Team New Zealand's Camper have slipped from the lead in the Volvo Ocean Race but the extreme Southern Ocean conditions means the fifth leg is well and truly up for grabs.
Camper held the overnight advantage and, over the last 24 hours, had been pushing hard to gain an advantage over the rest of the fleet by carrying a spinnaker longer than anyone else. But, with conditions worsening, focus has turned to survival and reining in the power of the boat which is travelling along at more than 30 knots in winds gusting up to 50 knots.
"It's a pretty stressful situation and your total focus is just on keeping everything in one piece," Camper skipper Chris Nicholson said. "Conditions are horrendous and fatigue is setting in, so it's all about keeping safe and you almost forget about the race at times."
Groupama were leading the fleet this evening (Sat), with overall race leader Telefonica in second place 16.1nm off the pace and Camper a further 13.4nm back in third.
With Cape Horn just under 3000 miles away, fewer than 50nm separate the top four boats as they race at high speed through the remotest area on the planet. The wild conditions have seen Camper clock up the best 24 hour run of the fifth leg with a 530nm plus effort.
