Cape Breton Island Clipper crosses the Equator and moves into second place

The effects of the ITCZ (Inter Tropical Convergence Zone), or Doldrums, are now plain for all to see with two well defined groups – one that has managed to slip through to the other side with little or no difficulty and is now powering towards Rio de Janeiro; the other still trying to free itself from the area.

Jan Ridd, skipper of Cape Breton Island, reports his team crossed the Equator at 0045 UTC today. “We celebrated in style with lots of fancy dress. The sight of Luke (Dampier, a gap year student from the UK) in a micro skirt will stay with me for far too long. Hande (Bayik, a product brand manager from Turkey) also entertained us with some belly dancing in authentic costume and we had a fun, relaxed hour. Maybe a little too relaxed because towards the end we noticed the lights of another yacht, which we presume was a Clipper yacht. The yacht crossed our bow clearly hard on the wind, crossing less than a mile ahead.”

Could it have been Spirit of Australia? Skipper Brendan Hall says, “After a few thousand miles of solitude, out horizon was broken today by the sight of Jamaica Lighting Bolt’s sails. Shortly afterward, we could also see Cape Breton Island. I expect we will be seeing each other a lot over the next 1,500nm into Rio and, if our close finish with Hull & Humber in La Rochelle is anything to go by, the finish is going to be very exciting indeed.”

Tom Gruitt, a photographer for Hyde Sails and Cape Breton Island crew member, explains how the team managed to avoid the light winds usually associated with the Doldrums. "Our skipper, Jan Ridd, prepared us for the doldrums, saying that huge gains and losses could be made and that sailing just a few miles a day could see anyone gain the lead.

"In my line of work I get to talk to a lot of people from cruisers to professional round the world sailors, they have all said basically the same thing, the doldrums are tough and really test your patience. Imagine our surprise as Jan popped his head through the hatch saying he reckoned he had found a way through without sailing into a light wind area! He explained that we needed to catch the next weather system to get us across, so to the hour we got there, completed a really slick spinnaker drop and hoisted the Windseeker. An hour or so later the wind built and we hoisted the staysail and the Yankee 2.

"The relief on Jan's face was visible. Still sailing upwind, the breeze built on the nose to 27 knots...nothing like what any of the books have mentioned! About five boats have got through and the other half of the fleet are stuck. We all feel pretty lucky to have sailed through the Doldrums without dropping below 5 knots of boat speed, this will be story for all of us to tell back at the yacht club bar for a long time to come!"

Cape Breton Island – Nova Scotia’s Masterpiece, the only Canadian entry in the Clipper 09-10 Round the World Yacht Race, currently sits in second position behind leaders, Team Finland, and 12 nautical miles ahead of Jamaica Lightning Bolt and Spirit of Australia.