Grael declares his intentions as toughest stage commences

SAILING: THE BALMY, tropical conditions hardly seemed to herald what has been widely billed as the toughest stage of the Volvo Ocean Race,which started from Singapore yesterday afternoon. But that wasn't fooling anyone: the weather charts have been accurate for weeks, and this is going to be a test and more.

A quick, three-leg course just off the beach at Changi saw Torben Grael emphatically declare his intentions for the leg; he has the strongest, best-prepared team and a conservative start was out of the question.

Only Ken Read on Puma Ocean Racing came close to challenging, though it is more usually the American who streaks away from the fleet, leaving spectators gasping.

As for Ireland’s Green Dragon, a second-row start right beside race officer Bill O’Hara on the committee boat might not have looked as special as leading the pack across the line, but by the first mark the Galway boat had reeled in to third place and a battle to hold on had developed with Ericsson 3.

As the boats left the sanctuary of the port’s vast anchorage and the straits astern, the 15-knot breeze held as they settled in for a long haul northeast to the north of Borneo.

The normally gruelling task of “stacking” – moving all the sails and equipment to the high side of the boat – got under way and seemed set to relieve the crews of another round of sleep as the port-tack course was likely to take all night.

In fact, with northerly winds expected for almost all of this 2,500-mile leg, long stretches on either tack can be expected. But as this week progresses and the temperatures fall to near freezing, the pounding of the hull against the steep seas is certain to cause damage throughout the fleet.

For Ian Walker and the crew of the Irish-Chinese backed boat, upwind sailing is acknowledged to be their weakest point due to the keel weighing almost half a tonne less than those of the Ericsson boats, Puma and both Telefonicas.

That “missing” weight has been used elsewhere, re-enforcing potential trouble-spots in the carbon hull that can easily mean the difference between completing this leg in one piece and having to pull in for repairs. That’s their edge and a huge gamble.

Next weekend’s storms will be the acid-test.