Sean McCarter, skipper of the Derry entry in the Clipper Round the World Yacht Race, is playing his cards very close to his chest as the intense heat of the Equator kicks in.
The Derry “LondonDerry” Doire remains out front and is approaching the optional Scoring Gate which it is expected to reach within the next few hours to pick up a valuable three points. The Henri Lloyd and Mission Performance, second and third respectively, are expected to cross the gate later this afternoon.
The 12-strong fleet is now on 10 day of the 5,ooo mile crossing of the Atlantic Ocean from Brest in France to Rio de Janeiro in Brazil ia fast approaching the Doldrums, a large-scale weather system located on and around the Equator and best known as an area of very light winds which can slow sailing boats to a virtual stop, but they can often also produce violent thunderstorms and sudden fierce squalls.
Transient in nature, the Doldrums can quickly change shape and location and are therefore difficult to predict. The Doldrums are sometimes called the Intertropical Convergence Zone or the Equatorial Convergence Zone.
Derry skipper Sean McCarter has revealed the intense heat is now beginning to kick in.
He said:”It’s getting very warm below decks now in the day time as the sun heats up the hull and deck the temperatures go up, making sleeping almost impossible.
“Up side is we are in shorts and t-shirts most of the time and the days have been very sunny and the winds have been very good helping us south.
“I know this will only last for a few more days until we get to the Intertropical Convergence Zone (ITCZ) and it will be a bit of luck who gets out the other side. You can either end up parking up in this area of low winds for days, with just the noise of the flapping mainsail and the flying fish to keep watch, or get lucky and catch some wind to let you get into the wind to the south.”
He concluded: “I am not going to let you into our plan just yet, but we hope this will get us past the front runners, but it could easily go the other way and we could find ourselves at the back of the fleet sat in no wind at all.”
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