Race Progress Update 1
12/10/11 1000hrs BST
Lord Nelson Position
050° 16'N, 000° 43'W
She has passed 4 waypoints totalling 69.5 Nautical Miles.
Tenacious position
050° 01'N, 001° 02'W
She has passed 3 waypoints totalling 55.5 Nautical Miles.
Don’t forget, the above is a 'snapshot’ taken at a certain time. Miles are only awarded once a waypoint is passed, so expect the above numbers to sway in favour of either ship as and when reports come in.
I'm sure you are all wondering where the ships are going, so to answer the question; "Why are the ships going different directions if they are supposed to be racing each other?"
I'll agree it does look bit daft on the tracker this morning, with LORD NELSON heading North & TENACIOUS heading South, so let me explain.
The JST race differs from usual Tall Ships Races. The aim in this event is to cover the maximum distance in the time allowed (Race 1 to Cherbourg is 40 hours, Race 2 back to the Solent is 26 hours) rather than being first across the finish line.
Essentially there are number of waypoints this side of the English Channel and more the other side of the English Channel in the Baie de Seaine. Captains are free to choose their own route to sail between the waypoints, clocking up miles as they pass them. However, the miles clocked up will only be the straight line distance between the waypoints irrespective.
The challenge is one of a tactical appreciation of the tides, potential weather conditions and the capability of the vessel in order to cover as many miles around the course and cross the finish line by the time limit. This may mean a ship will anchor on times so the tide doesn’t set them off the wrong way, but as the tactics of each Captain will be a closely guarded secret, I only know what the ship is doing when I see it on the tracker!
Finally, to see & buy some great pics of the race start, check out Max's site here:
http://www.tallshipstock.com/2011JST.html
More updates soon
Andy
xxx