Volvo Fleet Thinned

Volvo Ocean Race Leg 4 leader Telefónica Blue is only 180 miles from the finish in Qingdao. With only a 30-mile cushion over Ericsson 4 and Puma — currently in a neck-and-neck battle for second — skipper Bouwe Bekking is doing his best to stay between his competition and the mark. Both Telefónica Blue and Puma have benefitted from Ericsson 4‘s misfortune when the latter sailed into a series of fishing nets, breaking the first two but having to stop and back down to clear the third. In fourth, 300 miles behind, is Ian Walker’s Green Dragon, which is soldiering on despite having to stop and make structural repairs in the Philippines.

And how about everyone else? Well, they’re all moored up in Taiwan or the Philippines. Following the retirement of Telefónica Black, both Delta Lloyd and Ericsson 3 were forced to retire with major structural damage, suffered in what have been reported as heinous sea conditions. Delta Lloyd has suffered delamination while Ericsson 3 has suffered cracking in the hull forward of the watertight bulkhead — allowing water to enter before the crew was able to stop the leak. Both successfully made port in Taiwan and, while they’re officially listed as having "suspended racing," it’s unlikely they’ll be able to to restart, and also doubtful they’ll be able to make the start of Leg 5 — the monster 12,300-miler — from Qingdao, around Cape Horn to Rio de Janeiro. For more, check out today’s edition of Mark Chisnell’s always informative Ten Zulu Report at the race’s website.