Racing

www.volvooceanrace.org -- Pointing straight at a narrowing, shifting gap in the Doldrums, the fleet are hammering northwards, once again falling into line behind Torben Grael and Ericsson 4. The overall leaders have powered back to the front overnight, as another challenger fell away. The wheel’s came off Telefonica Blue’s blitz up the charts when they snapped a daggerboard. Skipper Bouwe Bekking sent this quick report, and later on, navigator Simon Fisher discussed it with Amanda Blackley on audio. READ MORE

CNN - I have always dreamed of winning a medal at the Olympic Games -- and sailing seemed like a good sport to target. By choosing sailing, I figured, I wouldn't have to take on people like Michael Phelps in the pool, Usain Bolt on the track or Chris Hoy at the velodrome. I wouldn't need brute strength like weightlifters, the amazing accuracy of target shooters, nor the endurance of a marathon runner. I have also loved sailing for a long time, and watching the competitors at the Beijing Games I remember thinking to myself -- "this can't be that hard. Can it?" READ MORE

www.volvooceanrace.org -- Overnight, the fleet slammed the handbrake on and slid off the exit ramp – headed north to Cochin, the Run to the Sun, looking for a little more Northern Exposure, a little more light. Almost time to put away the thermals and get out the floppy hats and sun block. But they need to make sure it was the right exit, and they don’t end up in the wrong part of town ... Torben Grael and his Ericsson 4 team maintained their blistering pace and blasted through the scoring gate at 58degE at about 03:45 ZULU, to take the maximum four points and reinforce their overall lead. READ MORE

www.volvooceanrace.org -- PUMA have sustained serious structural damage for the second time in 24 hours and are considering whether to re-route away from the rest of the fleet to Cochin. The night before last, they crashed off a wave which caused several cracks in the longitudinal frames of the bow section. They bent the bow pulpit and shredded an asymmetric spinnaker in the process. The fix took seven hours but cost PUMA little in time to their rivals at the head of the fleet.Then at 04:30 GMT this morning, as the fleet blasted along in 25 knots of squally southern ocean, they suffered a further blow when the boat was launched off another wave. READ MORE

The New York Times -- The second leg of the around-the-world Volvo Ocean Race began as the eight crews set off for Asia with the threat of piracy along the way.It is the first time in the 35 years of the race, formerly the Whitbread, that teams will race to Cochin, India. Along with navigating through towering seas and icebergs, the yachts are expected to dodge local fishing fleets and pirates off the east coast of Africa. READ MORE

www.afp.google.com -- English skipper Alex Thomson on Thursday retired from the Vendee Globe race because the damage sustained to his IMOCA Open 60 yacht Hugo Boss is not repairable by the November 19 restart deadline. There is a transverse crack that runs five metres through the outer and inner skin of the boat, thought to have been sustained by a collision with a submerged object. READ MORE

www.sailing.org -- Italian windsurfing legend Alessandra SENSINI and three-time Olympic gold medallist Ben AINSLIE of Great Britain confirmed their status as sailing heroes when they were announced as winners of the 2008 ISAF Rolex World Sailor of the Year Awards.November is a special time of the year for the sailing community as it brings about the ISAF Annual Conference and the ISAF Rolex World Sailor of the Year Awards. The Awards are recognized as the highest honours a sailor can receive in recognition of his/her outstanding achievements during one year. READ MORE

www.volvooceanrace.org -- "Can we have the icebergs back?" joked Bouwe Bekking, the skipper of Telefonica Blue. It's not a common request, but then the challenges of the new route are not particularly common either. Instead of dodging icebergs and braving Southern Ocean storms, the crews lining up for the forthcoming leg to Cochin, India - and indeed the two further trips through Asia after that - are taking measures to ensure the threats of piracy and collisions with small unlit fishing vessels are minimised. "It's a step into the unknown for all of us," said PUMA Ocean Racing skipper Ken Read." READ MORE

www.volvooceanrace.org -- PUMA Ocean Racing bowman Jerry Kirby has revealed that business interests in America will keep him out of the team’s offshore crew until leg five. It was announced last week that the 52-year-old veteran was making way for an undisclosed amount of time, but Kirby, whose construction company employs 130 people, confirmed he would return after taking care of business at home. Initially that will be for the Singapore in-port race, but his offshore return will come when the team sets sail in February on the 12,300-nautical mile marathon from Qingdao to Rio de Janeiro. READ MORE