The Green Dragon sailed into Capetown earlier this week having achieved its first objective - a podium finish.
Although Ireland’s entry in this year’s Volvo Ocean Race crossed the first-leg finish line in fourth position, she overtook third placed Ericsson 3 due to the Nordic boat being deducted two points for a “non-compliant” keel.
As a result the Green Dragon grabbed the vital third spot in this opening leg that started from Alicante on October 11, and in being first through the leg’s scoring waypoint, and thus earning the maximum number of points, the Green Dragon is also in third place overall.
“We set a clear objective of being in the top three or close in the top three in every leg,” said Ireland’s Damien Foxhall, who is the Green Dragon’s watchleader.
“ Consistency, hopefully, is going to be our by-word. First round for scoring, that’s a great bonus. And we hope to pull up a few leg wins along the way. This is what we’re hoping to achieve. Fourth is ok. We’d have liked to have done better, but we’re happy with what we have achieved.”
There were anxious times during the 22 days at sea during which four or five boats held the lead in some tight tactical battles. With Ericsson 4 and Puma always tipped to lead the pack, the Green Dragon stole a march in the lead-up to the first scoring gate of the race to round it first and gain some vital points. However in the end the favourites proved the faster, particularly in the fresher conditions, leaving Green Dragon and Ericsson 3 to lock horns in a battle to the finish. The Irish boat held the advantage until a series of mishaps, including two ripped sails, and a collision with a submerged object, proved costly. Just two days out of Cape Town, the Anders Lewander-skippered Ericsson crossed ahead for the run-in to South Africa.
“ I think we broke one of the wheels,” said Foxhall. “Ultimately, I don’t think there is a serious structural damage on the boat so we are able to keep sailing properly, but a few of the fairings are gone so we certainly had quite a lot more drag over a period of three or four days. We probably lost up to 50 miles from that and ultimately kept us away from the third place. But it is what it is. It’s a long race and I think we’ve seen some of the other boats have had their issues, and that happens all the way around, it’s part of the race.
“ Here we are with an Irish international entry in the Volvo Ocean Race and we are doing it justice. First around the Fernando mark and fourth across the line, but we’d have liked to have done better. We certainly feel we could have achieved the top three and we’ll be looking back at that and seeing how we go forward.
“We certainly feel very lucky. I think all of us feel part of a great team, a really good group of guys and the boat’s got a great potential. I think we can make it faster.”
The race will be based in Capetown until the next leg to Cochin in India begins on November 15. The Dragon has already been stripped - sails, boom, bunks, kit bags, rubbish, spare supplies, and mast have been removed, and the yacht craned out of the water to her new home, the previous base for the South African America’s Cup entry Team Shosholoza.
