipated to start racing on Sunday 11 October after repairs are completed following LMAX Exchange running aground while being delivered to another marina and Qingdao getting into difficulties while offering assistance.

The Clipper Race fleet is due into Cape Town, between 21-25 October and will be berthed at the Victoria and Alfred Waterfront until 31 October.

Click here to track the fleet’s progress in the race you can follow the Race Viewer.