News

Three teams to transit Panama Canal on Saturday

17 May 2008

With the arrival on Thursday of Nova Scotia, Liverpool 08, westernaustralia2011.com and Durban 2010 and Beyond, all ten of the yachts in the Clipper 07-08 fleet are now in Panama. The crews have only had a few hours together to swap stories and analyse Race 9 from Santa Cruz, California before the first three yachts set off early this morning to transit the Panama Canal.

There has been a whirlwind of activity in the marina as the crews swung into action on arrival to prepare themselves for the next race from Panama to Jamaica and have some time to unwind before the passage through the Canal. Victualling, deep cleans, maintenance and laundry have all been completed in record time in order to be ready for the call from the Panama Canal Authority giving them 24-hours notice of their transit time.

The prizegiving ceremony on Thursday evening was attended by HM Ambassador to Panama, Richard Austen, who presented the much-coveted pennants to the crews of Hull & Humber, whose win takes them into the overall lead, a jubilant Qingdao and New York, who are becoming a regular fixture on the podium and are just two and a half points behind Hull & Humber.

He also met two of the members of the ONE HULL Tag Team, James Douglas and Brendan DeCordova and signed the Wilberforce Petition, the scroll the Tag Team is carrying with them on the race around the world, calling for an end to modern day slavery. His Excellency added his signature to those of dignitaries from the other countries the Clipper fleet has visited.

Another contest was settled after the official business had been concluded: the Liverpool 08 versus Qingdao moustache growing competition. Glasgow: Scotland with style Clipper skipper, Hannah Jenner, was called on to judge the hirsute hombres and awarded the team prize to Qingdao and the individual prize to Ben Galloway from Liverpool 08, whose female crew members had spent a considerable time styling and grooming their skipper.

Qingdao crew member Steve Brannon, who has sported a moustache for 34 years, decided it was time his came off to raise money for Alzheimers and Victims of Stroke charities. He raised US$695 by passing his Panama hat around the crews who sponsored him to come clean.

The crews of New York, Uniquely Singapore and Glasgow: Scotland with style Clipper reported to their yachts at 0600 this morning (1100 GMT) for their passage through the Canal. Richard Austen and three staff members from the British Embassy were welcomed onboard Glasgow: Scotland with style Clipper for the passage. It is the first time His Excellency has passed through the Canal on a yacht and at the prizegiving ceremony last night he told the gathered crews, “I’m very pleased you are all here and I’m very impressed with what you are doing. I am looking forward tomorrow to doing probably the shortest leg of all – but I will take my seasickness tablets before we start and I will bring my Panama hat with me. I wish I was coming all the way back to Liverpool with you but I will make do with going to Colon and wish you all very well.”

Each yacht must have a pilot on board for the passage through the Canal as navigation through Gatun Lake is tricky, with many inlets in which it is possible to get lost and a danger of running aground if boats stray from the correct channel. The three teams met their pilots at the rendezvous mark and set off towards the Miraflores Locks which mark the entrance to the 51-mile waterway, passing under the Bridge of the Americas. As the lock gates closed behind them they said farewell to the Pacific Ocean and began the home stretch of their race, towards the Atlantic and the finish line in Liverpool on 5 July.

Images from the stopover in Panama can be viewed in the multimedia section of the website.

Race followers can also watch the yachts entering and leaving the Miraflores locks on the Pacific side and leaving the Gatun Locks at the Caribbean side by clicking on the links to the Panama Canal Authority webcams:

Click here to see the yachts entering the Miraflores locks and exiting the Gatun locks

click here to view them exit the Miraflores locks

Hull & Humber, westernaustralia2011.com and Durban 2010 and Beyond are scheduled to begin their transit on Saturday 17 May at 0945 local (1445 GMT).

News on the transit schedule for the remaining four yachts, Nova Scotia, Liverpool 08, Jamaica and Qingdao, will be posted in Race News.