Volvo Ocean Race: Ericcson 3 Is First to Cape Horn

Ericsson 3, skippered by Magnus Olsson, rounded the legendary Cape Horn in first place.

In doing so, the Nordic crewed yacht gained maximum points at the scoring gate.
     
The next boat to round the Cape, which marks the border between the Pacific and the Atlantic oceans, will be Ericsson 4, captained by the Brazilian, Torben Grael.  Ericsson 4 was 36 miles eastern Ericsson 3 as they approached the Cape, but now the gap has now closed to 18 nautical miles.
   
“It looks like the Ericsson 3 boys have managed to hold us off, and fair play to them, they played a good move early after the last scoring gate, a move which none of the rest of us were brave enough to play,” said Ericsson 4’s Guy Salter.
   
Rounding the notorious Cape Horn, situated in one of the most remote areas in the world, is an achievement for every sailor that is never diminished, no matter how many times they do it.
    
“I can only imagine it must be similar to a marathon runner on arrival at the stadium, with only 400 meters left after his epic 26 miles, to look up and see the public awaiting him.  Except that, on that rock there is no public.” Said Spain’s Guillermo Altadill, who has rounded the Cape six times.

“And when you are lucky enough to get close enough, and on a clear day, you look up at that black rock with its lighthouse and all the legends that surround it, and it makes you think that whatever happens from that moment onwards, you have fulfilled your objective:  to arrive in one piece.”
    
Cape Horn lived up to its notorious reputation, producing 25 knot winds and substantial seas for Ericsson 3.  Full storm conditions are expected for Ericsson 4 when they round next in line.  Amazingly the crew is looking forward to it.
    
“There has been a chat about rights earned for passing the Horn:  earrings, feet on the table at meal times, and tattoos of tall ships under full sail,” said Salter in eagerly.
    
Next for Ericsson 3 is to turn north and keep the rest of the Volvo Ocean Race fleet at bay. They now face the long stretch of over 2,000 nautical miles to the finish of the leg in Rio. The skipper of the second place Ericsson 4, Torben Grael, is one best at tactical, close-quarter racing and is sure to press their sister ship for the rest of the leg.

Leg Five Day 32: 1300 GMT Volvo Ocean Race Positions
(boat name/country/skipper/nationality/distance to finish)

Ericsson 3 SWE (Magnus Olsson/SWE) DTF 2264 nm
Ericsson 4 SWE (Torben Grael/BRA) +18
PUMA Racing Team USA (Ken Read/USA) +119
Green Dragon IRL/CHI (Ian Walker/GBR) +210
Telefónica Blue ESP (Bouwe Bekking/NED) +746
Delta Lloyd IRL (Roberto Bermudez/ESP) DNS
Telefónica Black ESP (Fernando Echávarri/ESP) DNS
Team Russia RUS (Andreas Hanakamp/AUT) DNS