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PRESS RELEASES from TEAM LEGATO HEADQUARTERS sent back during the 2001 race. The end of the journey and back in Bristol on the 13th May.
Read here from the regular bulletins sent via satellite to the control centre during the race. Follow the humour and the drama of this gruelling race.
More pictures - The Captain - Merchandise - The Team -
The Crew
Sailor

Dateline: Bristol May 13. 2001 Tony Bullimore and his TEAM LEGATO crew were given a heroes welcome when they returned to Bristol on Sunday, five months after leaving Tony's home port to compete in THE RACE - a 27,000 mile no-holds-barred race around the world.
A flotilla of little ships sailed down the River Avon early in the morning to greet Bristol's best known sailor as his giant 102ft catamaran slipped under the Avonmouth bridge with seemingly inches to spare between the motorway span and the tip of her 109ft high wing mast.
The scene was filmed by TV crews from the BBC, HTV, Sky and Now TV and broadcast live on BBC Radio Bristol and Eagle FM.
When they reached the Cumberland Basin, the entrance to Bristol Docks, hundreds of well-wishers lined the dock applauding, and as the road bridges opened one by one, many more were lining the docks cheering TEAM LEGATO past as she was led through the docks by the Cabot's replica ship 'Matthew'.
By the time they moored up at Lloyds Amphitheatre in the City Centre, the crowd had reached several thousand and all wanted either to press the hand of this 63 year old sailor or get his autograph.
"It's fantastic. What a welcome. These past 5 months have been quite a battle just to get round the world, but when you are greeted like this, it makes it all worth while." Said Tony.
"TEAM LEGATO will now undergo a refit in Bristol prior to moving to the South Coast this summer. "The boat has proved herself to be strong and very fast. We reached speeds of 38 knots in the Southern Ocean and we are now putting together final plans to go after some of the great sailing records." Bullimore disclosed. 		Press Releases Press Release Tony Bullimore & TEAM LEGATO set to return to Bristol on Sunday May 13
Dateline: May 1, 2001 Tony Bullimore and his giant catamaran TEAM LEGATO will return to his home port of Bristol on Sunday May 13. The 63 year old circumnavigator and his crew reached Marseilles at the finish of THE RACE, a 23,000 mile no-holds-barred race around the world, at Easter. The famous 102ft multihull is now being sailed back from the Mediterranean and will reach Avonmouth on the Sunday morning and lock in to Bristol Dock at lunch time. We will post a more complete time schedule for passing under the suspension bridge and entering the Docks early next week.

Team Boat

Dateline: 07:00 GMT 10 April 2001.
00:00 GMT TEAM LEGATO WARTA POLPHARMA
Position: 34 15'N 7 29'W 40 53'N 2 18'E
Speed at time of satellite poll: 7.0 knots 14.1 knots
Average speed for last hour: 8.3 knots 17.4 knots
Course: 77 Degrees 81 Degrees
Distance covered over 24 hours: 181 miles 196 miles
Distance between the two: 673 miles
TEAM LEGATO to pass through the Straits of Gibraltar at lunch time.
At 06:00 GMT today, Tony Bullimore, skipper of TEAM LEGATO reported that they were within 67 miles of the Straits and expected to pass Gibraltar at lunch time. "We are still banging our heads to windward just as we have been all the way since the Falkland Islands." He lamented. "We can only hope for a change for the better once we are inside the Mediterranean.
But there are friends at hand waiting to cheer the British skipper and his crew as they pass by. Nicholas & Mark Canepa from Tarik Shipping who were there to help the TEAM LEGATO boys when they pulled into Gib 95 days ago to replace a broken headboard, are waiting for a VHF call from the big cat to go out and photograph them as they sail by.
And another group of family and friends, together with press and TV crews from the BBC and ITV networks are preparing to descend on the finish at Marseilles on Thursday to welcome the crew back.
With TEAM LEGATO's close rivals on Warta Polpharma now within 100 miles of the Marseilles finish, we will update you again when both Bullimore and his Boys and the Poles make their landmarks later today.
Leading positions at 00:00 GMT today
1. Club Med Finished Marseilles 19:56GMT 3.03.01
2. Innovation Explorer Finished Marseilles 11:32GMT 6.03.01
3. Team Adventure Finished Marseilles 09:30GMT 24.03.01
4. Warta Polpharma 150 miles- Passed Gibraltar 07.03.01
5. Team Legato + 673 miles - Pit-stopped in Las Palmas 06.04.01
6. PlayStation - RETIRED 14.01 		Dateline: 17:00 GMT 11 April 2001.
15:00 GMT TEAM LEGATO
Position: 36 06'N 4 58'W
Speed at time of satellite poll: 2.0 knots
Average speed for last hour: 2.3 knots
Course: 344 Degrees
Distance covered over 24 hours: 83 miles
Distance to finish: 673 miles
*** TEAM LEGATO's arrival in Marseilles delayed due to light headwinds***
As Team Legato passed through the Gibraltar Straits yesterday evening, Warta Polpharma crossed the finish line in Marseilles. TEAM LEGATO is now faced with light headwinds, and making slow progress towards the finish, and are now expecting to arrive Friday evening.
"Many congratulations to Roman for finishing in Marseilles. He and his crew have shown great grit to overcome the hull damage and to finish the Race. We hope to do the same on Friday if the winds improve." Said Tony Bullimore this afternoon.
Leading positions at 15:00 GMT today
1. Club Med Finished Marseilles 19:56GMT 3.03.01
2. Innovation Explorer Finished Marseilles 11:32GMT 6.03.01
3. Team Adventure Finished Marseilles 09:30GMT 24.03.01
4. Warta Polpharma - Finished 10.04.01
5. Team Legato + 673 miles - Pit-stopped in Las Palmas 06.04.01
6. PlayStation - RETIRED 14.01
   
Dateline: 12:00 GMT 09 April 2001.
11:00 GMT TEAM LEGATO WARTA POLPHARMA
Position: 33 45'N 9 08'W 39 28'N 0 52'E
Speed at time of satellite poll: 11.0 knots 5.1 knots
Average speed for last hour: 11.7 knots 3.1 knots
Course: 336 Degrees 56 Degrees
Distance covered over 24 hours: 145 miles 221 miles
Distance between the two: 619 miles
TEAM LEGATO to pass through the Straits of Gibraltar early tomorrow.
Now within 150 miles of sighting the Rock of Gibraltar, Tony Bullimore predicts that he and his TEAM LEGATO crew will pass through the Straits into the Mediterranean early tomorrow on the final stage of their circumnavigation.
Having been beating non-stop since the Falklands, the Bullimore Boys can't wait for a change in wind direction. Any direction other than on the nose will do, but for the moment it looks like more of the same as they continue to beat up the North African coast.
Polish rival Warta Polpharma passed through the Straits at 20:30 GMT on Saturday 7th April and they are now slowed by a Mistral which has reduced their speed to just 5 knots. However, the time it takes them to complete the final 300 miles to Marseilles, will be a good indicator as to TEAM LEGATO's finish date. For the moment it looks like Thursday or Friday.
Leading positions at 11:00 GMT today
1. Club Med Finished Marseilles 19:56GMT 3.03.01
2. Innovation Explorer Finished Marseilles 11:32GMT 6.03.01
3. Team Adventure Finished Marseilles 09:30GMT 24.03.01
4. Warta Polpharma 305 miles- Passed Gibraltar 07.03.01
5. Team Legato + 619 miles - Pit-stopped in Las Palmas 06.04.01
6. PlayStation - RETIRED 14.01 		Dateline 07:00 GMT 04 April 2001.
07:00 GMT TEAM LEGATO WARTA POLPHARMA
Position: 25 50'N 17 39'W 36 42'N 26 49'W
Speed at time of satellite poll: 9.0 knots 13.3 knots
Average speed for last hour: 10.5 knots 13.2 knots
Course: 343 Degrees 21 Degrees
Distance covered over 24 hours: 197 miles 302 miles
Distance between the two: 153 miles
25 - 30 knot head winds delay TEAM LEGATO's arrival in Las Palmas
25-30 knot head winds are slowing their progress towards Las Palmas in the Canaries where they intend to make a pit-stop to replace the broken ball joint supporting the catamaran's wing mast.
At 09:00 GMT today, TEAM LEGATO was 200 miles from her destination, battling against 25-30 knot head winds. Team Legato has reported to have taken an extra reef in to protect the mast from being damaged further in the big seas. If TEAM LEGATO is able to continue at her present speed, they should arrive in Las Palmas about 07.00 GMT Thursday
Meanwhile in Las Palmas. The crane is on standby and Ron Hansford engineer from Carbo Spars arrives this evening with the replacement ball joint. TEAM LEGATO shore manager Barry Pickthall today said "Providing there is no damage to the mast, the replacement ball joint could be replaced in 4 hours. However it could take up to 12 hours if further repairs are needed."
The good news is that TEAM LEGATO have about a 1 day margin on Warta Polpharma, and will be able to continue at maximum speed once repairs are made.
This will make for an extremely exciting dash to the finish, with both boats predicted to arrive in Marseilles on Wednesday 11th April
Leading positions at 07:00 GMT today
1. Club Med Finished Marseilles 19:56GMT 3.03.01
2. Innovation Explorer Finished Marseilles 11:32GMT 6.03.01
3. Team Adventure Finished Marseilles 09:30GMT 24.03.01
4. Team Legato +1,577miles - Crossed Equator 25.03.01
5. Warta Polpharma +153 miles - Crossed Equator 25.03.01
6. PlayStation - RETIRED 14.01
   
Dateline 07:00 GMT 03 April 2001.
07:00 GMT TEAM LEGATO WARTA POLPHARMA
Position: 25 00'N 20 39'W 35 16'N 31 31'W
Speed at time of satellite poll: 8.0 knots 13.3 knots
Average speed for last hour: 10.2 knots 15.1 knots
Course: 78 Degrees 89 Degrees
Distance covered over 24 hours: 233 miles 303 miles
Distance between the two: 244 miles
Head winds delay TEAM LEGATO's arrival in Las Palmas tomorrow Both Poles and British predict a close finish off Marseilles on April 11
Strong head winds from the North East - exactly the way that Tony Bullimore and his crew need to go - are slowing their progress towards Las Palmas in the Canaries where they intend to make a pit-stop to replace the broken ball joint supporting the catamaran's wing mast.
At 06:00 GMT today, TEAM LEGATO was 300 miles from her destination, battling against 25knot head winds. "When is this bad luck going to end?" asked Bullimore today. "We've had the winds on the nose for the best part of the last 5,000 miles. We are pretty fed up with it."
The good news is that the wing mast remains safely chocked in place with plywood cut from floorboards and continues to hold up well to the pounding. The bad news, according to St James's Yachting, Team Legato's weather routers, is that these conditions are likely to continue all the way to Gran Canaria and beyond. The track of north-easterly winds extends some two hundred miles either side of their course and some thousand miles ahead! This is caused by a High pressure system centered at 32N 28W at 1030mb which they forecast will continue to dominate the weather for at least the next four days, generating fresh to strong north-easterly winds all the way down the NW African coast, strengthening to 30 knots between the Canaries and the coast.
"We just have to keep pointing as high as possible." Said Tony. "We would hope to get to Las Palmas by Wednesday afternoon or evening."
Then it will be a race against time to lift the mast out, repair any damage and replace the ball joint and plate on the main beam which will arrive from Carbospars in Palma also on Wednesday. "If all goes well, we expect to get them back out to sea within 8-12 hours" says Team Manager Barry Pickthall who flies down to Las Palmas today. "Then they should be able to reach Gibraltar by Sunday and finish in Marseilles on Tuesday or Wednesday 10-11 April." He predicts.
The Poles on Warta Polpharma who are currently to the north west of TEAM LEGATO, picked up more favourable winds yesterday afternoon. They are now sailing at 19 knots and cutting into Bullimore's lead. Skipper Roman Paszke who also predicts that they will pass through Gibraltar on Sunday and reach Marseilles on Wednesday week, sent the TEAM LEGATO crew this conciliatory E-mail.
"Dear Tony and your guys,
Honestly - we are very sorry. We had hoped that it would be an interesting race without any more breakdowns but life is writing the scenarios for THIS RACE. I hope you will manage to repair everything fast and we will cross the finish line close to each other.
>>From a global perspective - there are only few miles left. Good luck for the rest of the race, take fresh food and some good wine. We see you soon in Marseilles.
Regards
Roman, Dariuisz and all our crew"
Leading positions at 07:00 GMT today
1. Club Med Finished Marseilles 19:56GMT 3.03.01
2. Innovation Explorer Finished Marseilles 11:32GMT 6.03.01
3. Team Adventure Finished Marseilles 09:30GMT 24.03.01
4. Team Legato +1,718 miles - Crossed Equator 25.03.01
5. Warta Polpharma +244 miles - Crossed Equator 25.03.01
6. PlayStation - RETIRED 14.01.01 		Dateline 07:30 GMT 30March 2001.
04:30 GMT TEAM LEGATO WARTA POLPHARMA
Position: 18 04'N 14 28'W 22 52'N 40 28'W
Speed at time of satellite poll: 9.5 knots 18.6 knots
Average speed for last hour: 7.8 knots 10.6 knots
Course: 013 Degrees 004 Degrees
Distance covered over 24 hours: 271 miles 378 miles
Distance between the two: 268 miles
Target distance to finish on Sat 7th April: 280 miles per day
Target distance to finish on Sun 8th April: 260 miles per day
TEAM LEGATO gains a further 70 miles on Polish rivals overnight
It is all down to VMG (Velocity Made Good).
Tony Bullimore and his TEAM LEGATO crew may have sailed less miles over the past 24 hours than their Polish rivals on Warta Polpharma, but they have been sailing at a far better angle to the wind, and as a result, have finished up more an 70 miles closer to the Marseilles finish line.
However, with the Azores High sitting right over Gibraltar at present, Tony and Co are well aware that this lead could evaporate very quickly once they close on the Mediterranean.
Tony writes: "At present we are pushing along into the North East Trades. It would be great to have the wind free us off by around 30 / 40 degrees, our speed would accelerate to around 20 knots, but that is just wishful thinking.
We have pulled out a lead over the Polish boat of around 270 miles, which is all good stuff and a credit to the crew. However, we must continue to push all the way, and be careful. The winds looks far less certain closer to Gib' and we could lose this lead in a matter of hours. This race within THE RACE could yet finish up too close to call.
At the moment, we are sailing with a full main and our Solent jib. We are going at a reasonable speed to windward and the boat feels good. There is no question that the extra 10ft that we added to TEAM LEGATO's bows before this race, help her to cut through the water better and certainly stop them from "digging in" when we are surfing at 25 / 30 knots down wind.
After the cold, freezing conditions in the Southern Ocean, it's great to now get on the wheel in shorts and my Racing Top. Although we are almost down to dehydrated food only, Freddy managed to find some Pasta and cooked us a spaghetti special with fresh baked bread ( compliments of Mike Gettinger ).
With such a nice meal and some great sailing under a clear blanket of stars with just a little moonlight to round it all off, l felt elated. It is all really beginning to be worth while.
Leading positions at 00:00 GMT today
1. Club Med Finished Marseilles 19:56GMT 3.03.01
2. Innovation Explorer Finished Marseilles 11:32GMT 6.03.01
3. Team Adventure Finished Marseilles 09:30GMT 24.03.01
4. Team Legato +2,425miles - Crossed Equator 25.03.01
5. Warta Polpharma +268 miles - Crossed Equator 25.03.01
6. PlayStation - RETIRED 14.01.01
   
Dateline 09:00 GMT 28March 2001.
07:00 GMT TEAM LEGATO WARTA POLPHARMA
Position: 09 48'N 32 13'W 12 25'N; 39 12'W
Speed at time of satellite poll: 10.3 knots 9.4 knots
Average speed for last hour: 11.2 knots 10.5 knots
Course: 342 Degrees 004 Degrees
Distance covered over 24 hours: 273 miles 291 miles
Distance between the two: 161 miles
Target distance to finish on Sat 7th April: 280 miles per day
Target distance to finish on Sun 8th April: 260 miles per day
TEAM LEGATO extended her lead overnight but now Warta Polpharma is closing again.
With both crews now slugging it out to windward against the NE Trades, the name of the game on TEAM LEGATO and Warta Polpharma is to point as high as possible without losing too much speed.
At 07:00 today, the two crews were closely matched in terms of speed, but Warta Polpharma was heading 22 degrees higher. This is now helping the Poles to eat into TEAM LEGATO's lead which had extended to 170 miles at one point yesterday. Now it is down to 160 miles and will continue to close as long as Warta Polpharma can maintain the better heading.
It is all to do with velocity made good (VMG). For much of the past 24 hours, Tony Bullimore and his crew had been pointing higher than the Poles and at 03:00 today, had been 33 miles closer to the Marseilles finish line than they were yesterday, despite sailing 18 less miles than their Polish rivals. Now the situation is reversed.
"It's very close." Said Tony Bullimore. "I suspect that the Poles are enjoying a move favourable wind angle which is helping them to point higher. We are getting the best we can out of TEAM LEGATO in terms of velocity made good. We could speed up by heading off a few degrees but that would take our heading further away from Gibraltar. At the moment we are sailing on our optimum course."
"Conditions onboard are quite pleasant. It's warm, sunny and though we are beating to windward, the seas are not that rough and TEAM LEGATO is handling them well. The winds are around 14 knots True, 20 knots apparent and we are making 10-12knots."
Leading positions at 07:00 GMT today
1. Club Med Finished Marseilles 19:56GMT 3.03.01
2. Innovation Explorer Finished Marseilles 11:32GMT 6.03.01
3. Team Adventure Finished Marseilles 09:30GMT 24.03.01
4. Team Legato +2,843miles - Crossed Equator 25.03.01
5. Warta Polpharma +160 miles - Crossed Equator 25.03.01
6. PlayStation - RETIRED 14.01.01

Dateline 10:00 GMT 27March 2001.
07:00 GMT TEAM LEGATO WARTA POLPHARMA
Position: 05 25'N 30 58'W 7 46'N; 37 47'W
Speed at time of satellite poll: 11.0 knots 11.3 knots
Average speed for last hour: 11.8 knots 11.5 knots
Course: 341 Degrees 334 Degrees
Distance covered over 24 hours: 249 miles 282 miles
Distance between the two: 137 miles
TEAM LEGATO through the Doldrums without a hitch
With both Warta Polpharma and TEAM LEGATO now through the Doldrums without a hitch, both crews face a drag race into the NE Trades for the next 4-5 days before the winds can be expected to veer from 045 to 070 degrees. Although Tony Bullimore and his crew are closer to the Marseilles finish line by some 137 miles, the British boat was 141 miles further South than her Polish rival at the 07:00 position report today. Bullimore's advantage is that he and his crew are currently 409 miles further East.
The concern for both crews is the position of the Azores High which is drifting slowly east towards Gibraltar. Unless it moves back westwards within the next 2-3 days, this will force both boats to beat all the way up to the Mediterranean into increasingly light airs. That could concertina any gap between the two and make for a very close finish around the 7-8th April.
Leading positions at 07:00 GMT today
1. Club Med Finished Marseilles 19:56GMT 3.03.01
2. Innovation Explorer Finished Marseilles 11:32GMT 6.03.01
3. Team Adventure Finished Marseilles 09:30GMT 24.03.01
4. Team Legato +3,012 miles - Crossed Equator 25.03.01
5. Warta Polpharma +137 miles - Crossed Equator 25.03.01
6. PlayStation - RETIRED 14.01.01 		Dateline 09:30 GMT 29March 2001.
07:00 GMT TEAM LEGATO WARTA POLPHARMA
Position: 14 19'N 31 56'W 16 53'N 39 17'W
Speed at time of satellite poll: 14.0 knots 12.1 knots
Average speed for last hour: 11.7 knots 13.4 knots
Course: 014 Degrees 352 Degrees
Distance covered over 24 hours: 277 miles 268 miles
Distance between the two: 209.5 miles
Target distance to finish on Sat 7th April: 280 miles per day
Target distance to finish on Sun 8th April: 260 miles per day
TEAM LEGATO gains 48 miles on Polish rivals overnight
As the winds swing round to the ENE to favour TEAM LEGATO in their windward race against Warta Polpharma to the finish of THE RACE in Marseilles,. Paul Larson, TEAM LEGATO's watch leader reflects on a case of so near and yet so far:
"After tens of thousands of miles between the hulls, the mere few thousand miles remaining to the finish are a case of so near and yet so far. The majority of these miles will be upwind and therefore slow and indirect. In the sleigh-ride conditions down south we could cover the distance to Marseilles in less than a week. We consider this each time we look at the symbol of our boat making its painfully slow progress across the computer-generated map of the North Atlantic.
All the jokes have been told, all the stories heard.... Twice if not more. And as far as little surprises springing from the galley, well, the less said the better!
A few days ago we made a relatively painless crossing of the Equator and Doldrums, albeit with a few windless periods. I remember one spooky watch when we had the sensation of being devoured by a huge low black cloud. Inside it was jet black, windless and almost silent. Despite being so far from anywhere or anything, the sensation of being enclosed was eerie. I labeled it in my diary as 'the Jonah complex'.
Our weather routers forewarned us of the long bash to windward that awaited us above 2 degrees north and sure enough the wind swung as if on cue. We've been slogging away ever since.
In reality, we had resigned ourselves some while ago to the fact that unless something pretty unfortunate or out of the ordinary happened, the Polish crew on Warta Polpharma were out of reach. On the other hand we have done enough yacht racing between us to know that such things do occur and that it always pays to push to the very end. That and the fact that we simply want to get back to loved ones and some semblance of comfort ASAP.
It must have been heartbreaking for Romain Paszke and his Polish crew to have got so close to the finish after struggling so hard to maintain the purity of a non-stop circumnavigation. Twice they have resisted stepping ashore and opted to push on. But the problems of a split in their port hull forced them to turn about and head for Brazil. We're familiar with the process of rebuilding morale and getting back on with the job at hand. It's great that they could get fixed up and back in The RACE both for them and us, as it renews our vigor as well.
The Race is now very much an uphill climb to Gibraltar currently some two thousand miles distant. The fact that the wind is blowing almost directly from our destination means that there are a lot more tactics involved in this leg than just boatspeed and distance. We cannot sail directly to Gibraltar but in fact have to tack (zigzag) our way upwind to get there. The closer we sail to the wind and therefore our course, the fewer miles we have to travel but we go slower. If we drop away from the wind we catch more in the sails, go faster but have to sail further. The ultimate course is a compromise between distance, speed and direction. Its end product is termed VMG, velocity-made-good. All sorts of other factors affect VMG - the most important probably being sea-state.
Although we have a 209-mile advantage over the Poles in terms of distance to the finish yesterday, we place more value in our upwind position. We are trying our hardest to consolidate this by trying to place Team Legato between Warta- Polpharma and Gibraltar. This would allow us to block them whatever the circumstance. The situation as it stands has us sitting firmly on their hip, which is pretty good. But.... It's not perfect, since it leaves them a small window should conditions change. If the wind veers more to the East as it has done overnight, it favours us; if it moves towards the North, it favours them. It is forecast for the next couple of days to favour us. The weather North of the Tradewinds is less certain at this stage so we have to cross that bridge when it comes.
Although we have been hard at it for a long time now, we are very much aware of the opportunity afforded us by the Polish misfortunes and are doing our utmost not to let it slip. I'm sure that the Poles are equally desperate to reclaim their position. We wait, watch and analyze every position update. Every change in wind direction is considered and commented on. The mood aboard changes accordingly. When we lose a bit of ground we get a host of e-mails demanding answers as to why. Secretly we pray to a god to give us arms long enough to strangle the bastards who send them!!!
Nothing is certain and the tides of good fortune sweep both ways. One thing for sure is that neither of us will be admitting defeat until the very end."
Paul Larsen - Team Legato...
Leading positions at 07:00 GMT today
1. Club Med Finished Marseilles 19:56GMT 3.03.01
2. Innovation Explorer Finished Marseilles 11:32GMT 6.03.01
3. Team Adventure Finished Marseilles 09:30GMT 24.03.01
4. Team Legato +2,620miles - Crossed Equator 25.03.01
5. Warta Polpharma +209 miles - Crossed Equator 25.03.01
6. PlayStation - RETIRED 14.01.01
   
Dateline 09:30 GMT 26March 2001.
07:00 GMT TEAM LEGATO WARTA POLPHARMA
Position: 01 29'N 29 38'W 3 10'N; 36 06'W
Speed at time of satellite poll: 9.0 knots 8.4 knots
Average speed for last hour: 9.7 knots 10.7 knots
Course: 356 Degrees 08 Degrees
Distance covered over 24 hours: 273 miles 253 miles
Distance between the two: 119 miles
***07:00 UPDATE***
TEAM LEGATO and WARTA POLPHARMA go head-to-head
Romain Paszke and his Polish crew on Warta Polpharma set out from Fortalenza, Brazil at 15:30 Saturday afternoon to re-join THE RACE and a head-to-head battle against TEAM LEGATO, which crossed the Equator at 21:45 on Sunday.
At 03:00 today, Bullimore and his Boys had a 119 mile advantage in terms of distance to Marseilles, but are 101 miles south of Warta Polpharma's latitude and have still to cross through the Doldrums which could slow them today.
The disadvantage for the Poles is that they are 388 miles to the west of TEAM LEGATO and facing head winds.
"In effect, we are neck-and-neck" said Tony early today. "This could be a really close race all the way across the Atlantic and I can see us finishing in Marseilles on 7th or 8th April almost together."
Another leveler is the fact that the Poles have had to leave two of their number ashore after Richard Block and Piotr Cichocki failed medical tests. The TEAM LEGATO crew have been four short since setting out from Wellington, New Zealand a month ago.
According to St James's Yachting, TEAM LEGATO's weather routers, the Doldrums, that area of calms that divide the north and south trade wind belts and stretch right across the Equator, are currently between 01 and 01:30'N but it will not be until they reach 04 N that Bullimore & Co can expect the 15-17 knot NE Trades to kick in properly. Their only advantage is that TEAM LEGATO currently holds a 300 mile upwind advantage. .
Leading positions at 07:00 GMT today
1. Club Med Finished Marseilles 19:56GMT 3.03.01
2. Innovation Explorer Finished Marseilles 11:32GMT 6.03.01
3. Team Adventure Finished Marseilles 09:30GMT 24.03.01
4. Team Legato +3,176 miles - Crossed Equator 25.03.01
5. Warta Polpharma +119 miles - Left Fortalenza 24.03.01
6. PlayStation - RETIRED 14.01.01
Barry Pickthall - TEAM LEGATO RACE OFFICE
Hi;
We have been looking into return flights from London to Marseilles, hotel accomodation and a boat to take everyone out to welcome the TEAM LEGATO and Warta Polpharma crews. over the weekend 7/8 April.
If the two crews can average 260 miles a day, they will arrive on Saturday. If they average 240 miles a day, it will be Sunday. We will keep a daily average going on the news report from tomorrow so that you can monitor the situation.
British Airways run the following flights. The cost (with a Saturday overnight stay) is £198.00 from Trailfinders (0207 937 1234)
Friday 6th April from Gatwick: 09:45 19:00 Saturday out from Gatwick 09:45 10:55 16:00 19:00 Sunday back to Gatwick 07:10 14:00 15:15 19:10 Monday back to Gatwick 07:10 13:35 20:00
I have arranged hotel accomodation for the crew and their partners at the Alize Hotel (+33 491336697) which is right opposite the dock. The cost is 400ff (40 Pounds) per room per night
I am going down to Marseilles this coming weekend and can make bookings for others rooms then in more prestigious hotels if required.
What I do need to know ASAP is who is planning to come down because I need to reserve the boats to take you out.
We look forward to hearing from you - It is turning into quite a race!
These next 10-12 days look as they they could provide some real excitement as Tony & Co race the Poles on Warta Polpharma back to Marseilles.
We are looking forward to a finish over the weekend of 7-8 April.
If Team Adventure's arrival at 09:30 on Saturday morning is anything to go by, then we can expect the French to put on quite a spectacle. More than 100,000 spectators lined the harbour and parapets as Cam Lewis and his crew came storming over the horizon, the the numbers continued to throng the harbour all over the weekend.
I am looking to make arrangements for welcoming Tony + Crew (and the Poles) back and it would be very helpful if you can let us know ASAP if you plan to come down to Marseilles.
Once I have an idea of numbers, it may be possible to arrange a bulk discount on fares and hotel accomodation.
Regards
Barry Pickthall - TEAM LEGATO RACE OFFICE
   
Dateline 08:00 GMT 23March 2001.
07:00 GMT TEAM LEGATO WARTA POLPHARMA
Position: 11 55'S 35 41'W 3 43'S; 38 31'W
Speed at time of satellite poll: 1.3 knots In Fortalenza Brazil for repairs
Average speed for last hour: 2.3 knots 0.0 knots
Course: 355 Degrees -
Distance covered over 24 hours: 266 miles -
Distance between the two: +283 miles
Warta Polpharma free to rejoin The RACE tonight.
Romain Paszke and his Polish crew are free to re-join the RACE after 23:50 GMT tonight, once their 48 hour penalty stop in Fortalenza, Brazil to repair the split in the port hull of their catamaran is expunged.
Tony Bullimore and his crew are presently becalmed 700 miles South the Equator, but since the Poles face a similar distance to windward to get away from the Brazilian coast, the prospect is open for the two crews to rendezvous at a set way point, then match race back across the Atlantic.
According to St James's Yachting, TEAM LEGATO's weather routers, the reason why the winds are not stronger is that the St Helena High pressures system which drives the Trade Winds, has moved from its usual position in the middle of the Atlantic to a point south east of Cape Town.
Yet Bullimore and Co still managed to cover 266 miles overnight - 9 more than the previous 24 hours, and in terms of distance to the finish, are now within 283 miles of the Polish boat.
All the ingredients are there for an exciting race within a race all the way back to Marseilles.
Leading positions at 07:00 GMT today
1. Club Med Finished Marseilles 19:56GMT 3.03.01
2. Innovation Explorer Finished Marseilles 11:32GMT 6.03.01
3. Team Adventure +258miles - Passed Gibralter 21.03.01
4. Warta Polpharma +3,461 miles - Cape Horn 02.03.01
5. Team Legato +283 miles - Cape Horn 11.03.01
6. PlayStation - RETIRED 14.01.01 		Dateline 08:00 GMT 22March 2001.
07:00 GMT TEAM LEGATO WARTA POLPHARMA
Position: 16 04'S 35 21'W 3 43'S; 38 31'W
Speed at time of satellite poll: 14.0 knots In port for repairs
Average speed for last hour: 8.0 knots 0.0 knots
Course: 25 Degrees -
Distance covered over 24 hours: 257 miles
Distance between the two: +545 miles
TEAM LEGATO and WARTA POLPHARMA renew their battle
The news that TEAM LEGATO's Polish rivals on Warta Polpharma are to rejoin the RACE once repairs have been completed to their catamaran has been greeted with delight by Tony Bullimore and his crew.
"If they can repair the split in their port bow within the next 24-48 hours, we will have a real race on our hands all the way back to Marseilles." Said Tony this morning on news that the Poles had reached the Brazilian port of Fortalenza overnight.
At their present speed, Bullimore and his Boys will reach same latitude as Warta Polpharma over the Weekend just as the Poles re-join the fray. "If their estimates for the repair time is correct, then we are going to be very close. Then it will be a straight sprint for the finish back in Marseilles." The British skipper added with enthusiasm.
By all accounts, the Poles also relish the prospect of a close race back across the Atlantic, but can either boat complete the course within the 30 day deadline, or will the RACE organisers now extend the period beyond the April 2 cut-off for finishers? Both crews would welcome that concession - and judging by a poll conducted by the website NOW.COM, 82% of RACE followers want to see it happen too.!
Leading positions at 07:00 GMT today
1. Club Med Finished Marseilles 19:56GMT 3.03.01
2. Innovation Explorer Finished Marseilles 11:32GMT 6.03.01
3. Team Adventure +520 miles - Passed Gibralter 21.03.01
4. Warta Polpharma +3,200 miles - Cape Horn 02.03.01
5. Team Legato +3,745 miles - Cape Horn 11.03.01
6. PlayStation - RETIRED 14.01.01
   
Dateline 08:00 GMT 21 March 2001.
07:00 GMT TEAM LEGATO
Position: 21 41'S 36 32'W
Speed at time of satellite poll: 14.4 knots
Average speed for last hour: 12.3knots
Course: 347 Degrees
Distance covered over 24 hours: 239 miles
Target 24 hour distance: 368 miles.

With the Doldrums 2-3 days away from their current position, Tony Bullimore and his weather gurus at St James's Yachting are casting their eyes ahead to see what the North Atlantic has to offer The Doldrums, that narrow band of calms lying between the South and North trade wind belts, is currently at 2 Degrees South and luckily for the TEAM LEGATO crew, very narrow. With luck, they should enjoy a smooth transition from the ESE Trades to the ENE winds north of the Equator, which could help their chances of beating the April 2 finish deadline.
St James's Yachting forecast that the trade winds will continue at between 10 and 15 knots all the way up to the Doldrums. At present they aim to make a crossing of the Equator at around 030W , though this could change over the next 2-3 days if the weather patterns move significantly.
The tough bit is then maintaining speed whilst staying as close to a Northerly course as possible in the fresh NE to ENE trade winds. The post-Doldrums leg will take the boat North by about 1200 to 1400 miles. Any progress to the Northeast is a bonus but will be difficult as the trade winds blow fairly consistently from the NE to ENE at 15 knots.
The Azores High, the next hurdle, looks like becoming well established at 30N 035W which is not ideal but at least it maintains fairly fresh NE trade winds. According to the guys at St James's, there are two possible scenarios. The best one would have the Azores High intensify for a couple of days before TEAM LEGATO gets there, then collapses rapidly to allow another low to push underneath it and cross the Atlantic. Bullimore and Co can then hook up with the low, turn NE towards Gibraltar, and keep motoring. The worst scenario would be if the High collapses slowly and moves to the Southeast, effectively blocking progress to the NE with a large area of slack winds. In this situation the crew will be forced to go the long way round the top of the High - and scupper any hopes of getting to Marseilles within the deadline.
So there we have it. The Bullimore Boys are pushing the boat as hard as possible, but in the end, it will be the wind gods that decide their fate in this RACE.
Leading positions at 07:00 GMT today
1. Club Med Finished Marseilles 19:56GMT 3.03.01
2. Innovation Explorer Finished Marseilles 11:32GMT 6.03.01
3. Team Adventure +859 miles - Crossed Equator 13.03.01
4. Team Legato +3,742 miles - Cape Horn 11.03.01
5. Warta Polpharma RETIRED 19.03.01
6. PlayStation - RETIRED 14.01.01 		Dateline 08:00 GMT 20 March 2001.
07:00 GMT TEAM LEGATO
Position: 24 20'S 34 17'W
Speed at time of satellite poll: 11.0 knots
Average speed for last hour: 14.0 knots
Course: 309 Degrees
Distance covered over 24 hours: 241 miles
Target 24 hour distance: 348 miles.

Now down to the wind gods
With the demise of the Poles on Warta Polpharma on Monday following their retirement from the RACE, the Race for Tony Bullimore and his TEAM LEGATO crew is now strictly against the clock.
With 4,697 miles still to cover in the 13.5 days that remain before the clock stops in Marseilles at 19:56 on April 2, the crew are desperate to find the stronger trade winds that will carry them up to the Equator. St James's Yachting, TEAM LEGATO's weather routers are hopeful that Tony & Co will experience 15-18knot winds from the South East on tomorrow which will then carry them at high speed right up to the Doldrums currently some 1,600 miles to the north.
"If we get these winds soon, and can pass through the Doldrums without too much of a hold-up in the calms, then we have a chance to beat the time limit." Said Tony today. "It's all down to what the wind gods give us this week."
Leading positions at 07:00 GMT today
1. Club Med Finished Marseilles 19:56GMT 3.03.01
2. Innovation Explorer Finished Marseilles 11:32GMT 6.03.01
3. Team Adventure +1,196 miles - Crossed Equator 13.03.01
4. Team Legato +3,501 miles - Cape Horn 11.03.01
5. Warta Polpharma RETIRED 19.03.01
6. PlayStation - RETIRED 14.01.01
   
Dateline 08:00 GMT 19 March 2001.
07:00 GMT TEAM LEGATO WARTA POLPHARMA
Position: 26 46'S 36 11'W 6 20'N; 31 50'W
Speed at time of satellite poll: 12.4 knots 6.0 knots
Average speed for last hour: 14.0 knots 6.7 knots
Course: 66 Degrees Stationary
Distance covered over 24 hours: 164 miles 195 miles
Distance between the two: +1,905 miles
TL Target 24 hour distance: 320 miles.
Mileage in hand since 4th March: - 350 miles

Poles out - TEAM LEGATO moves up to 4th.
"It's very bad luck. We really feel for those guys. We still hoped to catch up with the Poles before the finish and had taken the best part of a thousand miles out of their lead during the past 2 weeks, but this is not the way we wanted to beat them." So said Tony Bullimore, TEAM LEGATO's skipper when he heard the news this morning that the Warta Polpharma crew had broken their boat and were limping towards Brazil.
According to crewman Dariusz Drapella, the Polish catamaran suffered damage to her port bow at 20.00 GMT on Sunday and inspection showed a large crack had developed around the port bow, some 2 metres forward of the main beam. The crew were not sure if they hit something in the water, or the damage had culminated from the fierce head seas that they had encountered.
The good news is that the Poles are safe and have managed a make-shift repair using carbon and epoxy resin carried by all these boats for just such an emergency. They are now heading for Fort Alexa, Brazil some 700 miles to the South West.
The forced retirement of Warta Polpharma lifts TEAM LEGATO up to 4th place in the standings and a target of 330 miles a day to beat the April 2 deadline for finishing in Marseilles. After two days of light winds, Tony Bullimore reported that they have now hit the Trade Winds and are moving forward again at 17-20knots. "We are back up to speed and should carry these winds all the way up to the Equator. We are still hopeful of finishing within the time limit and are pushing the boat hard." He confirmed this afternoon.
Leading positions at 11:00 GMT today
1. Club Med Finished Marseilles 19:56GMT 3.03.01
2. Innovation Explorer Finished Marseilles 11:32GMT 6.03.01
3. Team Adventure +1,699 miles - Crossed Equator 13.03.01
4. Team Legato +3,205 miles - Cape Horn 11.03.01
5. Warta Polpharma RETIRED 19.03.01
6. PlayStation - RETIRED 14.01.01 		Dateline 08:00 GMT 15March 2001.
07:00 GMT TEAM LEGATO WARTA POLPHARMA
Position: 41 01'S 49 54'W 03 24'S; 30 22'W
Speed at time of satellite poll: 11.4 knots 10.3 knots
Average speed for last hour: 8.6 knots 10.8 knots
Course: 39 Degrees 37 Degrees
Distance covered over 24 hours: 216 miles 424 miles
Distance between the two: +2,234 miles
TL Target 24 hour distance: 320 miles.
Mileage in hand since 4th March: +144 miles

Nail-biting time for the next 2 days.
After clocking up 322 miles on Monday/Tuesday, Tony Bullimore and his TEAM LEGATO crew have found their progress blocked by a High pressure system off the River Plate estuary that is extending its influence almost 1,000 miles out into the Atlantic. (See the latest weather maps on www.teamlegato.com)
A spokesman at St James's Yachting, Team Legato's weather routers, explains: "Traditionally, this is a very difficult region to cross, heading north or south, and there is no way of skirting the High, either East or West. Our plan is to take advantage of a constriction in the ridge to route the boat North-east as fast as possible while the High develops and drifts East behind them, filling in with stronger South-east winds. This should drive them up to 30 S and closer to the more reliable Easterly then South-easterly Trades which will carry them quickly to the Doldrums."
Innovation Explorer, Team Adventure and Warta Polpharma were also held up in this region, so Tony and Co were forewarned that they may have to draw on the bank of miles built up since March 4. Overnight, they drew down 104 miles from what was a 248 mile credit, and they will probably need to take the rest tomorrow to maintain their 320 mile daily target to finish back in Marseilles.
But with the promise of the SE Trades later in the week, the TEAM LEGATO crew are hopeful that they will build up a sufficient line of credit with the wind gods to carry them through the Doldrums in a week's time.
Leading positions at 07:00 GMT today
1. Club Med Finished Marseilles 19:56GMT 3.03.01
2. Innovation Explorer Finished Marseilles 11:32GMT 6.03.01
3. Team Adventure +2,539 miles - Crossed Equator 13.03.01
4. Warta Polpharma +1,168 miles - Cape Horn 02.03.01
5. Team Legato +3,402 miles - Cape Horn 11.03.01
6. PlayStation - RETIRED 14.01.01
   
Dateline 08:00 GMT 17March 2001.
07:00 GMT TEAM LEGATO WARTA POLPHARMA
Position: 33 58'S 42 18'W 0 25'S; 28 54'W
Speed at time of satellite poll: 15.3 knots 11.4 knots
Average speed for last hour: 17.9 knots 12.1 knots
Course: 50 Degrees 01 Degrees
Distance covered over 24 hours: 339 miles 309 miles
Distance between the two: +2,144 miles
TL Target 24 hour distance: 320 miles.
Mileage in hand since 4th March: +129 miles

Tony Bullimore and his TEAM LEGATO crew continue to cut inroads into the two challenges ahead of them - to beat the April 2 deadline to finish back in Marseilles, and to catch up with their Polish rivals on Warta Polpharma.
Covering 339 miles - an average of 14.1 knots - over the past 24 hours, the crew were fastest in the fleet again overnight. Having been blessed with good south easterly winds which weather routers St James's Yachting forecast will remain steady for the next two days, Tony Bullimore is hopeful that they will carry TEAM LEGATO right up to the Trade Wind belt.
The crew also took more miles out of the Poles yesterday, adding 30 miles to the 24 miles that the TEAM LEGATO crew sliced off their lead on Thursday. The Warta Polpharma crew will cross the Equator later today and then run into the Doldrums. If they get caught in calms, then the Bullimore Boys are in a good position to take another major bite out of their lead.
Leading positions at 07:00 GMT today
1. Club Med Finished Marseilles 19:56GMT 3.03.01
2. Innovation Explorer Finished Marseilles 11:32GMT 6.03.01
3. Team Adventure +2,229 miles - Crossed Equator 13.03.01
4. Warta Polpharma +1,024 miles - Cape Horn 02.03.01
5. Team Legato +3,168 miles - Cape Horn 11.03.01
6. PlayStation - RETIRED 14.01.01
 Dateline 08:00 GMT 16March 2001.
07:00 GMT TEAM LEGATO WARTA POLPHARMA
Position: 37 20'S 46 01'W 03 45'S; 29 33'W
Speed at time of satellite poll: 11.0 knots 13.2 knots
Average speed for last hour: 10.1 knots 12.1 knots
Course: 49 Degrees 04 Degrees
Distance covered over 24 hours: 286 miles 262 miles
Distance between the two: +2,209 miles
TL Target 24 hour distance: 320 miles.
Mileage in hand since 4th March: +110 miles

After struggling in light airs for much of yesterday, TEAM LEGATO's watch leader Paul Larson was on the satellite phone to broadcast the good news. "We have suddenly found a corridor of wind and are batting along at 22knots in flat water. Where the wind has come from, we don't know, and right now we don't really care. All that matters is that we are on course and going for it."
It came as welcome relief to the light winds that are expected to continue to plague Tony Bullimore and his crew for another day at least, and helped them to save some mileage they have in the bank to maintain their 320 mile daily average. In the end, the Bullimore Boys covered 286 miles - 34 less than their daily target to reach the finish within the 30-day time limit, but without that surprise wind, it could have been a lot worse.
As it stands, they still have 110 miles in the bank which should be enough to keep their average on target until the expected 25 knot Easterlies kick in on Saturday. Then they will be on the SE Trades expressway all the way up to the Equator.
Leading positions at 07:00 GMT today
1. Club Med Finished Marseilles 19:56GMT 3.03.01
2. Innovation Explorer Finished Marseilles 11:32GMT 6.03.01
3. Team Adventure +2,309 miles - Crossed Equator 13.03.01
4. Warta Polpharma +1,141 miles - Cape Horn 02.03.01
5. Team Legato +3,349 miles - Cape Horn 11.03.01
6. PlayStation - RETIRED 14.01.01
   
According to the RACE rules, Tony and his TEAM LEGATO crew have until April 2, to reach Maresilles within the time limit.
 The Web site NOW.COM was running a poll asking if YOU agree with this rule, or whether it should be changed.
Tony & Co are doing their damndest to beat the deadline and avoid disqualification. They have to average 320 miles a day, and according to our calculations (not NOW's) they have almost a day in hand.
It is conceivable that TEAM LEGATO will make it if the weather gods are kind. Back in 1995, the boat, then named ENZA averaged 12.6 knots with a crew of 7 during a record breaking circumnavigation. TEAM LEGATO is not only 10ft longer, but now carries a more powerful rig.
The crew have also shown that they have the legs on the Poles aboard Warta Polpharma. On the leg from Cape of Good Hope to Wellington, they took 1,800 miles out of WP. During the past 10 days, they have taken almost 900 miles out of them again, and the Polish lead is now once again within 2,000 miles. If TEAM LEGATO can take an average of 100 miles a day out of them on the remaining distance back to Marseilles, the two crews will arrive together.
Tony and Co are determined to make a race of it and would welcome your vote. It could make a difference
Dateline 08:00 GMT 14March 2001
07:00 GMT TEAM LEGATO WARTA POLPHARMA
Position: 43 18'S 53 39'W 15 02'S; 31 31'W
Speed at time of satellite poll: 18.1 knots 21.3 knots
Average speed for last hour: 17.3 knots 17.4 knots
Course: 34 Degrees 2 Degrees
Distance covered over 24 hours: 322 miles 412 miles
Distance between the two: +2,027 miles
TL Target 24 hour distance: 320 miles.
Mileage in hand since 4th March: +248 miles

Good news for all three boats in THE RACE.
As Cam Lewis and his Team Adventure crew crossed the Equator yesterday, the Poles on Warta Polpharma began to stretch their legs in the South East Trades and Tony Bullimore & Co on TEAM LEGATO saw an end to 2 days of head banging into 30-35knot head winds.
Now 550 miles NNE of the Falklands and a similar distance from the Argentine coastline, the TEAM LEGATO boys have begun to benefit from strong westerly reaching winds that should give them the legs to match or even better Warta Polpharma's speed in the SE Trades.
Overnight, TEAM LEGATO's average speed had shot up from 11 to 17 knots and by 07:00, she had covered 322 miles - two more than her daily target to beat the April 2 deadline for finishing back in Marseilles.
Leading positions at 07:00 GMT today
1. Club Med Finished Marseilles 19:56GMT 4.03.01
2. Innovation Explorer Finished Marseilles 11:32GMT 6.03.01
3. Team Adventure +2,754 miles - Crossed Equator 13.03.01
4. Warta Polpharma +1,367 miles - Cape Horn 02.03.01
5. Team Legato +3,394 miles - Cape Horn 11.03.01
6. PlayStation - RETIRED 14.01.01
   

Dateline 08:00 GMT 13March 2001.
07:00 GMT TEAM LEGATO WARTA POLPHARMA
Position: 48 23'S 56 08'W 21 57'S; 32 21'W
Speed at time of satellite poll: 12.0 knots 13.2 knots
Average speed for last hour: 14.3 knots 11.4 knots
Course: 307 Degrees 28 Degrees
Distance covered over 24 hours: 261 miles 298 miles
Distance between the two: +1,934 miles
TL Target 24 hour distance: 320 miles.
Mileage in hand since 4th March: +246 miles

As Tony Bullimore and his crew continue to head northwards, chasing their Polish rivals on Warta Polpharma and the April 2 deadline to finish in Marseilles, Paul Larson, TEAM LEGATO's Australian watch leader recounts a memorable rounding of Cape Horn on Sunday.
"Lights...Cameras.. Action!!!
For so long it had just been a waypoint in our minds. Something to be rounded, hopefully safely, and then left behind as quickly as possible. Now here I was steering TEAM LEGATO at breakneck speed, on course under a cloud shrouded full moon. Far from being a moment to be dispensed with quickly, at a constant 25-32 knots, this was a moment to savour.
We're doin' it boys, we're doin' it!!!
Fifty miles from the Cape, bearing of 70 degrees true, steaming in on a broad reach in 30 knots of breeze with 2 reefs and a staysail up, TEAM LEGATO is hitting her straps. After some of the slow painful miles just gone, this is bliss. I'm yelling at the top of my lungs 'Eat this' (referring to our nearest competition), each time we smoke off at over 30 knots.
Mike Gettinger is standing by in the cockpit and Tony is down below navigating when I notice a light to starboard winking through the squalls and waves. Gotta be a boat thinks I. Hang on... doesn't look like navigation lights to me.... Matter of fact it's showing all the characteristics of a lighthouse. What the...????? As far as I knew we only had to leave the Horn to starboard and that was it. Now I'm rocketing up the wrong side (to my way of thinking) of a lighthouse! Of all places Larsen...
Mike is now on deck, Tony is checking it out and the radar is switched on etc. etc. We got all hands on deck, dropped sails and hove to whilst we re- assessed our position. It turns out that the light was marking the largest of a group of islands called the 'Islas Diego Ramirez' and they were further west than we expected. They are pretty poorly marked on both charts electronic and paper. These little 'dirtbergs' live right on the edge of the continental shelf which now in turn caused the sea state to rise considerably. Big squalls were coming through with winds just under 50 knots. Lying side on, the spray is peeling across the decks in stinging sheets.
We gingerly make our way north under bare poles before taking off again downhill towards the Atlantic. The wind is now touching 50 knots and with only the staysail up we are still managing bursts up to 27 knots! We decide not to pass as closely to the Horn as we would have liked. Damn it, I really wanted to see it. The conditions certainly aren't disappointing us, as it is freezing cold, howling, grey and lumpy with poor visibility.
Freddy Dahirel spots it first off our port beam. The unmistakable outline of Cape Horn can be made out through the gloom of low scudding cloud. Perhaps this is how she should be seen. There's a rush of excitement as everyone runs for their cameras and momentos. The night's action had left us not as well prepared for this occasion as we might have hoped but what the hell. There it is in all its bleak glory. The bane of yachtsmen for centuries, the Everest of Capes. Forget the race for a moment and enjoy the here and now. We made it!"
Leading positions at 07:00 GMT today
1. Club Med Finished Marseilles 19:56GMT 4.03.01
2. Innovation Explorer Finished Marseilles 11:32GMT 6.03.01
3. Team Adventure +2,972 miles - Cape Horn 28.02.01
4. Warta Polpharma +1,550 miles - Cape Horn 02.03.01
5. Team Legato +3,484 miles - Cape Horn 11.03.01
6. PlayStation - RETIRED 14.01.01
Dateline 08:00 GMT 12March 2001.
07:00 GMT TEAM LEGATO WARTA POLPHARMA
Position: 52 33'S 58 05'W 26 50'S; 32 19'W
Speed at time of satellite poll: 20.3 knots 5.0 knots
Average speed for last hour: 19.8 knots 7.3 knots
Course: 52 Degrees 352 Degrees
Distance covered over 24 hours: 438 miles 270 miles
Distance between the two: +1,895 miles
TL Target 24 hour distance: 320 miles.
Mileage in the bank since 4th March: +305 miles

TEAM LEGATO - Back in the Atlantic & on a charge
Tony Bullimore and his TEAM LEGATO crew hardly had time to pop the cork on the bottle of Moet champagne they had kept to celebrate Cape Horn yesterday before a 50 knot blast sent them scurrying northwards at more than 20 knots.
They made their rounding shortly before Noon and have been on a charge ever since, covering 438 miles during the past 24 hours.
This has given them almost a day in hand in their dash to finish back in Marseilles before the April 2 deadline. They also took a further 168 miles our of their Polish rivals on Warta Polpharma overnight to bring the distance between the two down to 1,895 miles. A week ago, the gap had been more than 2,800 miles!
Leading positions at 07:00 GMT today
1. Club Med Finished Marseilles 19:56GMT 4.03.01
2. Innovation Explorer Finished Marseilles 11:32GMT 6.03.01
3. Team Adventure +3,310 miles - Cape Horn 28.02.01
4. Warta Polpharma +1,495 miles - Cape Horn 02.03.01
5. Team Legato +3,390 miles - Cape Horn 11.03.01
6. PlayStation - RETIRED 14.01.01
   

Dateline 08:00 GMT 11 March 2001.
07:00 GMT TEAM LEGATO WARTA POLPHARMA
Position: 56 24'S 68 47'W 26 44'S; 37 29'W
Speed at time of satellite poll: 8.2 knots 5.0 knots
Average speed for last hour: 15.1 knots 7.7 knots
Course: 38 Degrees 73 Degrees
Distance covered over 24 hours: 390.5 miles 194 miles
Distance between the two: +2,242 miles
TL Target 24 hour distance: 320 miles.
Mileage in the bank since 4th March: +187 miles

TEAM LEGATO - Rounding Cape Horn today!!!!
Now within 50 miles of Cape Horn, Tony Bullimore and his TEAM LEGATO crew expect to make their rounding at lunchtime after speeding up over the past 24 hours, increasing their average to 16.3 knots.
With a run of 390 miles, they were again the fastest within the fleet, taking out a further 196 miles out of their Polish rivals on Warta Polpharma and 4 miles out of Team Adventure.
They are also 187 miles ahead of their target to complete the RACE within the 30 day deadline set by the winner Club Med.
Leading positions at 07:00 GMT today
1. Club Med Finished Marseilles 19:56GMT 4.03.01
2. Innovation Explorer Finished Marseilles 11:32GMT 6.03.01
3. Team Adventure +3,869 miles - Cape Horn 28.02.01
4. Warta Polpharma +1,027 miles - Cape Horn 02.03.01
5. Team Legato 3,269 miles - Left Wellington 21. 02. 01
6. PlayStation - RETIRED 14.01.01
Dateline 08:00 GMT 9 March 2001.
03:00 GMT TEAM LEGATO WARTA POLPHARMA
Position: 53 37'S 90 40'W 30 07'S; 43 32'W
Speed at time of satellite poll: 22.0 knots 14.1 knots
Average speed for last hour: 15.1 knots 15.5 knots
Course: 104 Degrees 47 Degrees
Distance covered over 24 hours: 372 miles 300 miles
Distance between the two: +2,681 miles
TL Target 24 hour distance: 320 miles.
Mileage in the bank since 4th March: +115 miles

TEAM LEGATO - Due at Cape Horn on Saturday night/Sunday morning.
TEAM LEGATO was once again the fastest boat in THE RACE with a run of 372 miles over the past 24 hours. This is 72 more than their Polish rivals made on Warta Polpharma and 105 miles more than Team Adventure As her crew try to escape the clutches of the Azores High pressure system.
Now within 600 miles of Cape Horn, Bullimore and his Boys are pushing hard to keep clear of the High Pressure system that has been chasing them, and the deep Low that is expected to sweep past the Horn early next week.
If they can keep up this pace, then the catamaran will be back within satellite phone range early tomorrow GMT (around 83W) and should round the Horn in the early hours of Saturday night/Sunday morning.
Leading positions at 03:00 GMT today
1. Club Med Finished Marseilles 19:56GMT 4.03.01
2. Innovation Explorer Finished Marseilles 11:32GMT 6.03.01
3. Team Adventure +4,582 miles - Cape Horn 28.02.01
4. Warta Polpharma +638 miles - Cape Horn 02.03.01
5. Team Legato 3,319 miles - Left Wellington 21. 02. 01
6. PlayStation - RETIRED 14.01.01
   

Dateline 08:00 GMT 7 March 2001.
07:00 GMT TEAM LEGATO WARTA POLPHARMA
Position: 50 30'S 106 57'W 38 28'S; 50 00'W
Speed at time of satellite poll: 8.1 knots 12.0 knots
Average speed for last hour: 10.2 knots 16.2 knots
Course: 84 Degrees 64 Degrees
Distance covered over 24 hours: 329.1 miles 327.4 miles
Distance between the two: +2,704 miles
TL Target 24 hour distance: 320 miles.
Mileage in the bank since 4th March: +102 miles
In the mother of all storms on the dark side of the Moon In a final message last night before sailing out of satellite phone range some 1,200 miles from Cape Horn, Tony Bullimore reported that fierce winds had forced them to slow TEAM LEGATO right down.
"It's cold - bitterly cold, and we are being tossed around like mad because the boat is continually smashing into big waves. There is water just everywhere - including our bunks - and with the continuous banging and bouncing, it is almost impossible to sleep. We had no alternative but to slow down, but we still expect to get to Cape Horn at the weekend."
Up until 23:00 yesterday, TEAM LEGATO had been the fastest boat in THE RACE with an average of 17.0 knots after chalking up 400+ mile runs on three successive days, but the southerly blast from the Antarctic has sent temperatures and expectations down. Nevertheless, during the 24 hours up to 07:00 today, Bullimore and his crew still covered 9 miles more than their 320 mile daily target and took 2 miles out of their Polish rivals on Warta Polpharma.
The crew will now be out of voice communication until they reach around 83 Degrees West, but the RACE Office continues to monitor their performance every four hours. "It's rather like sailing round the dark side of the Moon" said Tony, adding. "It's certainly just as deserted except for the Albatrosses which fly effortlessly alongside us."

Leading positions at 07:00 GMT today
1. Club Med Finished Marseilles 19:56GMT 4.03.01
2. Innovation Explorer Finished Marseilles 11:32GMT 6.03.01
3. Team Adventure +5,011 miles - Cape Horn 28.02.01
4. Warta Polpharma 803 miles - Cape Horn 02.03.01
5. Team Legato 3,507 miles - Left Wellington 21. 02. 01
6. PlayStation - RETIRED 14.01.01
Dateline 15:00 GMT 6 March 2001.
11:00 GMT TEAM LEGATO WARTA POLPHARMA
Position: 50 16'S; 113 32'W 43 23'; 51 42'W
Speed at time of satellite poll: 21.2knots 13.3 knots
Average speed for last hour: 20.5 knots 11.4 knots
Course: 75 Degrees 13 Degrees
Distance covered over 24 hours: 432.1 miles 300.8 miles
Distance between the two: +2,640 miles
TL Target 24 hour distance: 320 miles.
Mileage in the bank since 4th March: +202 miles

Sans Terre - Without Land
Paul Larson, TEAM LEGATO's Australian watch leader, provides a second diary entry on life onboard close to the one place on earth that remains the greatest distance from land in all directions.
After enduring ten frustrating days of calms, he writes:
"Thank God that's over.
When I started this voyage in reality a little over 2 years ago preparing to sail with Pete Goss on TEAM PHILIPS, I promised to tell my E.mail circle of friends what life would be like in the raw. It has certainly been that. The last 10 days of calms have corresponded to a deep dark dip in our track. But that is now blasting away behind us in fizzing wakes and great swirls of spray. Our car is on the up again at over 20 knots, the endless repetitive speculation and hair-pulling frustration that came with each slip-slop of the sails, now a long way astern.
Our problems began with the loss of our SATCOM B transceiver when it was washed off the back of the port hull by a big wave while approaching the South Island of New Zealand. We used this to download all our weather maps so that we can see exactly where the Highs and Lows are and what shape they are in.
We asked the Race Committee if we could replace it when passing through Cook Strait. They said it would take a couple of days, so we figured on not stopping, based on the fact that St James's Yachting, our weather routers back home, would be able to give us this information and more. Their interpretation sent over in text form would always be better informed that ours.
You have to remember that we didn't plan to stop in Wellington until the last minute, and even then only for a flying visit. And when we did stop, we still wanted to leave as soon as possible as a large windless High was approaching. Instead, we took a 60 hour pit-stop and got stuck like flies in honey - trapped in a High that simply followed us East. What winds there were, came from the south, blocking our route back down into the Southern Ocean. We were told where the best winds were, and it was up to us to best handle the conditions to get there. Time and again the door got shut as the fickle weather systems eluded us. What it says on the map in front of the weather router's eyes, isn't necessarily what we see in reality before our own.
The gap between our nearest competition, the Poles on Warta Polpharma, grew from 1,200 miles to 2,700 miles. If all now goes well for them, this lead will be insurmountable, but in the fickle world of yacht racing, perseverance is always rewarded. For all we know, they could yet find themselves in less than perfect conditions.
Sitting here now, with the cold Southern Ocean waters making a comforting roaring hiss through the hull just inches from my ear, we are beginning once more to reel them in. There is no time to be bitter and twisted. We just have to remind ourselves of the importance of the word TEAM. We have to re-group and focus on the problems ahead.
This week, another much older and more formidable foe entered the arena - TIME.
The first boat crossed the line on Saturday. Congratulations to the Club Med Team and a deserved win. They chose their team well, worked hard in their preparation and pushed hard all the way, showcasing the capabilities of this new generation of boats. Considering that they circumnavigated via the Mediterranean and Cook Strait, their time of 62 days is remarkable. In the next few years, other records will now tumble significantly.
What it means for us is that the deadline is now in place for TEAM LEGATO to finish. We have until April 2 to complete the remaining 9,500 miles. That's an average of 320 miles a day, or a little more than 13 knots. At the moment this is quite easily within our reach. But we can't afford another light weather spell like we just had.
The thought of not making it? Well it is far too early for that, and right now, I don't want to know about it. Cape Horn, now within 1,500 miles, is more immediate. I am looking forward to that. We all are. We still have some tricky systems to negotiate and there are two schools of thought on the boat. Despite our position, I still want to push the boat hard and to carry each sail configuration to the edge of its performance envelope. In the back of my mind is the possibility that we might lose by a scant couple of hundred miles or by miss the official finish by a day. Some of the older generation want to sail a little more conservatively believing that we well miss it all by a much larger margin if we blow everything to bits now. Tony has to make sense of it all, combining his wealth of experience and awareness. None of us want to say 'I told you so'.
We may now be down to only 6 crew, but our manoeuvres and sail changes are slicker than ever. The determination onboard is also at its strongest.
The next hurdle is Cape Horn on Saturday or Sunday when I will be able to regale you with tales of drinking our remaining bottle of Moet Champagne under a full moon while belting along at 30 knots in the mighty TEAM LEGATO. This will not only be a thrill for us - but one we will tirelessly relate to our grandchildren in years to come."
Leading positions at 11:00 GMT today
1. Club Med Finished Marseilles 19:56GMT 4.03.01
2. Innovation Explorer Finished Marseilles 11:32GMT 6.03.01
3. Team Adventure +5,235 miles - Cape Horn 28.02.01
4. Warta Polpharma 6,093 miles - Cape Horn 02.03.01
5. Team Legato 8,733 miles - Left Wellington 21. 02. 01
6. PlayStation - RETIRED 14.01.01
   

Dateline 08:00 GMT 6 March 2001.
03:00 GMT TEAM LEGATO WARTA POLPHARMA
Position: 50 43'S; 117 44'W 44 02'; 51 42'W
Speed at time of satellite poll: 27.0knots 12.1 knots
Average speed for last hour: 20.6 knots 10.1 knots
Course: 84 Degrees 46 Degrees
Distance covered over 24 hours: 418.4 miles 388.4 miles
Distance between the two: +2,737 miles
TL Target 24 hour distance: 320 miles.
Mileage in the bank since 4th March: +188 miles
Closing fast at 27 knots!
As Innovation Explorer's crew was searching for wind just 130 miles from the finish early this morning, Tony Bullimore and his crew had some to spare as TEAM LEGATO was surfing at 27 knots, bound for Cape Horn..
For Bullimore, the frustrations over the past week when fickle winds in the 'Roaring Forty' latitudes cost them 1,000 miles on their closest rival Warta Polpharma, are now light years away as they storm on down into the 'Screaming Fifties'
"We are pushing the boat and ourselves as hard as possible" said Bullimore early today. "We have a daily target of 320 miles to hit in order to finish back in Marseilles within the deadline and need to bank as many miles as possible when the conditions are like this."
With two 400+ mile days under their belt since leaving the calms on Sunday, they have already built up a 188 mile credit.
"If we can keep going like this, we expect to round the Horn in 4-5 days (Saturday or Sunday) and can then concentrate of eating into Warta Polpharma 's lead." the TEAM LEGATO skipper confirmed..
Leading positions at 03:00 GMT today
1. Club Med Finished Marseilles 19:56GMT 4.03.01
2. Innovation Explorer +131 miles - Cape Horn 12.02.01
3. Team Adventure 5,256 miles - Cape Horn 28.02.01
4. Warta Polpharma 6,010 miles - Cape Horn 02.03.01
5. Team Legato 8,746 miles - Left Wellington 21. 02. 01
6. PlayStation - RETIRED 14.01.01
Dateline 08:00 GMT 5 March 2001.
07:00 GMT TEAM LEGATO WARTA POLPHARMA
Position: 50 59S; 128 32'W 48 37S; 58 20'W
Speed at time of satellite poll: 21.0knots 17.4 knots
Average speed for last 4 hours: 17.4 knots 10.3 knots
Course: 109 Degrees 52 Degrees
Distance covered over 24 hours: 418.4 miles 246.0 miles
Distance between the two: +2,691 miles
Back up to speed after 7 days of calms
As Club Med was finishing in Marseilles on Saturday night, the wind gods decided to turn the fans back on in the Pacific, and after facing 7 days of frustrating calms, Tony Bullimore and his TEAM LEGATO crew are back on the pace.
As the winds filled in yesterday, the four hourly satellite polls showed their speed building up, first to 10, then 15 and now 21 knots. With a 30 day deadline to complete the course, Bullimore and his Boys have a mountain to climb, but in typical bulldog spirit, are giving it their best shot. The goal set for them is a 320 mile daily average. They began well enough, with a 24 hour run of 418 miles to put 98 miles in the bank. Reassuringly, they also reeled back 117 miles out of the lead held by their Polish rivals on Warta Polpharma
"We have got to push the boat and ourselves as hard as possible and try to clock up a series of 4-500 mile days so that we have something in reserve when we get to the South Atlantic High and Doldrums." Said Bullimore after sending this congratulatory message to the winners:
"Congratulations to Grant Dalton and his crew on Club Med on winning THE RACE. You have hardly put a foot wrong during the entire voyage, and having reduced the circumnavigation record to 62 days and set a blistering 24 hour record of 655.2 miles, you deserve every accolade."
Leading positions at 07:00 GMT today
1. Club Med Finished Marseilles 19:56GMT 4.03.01
2. Innovation Explorer +378 miles - Cape Horn 12.02.01
3. Team Adventure 5,406 miles - Cape Horn 28.02.01
4. Warta Polpharma 6,141 miles - Cape Horn 02.03.01
5. Team Legato 8,832 miles - Left Wellington 21. 02. 01
6. PlayStation - RETIRED 14.01.01
   

Dateline 16:00 GMT 2 March 2001.
15:00 GMT TEAM LEGATO WARTA POLPHARMA
Position: 46 34S; 140 29'W 55 40S; 66 37'W
Speed at time of satellite poll: 1.0knots 4.2 knots
Average speed for last 4 hours: 6.3 knots 9.6 knots
Course: 78 Degrees 8 Degrees
Distance covered over 24 hours: 152 miles 230 miles
Distance between the two: +2,708 miles
Day 5 of calms - How much longer?
As Grant Dalton and his crew on Club Med approach the finish line at Marseilles, Tony Bullimore and his crew are caught on the horns of a dilemma in mid Pacific. Sitting in the middle of the supposedly Roaring Forties in almost flat calm for the 5th day running, they are desperate for any remedy to their frustrations.
Either they hold true to the advice from their weather routers - to keep heading East, even if they have to beat for a while in order to break into the Nor'westerly winds 400 miles ahead of them - or follow their gut instincts to head south towards supposedly stronger conditions in the Screaming Fifty latitudes
Now out of satellite phone range, they are unable to pull down the weather pictures that would show them the traps that await them in that direction too. So in effect they are sailing blind, relying on the text messages to guide them coming from the St James's Yachting weather team at regular intervals via their Satcom C set.
Over the past 24 hours, the crew covered a paltry 152 miles - which even when set against the 230 set by their Polish rivals on Warta Polpharma as they negotiate Cape Horn, is not good. Can things get any worse?
Yesterday saw a waiver in course when TEAM LEGATO suddenly started heading 140 Degrees, suggesting that they crew may have decided that the Southern option could not offer anything worse than they are enduring now. But today, her course has been fluctuating between 75-90 degrees once more.
"Going south looks fine for 24 hours but they will just end up sailing into another hole which will develop down there." Advises Richard Price at the St James's routing office. "The weather options could not have been more difficult, but the plan to keep pressing to the East remains the most logical in the long term, despite the continued short term pain."
Leading positions at 15:00 GMT today
1. Club Med 539 miles to finish - Rounded Cape Horn 11.02.01
2. Innovation Explorer +1,002 miles - Cape Horn 12.02.01
3. Team Adventure 5,952 miles - Cape Horn 28.02.01
4. Warta Polpharma 6,499 miles - Cape Horn 02.03.01
5. Team Legato 9,207 miles - Left Wellington 21. 02. 01
6. PlayStation - RETIRED 14.01.01
Dateline 16:00 GMT 1 March 2001.
15:00 GMT TEAM LEGATO WARTA POLPHARMA
Position: 46 18'S; 144. 07'W 55 19'S; 73 15'W
Speed at time of satellite poll: 7.0knots 18.0knots
Average speed for last 4 hours: 5.5 knots 17.8 knots Course: 139 Degrees 128 Degrees
Distance covered over 24 hours: 131 miles 427 miles
Distance between the two: +2,587 miles
Going Nuts in the Roaring Forties
Report from Tony Bullimore Time: 0436 GMT Position: 45 34S 144 45W COG: Not Moving Speed: Nil Barometer: 1014 ( Rising )
"At this very moment we are becalmed - no wind - flat seas - sails flapping from one side and then the other.
We are concerned that we do not damage our sails with all the continued flogging. Our weather router has sent us on this course and it is easy to wonder if it is going to be beneficial in the end. Would we have been better off going South, into the big winds and really nasty seas?
The answer is probably no. St James's Yachting, Team Legato's weather routers have done a great job up to now and l am sure they will continue to do so until the end of the race. It's all very well moaning when the going gets difficult, but once committed to a course of action like this you have to keep faith with it. I feel for Warta Polpharma.
The Poles have been in some really big winds and nasty seas. They are a great bunch of guys and l am sure they will make the right moves. Although becalmed at the moment, we are using our time checking over everything on the boat, from rig down to deck to ensure that we are in good fettle for when we get going again. But looking at the Raytheon wind instruments in front of me at the chart table, course over ground reads 0, speed over ground 0, velocity to waypoint 0, - Its enough to send you nuts!"
Weather routers report better prospects on the horizon Richard Price from the St James's Yachting Routing Service reports that there is better news just over the horizon. "The latest weather maps show the strong headwinds to their South that we wanted to avoid. Another Low to their SW is virtually stationary and deepening which is good, and there is the High pressure to the Eastnor'east which is where we are trying to get them to.
At the moment they are caught between two systems with no option to go North or South. So they have to put up with light airs again for a while. Once through to the NW'lies though and it should be easier to route them as their speed makes all the difference and they should have a fast run to the Cape."
A lot of us are hoping a praying that they do! .

Leading positions at 15:00 GMT today
1. Club Med 868 miles to finish - Rounded Cape Horn 11.02.01
2. Innovation Explorer +1,224 miles - Cape Horn 12.02.01
3. Team Adventure 6,006 miles - Cape Horn 28.02.01
4. Warta Polpharma 6,415 miles - Left Wellington 17. 02. 01
5. Team Legato 9,001 miles - Left Wellington 21. 02. 01
6. PlayStation - RETIRED 14.01.01
   
INFORMATION FROM TEAM LEGATO - 28. Feb 01
After 2 days of tricky light winds, TEAM LEGATO's Australian watch leader, Paul Larson reflects on the voyage so far and criticisms floating up back in the UK
This is the typescript of a radio recording made today, available to TV and Radio which can be listened to on www.teamlegato.com
3000 miles from Cape Horn
"To call our current predicament frustrating would be quite an understatement. What I see laid out all around me is no one picture of the Southern Ocean. It is dead flat with no wind, bordering on what I call glasshouse conditions. We are told by three independent sources that there are strong winds all around us, yet we have sat here for a day and a half making little progress or direction. It is no one's fault - just one of the many vagaries of this wonderful world of yachting.
Sit on the Silverstone start line in a Ferrari with the track all to yourself and no fuel. Sit in an airport all packed to party and stay grounded day after day. Buy the kids the hottest remote control car on Christmas Day, but have no batteries. Get the picture?
Don't for a minute think that we are not trying. Everything at our disposal - sail combinations, directions, advice - all avenues have been tried. But if the winds don't blow, then we don't go.
Each watch gives up the helm with a sigh. The next give it their best. Every second we know that the competition we tried so hard to catch before Wellington, is pulling away. Mental discomfort can be far worse than physical discomfort. But this is the nature of our endeavour. The Race was never going to be easy. You had to be prepared in so many facets to tackle it successfully.
The way that TEAM LEGATO got to the start line was a long way from being the perfect method to set out to win such an event. But make it to the start line she did. Some of the biggest names in British offshore yachting proposed and pursued projects for this event, but only one made it to the start line. There are a dozen reasons why she shouldn't have, which could have been backed up with a dozen justifiable excuses why she didn't. But that is the nature of Tony Bullimore. He has pursued this goal at great personal and emotional expense with his characteristic determination. Those still onboard share his goals and will see this through to the finish line in Marseilles.
I had great reservations about joining TEAM LEGATO in the days leading up to the start. In fact I pulled out a couple of days before when it all looked a little too desperate. After the crushing disappointment of losing TEAM PHILIPS, I didn't think I could muster the energy to face the trials and tribulations that this particular team were about to endure. Only on the eve of the start did I realise that I had to do it. The thought of not having a go at an event that I too have pursued a little too excessively for a couple of years, was too intolerable. If I go, I go the whole hog and I'm sure it ain't going to be pretty.
Sitting in a bar it all sounds easy. Lose your focus on the goal and the discomfort goes on forever. Forget the TV series 'The House'. Try putting ten people from five nations in a handful of hours into the pressure cooker of a non-stop round the world race on one of the fastest maxi multihulls in the world. You can't just go and sit in your room and sulk, then want to get off. This, mixed up with all the frustrations of being becalmed in the raw cold power of the Southern Ocean, and see what happens. Anyone who thought it was going to be easy was living in fairyland. Focusing on the goal is the only thing that will see you through.
An almost critical lack of preparation time meant that despite the fact that we still had to complete 150 miles of qualification before the start, we still spent 8 rushed hours on the dock, before even that could be commenced.
At Gibraltar we had to call in for some important modifications that presented themselves on the way. By the Equator, the boat was ready for battle but it cost us 2000 miles on our nearest competition as we entered the Southern Ocean. Steve Fossett's PlayStation had already pulled out and Team Adventure was having crew and structural problems in Cape Town. We had the bit between our teeth and began to reel in the Poles on Warta Polpharma and through some truly spectacular sailing in Southern Ocean, we worked hard to reduce the lead to 235 miles by Wellington. In fact we sailed cheering and hooting within metres passed Team Adventure as we went in to the harbour and they headed out.
Our interlude in Wellington wasn't in the plan at all until the last minute. I don't think we ever should have stopped, but I wasn't the one in pain. I was helming when we nose-dived TEAM LEGATO from 30 knots to a standstill when she ran into the equivalent of a jetty wall. It is no wonder that 3 of the crew got injured. Tony as skipper had no option but to place the welfare of his crew first, and on their say-so, decided that a stopover was necessary. We wanted to get in and out as soon as possible.
But tied up at the jetty waiting for the doctor's assessment, the promise of comfort ate like a cancer as the focus on the goal wavered in the minds of some people. Within a couple of hours we were down to a crew of six. This is strictly my opinion, and once again, I wasn't the one who was hurt, but, if they didn't have the lure of a get-out in Wellington, I have no doubt that some of those who got off would have no regrets about being onboard sitting in third place now.
With the loss of a couple of team members, the situation needed re-assessing. By this stage we were tired and certain people had to take on and learn other responsibilities. If we hadn't lost our navigator, there is no doubt that we would have left that same night and, on current form, would now be in third place.
In a world of virtual reality, this is the real stuff. You can't just hit 'reset' and start again. Obstacles in our way are all there to test our resolve, overcoming them and persisting on reaching a goal is the very essence of adventure. This, if nothing else, is adventure at its grandest and nastiest. I have heard that there has been some focus in England on negative aspects of the project, which I feel is sad and detracts from the more relevant aspects. Tony Bullimore wouldn't be alive today if he was the type to give up. He is a picture of stubborn determination. A virtue that Britain prides itself. I will be glad to have played a part in fulfilling his goal.
How I have crossed vast oceans and hit over 38 knots on the great southern swells, and seen the Southern Aurora shimmer from horizon to horizon and round two of the three great Capes so far, has tested me to the point where I know myself a little better.
So, if there are those letting criticisms override the real issues, it is a shame. They should leave the 'reset' button alone, defy adversity, get off their bar stools and test their own metal with some real adventure. It is most likely closer than they think.
Meanwhile, we will continue as a team, chasing a common goal through to the finish and that will be an achievement. I think the beer in Marseilles will taste all the better.
Currently, the winds have returned exactly as the weather forecasters have said, which is comforting. After trying to eke out 3-4 knots of boat speed for 2 days, it is nice to see the Speedo climbing above 20 knots once more.
The Poles could have had this race on a platter, but they too have their troubles with strong winds and huge seas. I feel very sorry for them, but from a racing perspective, that is good for us. They are now 2,000 miles ahead, but this is not insurmountable. These boats can rip up those sort of miles within days, so we would be foolish to say that this race is over. We are pushing this boat as hard as we can. We still think there is a chance to sneak through to the finish ahead of them, but if we come in just a few hundred miles behind, that will be a lot better than resigning to the fact we have lost now and coming in 1,000 miles behind simply because we didn't try.
There have been a lot of obstacles placed in front of us, but we can only work with the tools at our disposal - the boat, the wind and our weather routers. But meanwhile we all have our heads down and our bum up. We are going to give this our best shot. "
Paul Larson - Watch leader, Team Legato. 28. Feb 01
For further details, pictures and daily audio feed from TEAM LEGATO, contact Barry Pickthall at the Team Legato Race office
Mobile Phone: +44 (0) 7768 395719
Office +44 (0) 1243 555561 Fax: +44 (0)1243 555562
E.mail: ppl@mistral.co.uk Web site: www.teamlegato.com  
   

Dateline 17:00 GMT 28 February.
15:00 GMT TEAM LEGATO WARTA POLPHARMA
Position: 45 18'S; 146. 57'W 54 55'S; 85 43'W
Speed at time of satellite poll: 7.0knots 19.1knots
Average speed for last 4 hours: 13.4 knots 16.9 knots
Course: 94 Degrees 120 Degrees
Distance covered over 24 hours: 320 miles 405 miles
Distance between the two: +2,292 miles
TEAM LEGATO speed burst short-lived as they continue to struggle in light airs
The change of course called for by TEAM LEGATO's weather routers on Sunday, seemed to have been vindicated this morning as Tony Bullimore and his crew begin to cream along at 18-20 knots earlier today. But by 15:00 Zulu, they were back to 7 knots with nothing better on the horizon. "It's hardly southern ocean conditions out here. The sun is shining and I am about to strip down to shorts." Said Tony impatiently. "We are following the advice we are receiving from our weather routers to the letter. I only hope they are right" he added.
But had they continued on their previous South Easterly route, they would now be receiving a battering almost as rough as the one their Polish rivals on Warta Polpharma have endured during their rid to Cape Horn.
As the latest weather map shows the Low pressure system centred at 50S, 150W, the winds, rotating clockwise, are giving TEAM LEGATO light reaching winds to the North. Had Bullimore and his crew persevered to the south east, then they would now be facing 40+ knot head winds which would not only have slowed their progress considerably, but risked rig and sails. Robbie Burns, the router from St James's Yachting, believes that they will soon pick up some great winds over the next 24 hours which should help them to close on Warta Polpharma considerably.
The Poles on the other hand have been locked into the 'Mother of all storms' . Now within 1,000 miles from Cape Horn, they have been battling against 60 knots winds and 40ft seas but now appear to be moving fast once more "We heard about their problems and our heart goes out to them" Said Tony over the NERA satellite phone this morning. "It is no fun sailing in those conditions. Everything onboard will be wet through - including the crew. They will be cold and getting very little sleep. This is why we have to follow the advice of our weather routers whose job is to keep us out of such situations and sailing in favourable winds." The TEAM LEGATO skipper added.
Leading positions at 15:00 GMT today
1. Club Med 1,361miles to finish - Rounded Cape Horn 11.02.01
2. Innovation Explorer +1064 miles - Cape Horn 12.02.01
3. Team Adventure 5,825 miles - Left Wellington 19. 02. 01
4. Warta Polpharma 6,344 miles - Left Wellington 17. 02. 01
5. Team Legato 8,636 miles - Left Wellington 21. 02. 01
6. PlayStation - RETIRED 14.01.01
Dateline16:00 GMT 27 February.
15:00 GMT TEAM LEGATO WARTA POLPHARMA
Position: 46 17'S; 154. 29'W 53 13'S; 97 07'W
Speed at time of satellite poll: 14.0knots 9.4knots
Average speed for last 4 hours: 9.3 knots 12.0 knots
Course: 51 Degrees 81 Degrees
Distance covered over 24 hours: 224 miles 288 miles
Distance between the two: +2,072 miles
TEAM LEGATO finds wind - as Poles go bare poles!
Tony Bullimore and his TEAM LEGATO crew are getting back up to speed after a frustrating 24 36 hours of little or no wind. while their Polish rivals on Warta Polpharma are battling against the other extreme - sailing under bare poles in 60 knot winds..
TEAM LEGATO has covered 224 miles during the past 24 hours as the crew take the calculated gamble of sailing on an east,nor'easterly course towards the promise of better winds tonight instead of heading southeast into strong headwinds.
Robbie Burns, a member of the St James's Yachting team coordinating the weather routing for TEAM LEGATO explains: "Our plan is to stay on an ENE course that will take the boat around the top of a low just ahead of them. The alternative was to continue SE in favourable winds that will rapidly back in 18 hours time to 45 kt headwinds and big seas. Although they have slowed down on this new course they will at least make it to fresher winds around a big high to the East tomorrow. With 6 crew on board it's not the best plan to stuff them into gale force headwinds and damage them or the boat. It's pretty exposed down there and I have an upper wind limit I am trying to keep them out of - hence the change in plan. The plan has to remain fluid as the weather systems don't conform exactly to the long range forecasts".
Bullimore might have expected the gap between themselves and Warta Polpharma to widen 3-400 miles, but the Poles are currently battling with a 60 knot storm that has slowed their progress considerably and caused some sail damage. Crewman Jarek Kaczorowski told race organisers yesterday "Everything is sodden.. Our sleeping bags are as damp inside as outside and you have to be extremely tired to sleep in them. It's impossible to dry them because it is constantly raining and mountains of salt water wash over the decks. The waves are 8 to 10 metres tall at the moment! To makes things worse, a 50-60 knot wind is on the way from the south-west. We are about 5 days from Cape Horn. We hope that this will be the last strong gale in the Pacific. We're exhausted!"
As a result, Warta Polpharma has gained only 200 miles from TEAM LEGATO over the past 2 days, and with their Raytheon speedo now recording double digits once more, Bullimore an his crew remain optimistic that this light weather gamble will eventually pay better dividends. "With the weather systems constantly changing down here, you have to be guided by what is likely to happen not later today, but in 3-4 days time. That's why we rely on the advice of our weather routers" Tony explained by satellite phone. We don't want to finish up on the wrong side of a Low pressure system "
Leading positions at 15:00 GMT today
1. Club Med 1,701miles to finish - Rounded Cape Horn 11.02.01
2. Innovation Explorer +926 miles - Cape Horn 12.02.01
3. Team Adventure 5,964 miles - Left Wellington 19. 02. 01
4. Warta Polpharma 6,411 miles - Left Wellington 17. 02. 01
5. Team Legato 8,482 miles - Left Wellington 21. 02. 01
6. PlayStation - RETIRED 14.01.01
   

Dateline. 12:00 GMT 26 February.
11:00 GMT TEAM LEGATO WARTA POLPHARMA
Position: 47 30'S; 160. 07'W 53 19'S; 106 02'W
Speed at time of satellite poll: 5.4knots 11.4 knots
Average speed for last 4 hours: 5.9.0 knots 11.9 knots
Course: 54 Degrees 73 Degrees
Distance covered over 24 hours: 141.6 miles 284.8 miles
Distance between the two: +1,808 miles
Caught between a rock and a hard place.
At today's 07:00 satellite poll, TEAM LEGATO's speed was precisely 0.0 knots. By 11:00 it had risen, but only to 5.4 knots as Tony Bullimore and his crew struggled to break through a 100 mile wide ridge of High pressure in a calculated gamble to skirt round a week Low and hitch a ride on the favourable side of a large High pressure system that should carry them all the way to Cape Horn.
Richard Price, a member of St James's Yachting, TEAM LEGATO's weather routing team explains the tactical decisions that have taken place. "Originally, we were sending them on a South Easterly course, but the High pressure system they have been riding on for the past 24 hours is collapsing and gradually being replaced by a Low pressure system that would give the crew 40 knot winds on the nose in a couple of days if they continued on their earlier course. So the decision was taken yesterday to change course to the North East. We knew that there would be little or no wind for a while, but once they are out the other side of this ridge, there is a good chance that they will enjoy favourable reaching winds for several days."
The good news for Bullimore and his boys, is that their Polish rivals on Warta Polpharma have also been slowed - by too much wind! They are currently battling against 40-50 knot winds some 1,800 miles ahead, and have gained only 101 miles on TEAM LEGATO over the last 28 hours.
"The worst scenario is that Tony and his crew will face light winds for 12 hours, and then they should start catching up again." Said Price this morning.
Leading positions at 11:00 GMT today
1. Club Med 2,271 miles to finish - Rounded Cape Horn 11.02.01
2. Innovation Explorer +645 miles - Cape Horn 12.02.01
3. Team Adventure 5,886 miles - Left Wellington 19. 02. 01
4. Warta Polpharma 6,142 miles - Left Wellington 17. 02. 01
5. Team Legato 8,030 miles - Left Wellington 21. 02. 01
6. PlayStation - RETIRED 14.01.01


Dateline. 10:00 GMT 25 February.
Positive moves
07:00 GMT TEAM LEGATO WARTA POLPHARMA
Position: 47 45'S; 164. 30'W 53 39'S; 115 34'W
Speed at time of satellite poll: 14.0knots 10.4 knots
Average speed for last 4 hours: 15.0 knots 14.3 knots
Course: 115 Degrees 112 Degrees
Distance covered over 24 hours: 359 miles 344 miles
Distance between the two: +1,707 miles
"We have finally hit the Southern Ocean and pulled back 52 miles on Warta Polpharma over the past 28 hours. It's not a lot, but it's a start" said TEAM LEGATO skipper Tony Bullimore today, relieved that they had finally shaken off the High pressure system that had been shadowing them since leaving Wellington New Zealand on February 21.
Now edging towards the 'Screaming Fifty latitudes, Bullimore and his crew have positioned themselves to pick up the next Low pressure system that should give them a succession of 4-500 mile a day runs during the coming week.
"The new crew routine is working fine, though temperatures are falling fast so we are having to wrap up well in our Henri-Lloyd oil-skins and thermals to keep out the cold. But we've still got our fresh food stocks which is helping to keep our inner fires burning - We had some giant sausages and mash for lunch today which was great."
Leading positions at 07:00 GMT today
1. Club Med 2,483 miles to finish - Rounded Cape Horn 11.02.01
2. Innovation Explorer +690 miles - Cape Horn 12.02.01
3. Team Adventure 6,169 miles - Left Wellington 19. 02. 01
4. Warta Polpharma 6,234 miles - Left Wellington 17. 02. 01
5. Team Legato 7,940 miles - Left Wellington 21. 02. 01
6. PlayStation - RETIRED 14.01.01
Dateline. 08:00 GMT 23 February.
WEEK 7 WRAP on THE RACE!
03:00 GMT TEAM LEGATO WARTA POLPHARMA
Position: 44 25'S; 173. 12'W 53 42'S; 126 32'W
Speed at time of satellite poll: 11.0knots 17.2 knots
Average speed for last 4 hours: 8.6 knots 17.8 knots
Course: 144 Degrees 72 Degrees
Distance covered over 24 hours: 205 miles 428 miles
Distance between the two: +1,759 miles
With Grant Dalton and his Club Med crew predicting a finish back in Marseilles on March 2 or 3, the race is now on for TEAM LEGATO, Warta Polpharma and Team Adventure, still in the Pacific to cover the remaining 10,000 miles within the 30 day deadline.
With 2,700 miles still to cover, only a dismasting or collision could halt Club Med's remorseless pace. Now within 1,000 miles of the Azores, her nearest rival, Innovation Explorer is trailing 700 miles astern and still has the Doldrums to navigate through.
Back in the Pacific, the Poles on Warta Polpharma are not giving up 3rd place without a fight. They left Wellington on the 17th February, two days ahead of the faster Cam Lewis skippered Team Adventure which overtook them on Thursday. But this morning the gap between the two is just 1.5 miles! 1,700 further back, Tony Bullimore's TEAM LEGATO crew are still trying to shake off the High pressure system that has been moving East with them. "We are trying to head south as fast as we can, but the winds are from the south at the moment and stopping us from getting down into the Southern Ocean" said Bullimore today. As soon as they do, then the chase will be on catch up with Warta Polpharma. "We took 1,800 miles out of them on the stage from the Cape of Good Hope to New Zealand, so we are hopeful of being back in contention again by the time we get to Cape Horn," Bullimore said.
However, now down to six crewmembers after Armand Coursodon Olivier Cusin and Jason Owen stepped off the boat in Wellington nursing injuries and BBC reporter Rob Salvidge decided to call it a day, the remaining crewmembers will have their work cut out. "We've divided ourselves into two watches of three, working four hour shifts, and it is working out well." Said the British skipper. "Things are going to be harder, but there is a determination onboard to see this through and catch up with the Poles again. All we need is some wind."
Back in the Atlantic, Club Med crossed the Equator at 30 degrees West, but Innovation Explorer is aiming to cross at 33 or even 34 W in the hope of passing through the Doldrums in the shortest time. "We have decided to change tactics and look for a gateway in the west". Jérôme Teigné, a member of crew onboard Innovation Explorer justified the very west bound path of Loïck Peyron's giant catamaran today." Our navigator, Roger Nilson, is spending an enormous amount of time at the chart table and he thinks the most favourable crossing point, is to be found at around 33 or even 34 degrees West." Innovation hopes to both cross the Doldrums at their narrowest point and benefit from a rotation of the easterly trade winds to the south to quickly get out of the calms before it is their turn to face up to the great north-east trades that sweep the ocean from the Mauritanian coast as far as the Caribbean.
"We've still got air" confirmed Skip Novak, "on the edge of a squall line, we are sailing under big gennaker at 23/24 knots. The night was marked by these sudden apparitions of strong squalls. At one time we handed the reacher in a hurry in a violent acceleration of the wind up to more than 30 knots. The crew were disappointed about the absence of rain in these wind blasts, several of us would have appreciated a shower!"
Club Med has less to shout about at the moment. "We have barely more than 14 knots of wind" admitted Franck Proffit, "which is not much. The trade winds seem well established on our files and we are expecting an increase to more than 20 knots." The leader of The Race is sailing on flat water, beating to windward, and is trotting towards the disturbed weather patterns forming to her north. On the southern edge of a huge depression centred 1200 miles south-west of the Azores, Grant Dalton has his eye on a westerly flow ideal for gently sliding, on port tack towards Gibraltar.
There is no time to loose because this system is moving away to the east. He is going to have to climb dead north if he hopes to latch onto this by Sunday evening. As long as the sea remains flat, the Club Med men are putting the accent on speed. But the trade winds will inevitably trouble the waters. The big catamaran will have to face up to the chop, each shock being felt throughout the rig. So close to the goal Grant Dalton will have no alternative but to slow down and be patient.
In brief...
Rationed...
Grant Dalton has revealed the names of the members of crew apparently the most affected by the diminishing supplies of food on board Club Med: they are the Frenchman Nicolas Pichelin and the Italian Stefano Rizzi; "By the looks of them they are each short of about 7 or 8 kilos" confirmed Grant.
The cat and the albatross!
Cam Lewis never gets tired of admiring albatrosses from his Team Adventure. The giant cat is mixing it with the giant bird, prince of the Southern Ocean. And the two speed crazy creatures observe each other with curiosity, the cat hurtling down the watery slopes at more than 27 knots, while the big bird effortlessly glides a few metres above the trampoline.
Watcher
The maxi-monohull "Watcher" helmed by Hervé Laurent is pursuing with professionalism her mission as "sheepdog" of The Race fleet. She is currently sailing in a strong south-westerly flow, 450 miles to the south of Team Legato.
Sewing bee!
New sewing session last nigh aboard Innovation. The now famous reacher had to be handed once again for further repairs. The numerous repairs that have already been carried out on it would seem to be depleting the albeit important reserves of adhesive, thread and cloth.
Quote/unquote...
Jérôme Teigné (Innovation Explorer): "The heat is really stifling, more than on the trip down, I think. For those whose off-watch is in daytime, it's terrible because the cabins are superheated and humid, and there isn't a square centimetre of shade on deck where you can sleep!"
Skip Novak (Innovation Explorer): "The only ones to have lost any weight with us are Xavier (Dagault), who's not complaining, and Thierry (Douillard). We are still working on the basis of 5500 calories per day, but unlike Club Med, we've still got plenty of bars to nibble in between meals. I really believe that with all their sails, the boys on Club Med must have had to be really active during this round-the-world, and therefore consumed far more calories than us."
Grant Dalton (Club Med): "I have certainly appreciated this round-the-world as much as, or more than, my previous circumnavigations."
Grant Dalton and Skip Novak (without conferring with each other): "A trimaran would certainly have been faster in the Atlantic part of the course, but a catamaran offers better guarantees of safety in the Southern Ocean with less risk of burying the bows than with three hulls!"
Leading positions at 03:00 GMT today
1. Club Med 2,744 miles to finish - Rounded Cape Horn 11.02.01
2. Innovation Explorer +716 miles - Cape Horn 12.02.01
3. Team Adventure 6,317 miles - Left Wellington 19. 02. 01
4. Warta Polpharma 6,319 miles - Left Wellington 17. 02. 01
5. Team Legato 8,078 miles - Left Wellington 21. 02. 01
6. PlayStation - RETIRED 14.01.01
 

Dateline. 08:00 GMT 22 February.
Tony Bullimore and his TEAM LEGATO crew have now escaped the effects of New Zealand's wind shadow and are aiming to hitch onto a deep low pressure system to carry them at high speed along the Southern Ocean Expressway towards Cape Horn.
After a few calm spells yesterday, the British catamaran is reaching along at between 16 and 20 knots - 2-5 knots more than their rivals on Warta Polpharma, and by tomorrow, Bullimore is confident that the gap between the two boats will begin to narrow.
"It is going to be tough pushing this boat hard with just 6 of us onboard, but we are all going to give it our best shot and are confident that we can catch the Poles up again." He said today.
Leading positions at 03:00 GMT today
1. Club Med 2,973 miles to finish - Rounded Cape Horn 11.02.01
2. Innovation Explorer +880 miles - Cape Horn 12.02.01
3. Team Adventure 6,518 miles - Left Wellington 19. 02. 01
4. Warta Polpharma 6,513 miles - Left Wellington 17. 02. 01
5. Team Legato 8,040 miles - Left Wellington 21. 02. 01
6. PlayStation - RETIRED 14.01.01 		merchandise
   

Dateline. 08:00 GMT 22 February.
The big chase begins!
03:00 GMT TEAM LEGATO WARTA POLPHARMA
Position: 41 60'S; 175. 46'E 48 31'S; 146 40'W
Speed at time of satellite poll: 13.1knots 10.4 knots
Average speed for last 4 hours: 12 knots 16.9 knots
Course: 155 Degrees 82 Degrees
Distance covered over 24 hours: - 405 miles
Distance between the two: +1,396 miles
Tony Bullimore and his TEAM LEGATO crew set sail from Wellington, New Zealand at 20:00 GMT yesterday (09:00 local on 22 Feb) bound for Cape Horn in a race to catch up with their Polish rivals on Warta Polpharma, now 1,396 miles ahead.
"We are down to 6 crew, but everyone is mucking in to help each other and we are determined to make a race of this" said the British skipper with typical bulldog spirit.
Bullimore and his crew had expected the Poles to be further ahead after the British boat's two and a half day pit-stop in Wellington, but problems with the mainsail on Warta Polpharma slowed their progress yesterday. "We are trying to get south as fast as possible to escape a High pressure system sitting right over New Zealand at the moment. Mike Broughton, one of our on-shore weather routers who was in Wellington with us, has pin-pointed a nice Low pressure system down in the Southern Ocean which we want to latch on to. If we can get south in time, we could ride it most of the way to Cape Horn."
Bullimore has taken over the role of navigator and now shares the tactical decisions with his two watch leaders Frenchman Fred Dahirel and Australian Paul Larson. All the crew are taking it in turns to cook, starting with Tony who prepared a Spaghetti Bolognaise today. They have divided themselves into two watches of 3 working four hour shifts, and Bullimore believes that the weight saved from the 4 crew who left the boat in Wellington, will benefit their overall speed, not lessen it.
TEAM LEGATO Crew line-up
Tony Bullimore (GBR - 62) Skipper & navigator
Fred Dahirel (Fr - 37) Watch Leader
Paul Larson (Aus - 31) Watch Leader
Mike Gettinger (USA - 37) Engineer
Kevin Pahl (USA - 47) Rigger
Slava Sysenko (Ukr - 47) Sail repairs
Leading positions at 03:00 GMT today
1. Club Med 3,179 miles to finish - Rounded Cape Horn 11.02.01
2. Innovation Explorer +1,047 miles - Cape Horn 12.02.01
3. Warta Polpharma 6,681 miles - Left Wellington 17. 02. 01
4. Team Adventure 6,783 miles - Left Wellington 19. 02. 01
5. Team Legato 8,077 miles - Left Wellington 21. 02. 01
6. PlayStation - RETIRED 14.01.01
Dateline: 16:30 GMT 21 February
Stop Press..Stop Press...Stop Press..
TEAM LEGATO to rejoin THE RACE later today. Jason Owen stays ashore on medical grounds
Tony Bullimore and his TEAM LEGATO crew, now down to 6 in number, will re-joined THE RACE in a few hours time after a starter motor flown down from Auckland arrives at 08:00 and is fitted to one of their generators. "We are ready to go and the engineer is onboard ready to fit the starter as soon as it arrives from the airport. Hopefully, we will be off by 09:00 local time." Said Bullimore.
Continued medical problems ruled out navigator Jason Owen from re-joining the boat after a late fitness test today showed that he was in need of further physiotherapy. "Jason's back problems stem from when TEAM LEGATO nose-dived into a wave a week ago when two Frenchmen, Armand Coursodon and Olivier Cusin were also injured." Tony Bullimore explained, adding. "Ocean Racing is one of the toughest challenges. That is the great appeal. If it wasn't, then we would be organising holiday packages round the world. Personal injuries are one of the hazards we try to avoid, but if and when they happen, my first thought as skipper has to be for crew welfare. We are all sorry that Jason, Armand and Olivier are not able to join us for the last and perhaps most exciting part of this challenge, sailing round Cape Horn, but their health has to be the first priority."
Bullimore also expressed surprise at the media attention given to the departure yesterday of journalist Rob Salvidge. "Rob's decision to leave the boat was for personal reasons which we respect and understand. The issues have been blown up out of all proportion and the crew and I have taken all that we have read in the press with a pinch of salt. Rob departed on the best of terms and with our good wishes, as I am sure he will confirm when he gets back to Blighty today. And when we get back to Bristol, I'm sure that he will be one of the first to greet us on the quay."
Bullimore's thoughts are now focused on re-catc