Race 2, Day 23: With 1,400 miles to go to the finishing line of Race 2 in the Clipper Round the World Yacht Race, the Derry entry is battling for first place.
The Derry Clipper is currently involved in a “Ocean Sprint” – a race within a race – but skipper Sean McCarter insists it will not detract from the main objective – crossing in finishing line in Rio de Janeiro ahead of the other 11 competitors.
The 12 yachts have completed 3,600 miles of the Atlantic Ocean crossing from Brest in France to Rio de Janeiro in Brazil.
Sean was full of praise for his crew at how they are coping with the pressures of ocean sailing.
He said: “After 3,600 miles of ocean racing, we’ve spent the last 24 hours match racing Henri Lloyd who have been within a few miles of us for most of this time. OneDLL are the next nearest boat after Henri Lloyd but have started their Ocean Sprint and simultaneously gone into Stealth Mode.
“We started our Ocean Sprint, another race within the race for a bonus of two points. Although we are pushing quite hard, we are not letting it drag us away from our main race strategy.”
Sean said the team were working extremely hard and had made several large sacrifices in order to make the Derry Clipper competitive for the 300-mile sprint.
Sean said: “I wasn’t sure what the reaction would be when I broached the subject during our daily briefing. It was inspiring to see their enthusiasm and determination after three weeks of intense racing, the will to dig deep and push even harder than before is incredible.”
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