Brad Van Liew Wins First Sprint Of Velux 5 Oceans 2010 On Le Pingouin

 American ocean racer Brad Van Liew today sailed into Cape Town  to claim victory in the first ocean sprint of the VELUX 5 OCEANS. The 42-year-old from Charleston, South Carolina, blasted across the finish line in Table Bay at 5.51pm local time (3.51pm UTC).

  While American Brad Van Liew has been revelling in his victory in the first ocean sprint of the

VELUX 5 OCEANS, the rest of the fleet have been making frustratingly slow progress towards Cape Town. Light airs have dogged Zbigniew ‘Gutek’ Gutkowski, Derek Hatfield and Chris Stanmore-Major as they battle their way to the finish line of the 7,400 nautical mile leg whichstarted in La Rochelle on October 17.

Frustration has swept through the fleet, now tantalisingly close to Cape Town. At the last position report at midday UTC second placed Gutek and his Eco 60 yacht
Operon Racing were just 560 nautical miles from the line but in the previous 24 hours covered just 121 nautical miles.

“Right now I have no wind,” the 36-year-old Pole said. “I am sailing very, very slowly.

During the last three days I made less distance than I would normally in 24 hours. The longer I sail the slower I go. I keep looking back for the boys, but I don’t think they will catch me because they won’t have any good wind either.”

He is right – Canadian Derek Hatfield was today experiencing equally frustrating conditions on Active House
Statistics from 12pm UTC position report:

Skipper; distance to finish (nm); distance covered in last 24 hours (nm); average speed in last

24 hours (kts)
Brad Van Liew: finished Nov 14, 28 days, 1 hour, 51 mins

Gutek: 562.3; 523.6; 121.8; 5.1

Derek Hatfield: 1,067.1; 207.2; 8.6