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Puma Loses Rig

Just when we thought things in the Volvo Ocean race had settled down, news came this morning that Puma Mar Mostro Powered by Berg had dropped its rig in the middle of the South Atlantic. The lone American entry in this edition of the Volvo Ocean Race, with Ken Read as skipper, was sitting in second place and sailing in only moderate conditions when the tragedy struck and their mast ended up in three pieces, much the same way that Abu Dhabi Racing Azzam‘s did at the beginning of the leg. The rigs came from two different manufacturers though — Azzam‘s was one of the first rigs to be produced by the grand prix rigging company Future Fibers and had the company’s trick new carbon standing rigging. Puma was sailing with a Hall Spar strung with Southern Spars well-proven carbon rigging. Read and the crew were evaluating their options as of this writing; the nearest land mass is the remote island of Tristan da Cunha, some 700 miles away.

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