Ireland’s Green Dragon, currently sailing down the coast of Africa towards Cape Town on the first leg of the Volvo Ocean Race, is the first to deal its “stealth” card.
The StealthPlay, which gives each boat a chance to hide on the racecourse for 12 hours, allows teams to make a tactical break from the fleet without the rest of the competitors knowing what they are doing.
The Green Dragon, who on Tuesday had taken a lead for five hours, before dropping back into third, opted to go off screen as she headed past the Canaries.
According to John Killeen, it’s a question of tactics - like a game of chess. The boats had been reasonably tightly bunched until then, and the next 24 hours could be critical as they head into the Trade Winds.
Ian Walker and his team are the first to use this new tactical weapon – an innovation for this edition of the Volvo Ocean Race.
Almost everyone in the lead pack has had a go at the front during Tuesday’s sailing. Telefonica Black, Green Dragon, and favourite Ericsson. Average speeds were high with 18, 19, 20 knots being sustained.
Once a team opts to use StealthPlay their position will not be visible to the rest of the fleet, or the public. By today, it will be interesting to see where the Green Dragon lies having come back onto the radar screens.
