Yachting: Keel turns into a heavyweight responsibility

Richard Mason is probably wishing he had not raised his hand when Ericsson skipper Neal McDonald was looking for someone to be responsible for the boat's keel during the round-the-world race.

It should have been a relatively easy job, but the Auckland yachtie has become his team's most important member because the canting keel mechanism has caused all sorts of difficulty.

The Swedish boat was forced out of the second leg from Cape Town to Melbourne after one of the hydraulic rams in the keel failed.

It is a problem which has also plagued fellow Farr-designed yachts Pirates of the Caribbean and movistar.

"I have spent a lot of time on the phone to engineers and various experts around the world trying to sort it out," Mason said.

"That side of it has been challenging - a little too challenging at times."

The fleet line up in an in-port race in Melbourne today before the mad dash across the Tasman to Wellington which starts tomorrow week - a leg which will test the strength of the already fragile boats.

All three boats - Ericsson, movistar and Pirates - have strengthened their canting keel systems, replacing their titanium rams with stainless steel ones.

"We have rectified the rams we broke and have got a couple of other solutions we are going to put in the boat before we leave," Mason said.

"I think we have got it right now but I would be a brave man to say it."

Despite the boats' problems - and calls by some critics for organisers to halt the race and give the yachts a thorough going-over - Mason said it was not that bad.

"There has been a lot of sensationalism about the boats falling apart and that they are not up to the job. It is just new technology. It is never like the boat is going to sink or something stupid like that. It has just been failures in key areas, you might say."

Mike Sanderson's ABN Amro One team lead the race, and, with moderate 15-20 knot sea breezes expected off Melbourne today, the Juan Kouyoumdjian-designed ABN Amro boats will again be the ones to beat.

"The ABN boats are specifically oriented for certain conditions offshore," said Mason.

"They are high wind reaching, where the Farr boats are more of an all-round design.

"As the race conditions change a bit you might see some domination from the Farr boats. I certainly hope so."

RACE STATS

Points so far:

ABN Amro One (Ned) 29
ABN Amro Two (Ned) 24
movistar (Spain) 15.5
Brasil 1 (Brazil) 14.5
Pirates of Carib. (US) 13.5
Ericsson (Sweden) 12.5
Brunel (Australia) 11


Today: In-port race Melbourne - starts 4pm NZT.

February 12: Melbourne to Wellington, 1450 nautical miles.

Expected in Wellington: February 16.