JAMAICA expected to cross the line tomorrow

The end of race 8 is nigh.

As we write this article (08:00 BST), the battle for 1st place should just be coming to an end. The 06:00 schedules confirmed Nova Scotia to still be a whisker ahead of Singapore with just 4 miles separating the 2 yachts. If Nova Scotia do manage to hold off the persistent attempts of Singapore it will be a major turnaround for the team currently sitting in 9th place in the overall rankings and will propell them half way up the table. And with Singapore currently 7th in the overall results it shows how quickly fortunes can change.

JAMAICA has consolidated her 6th place in this race; with Glasgow, JAMAICA and Liverpool evenly matched it does appear that these will be the positions when JAMAICA is due to cross the finishing line at early tomorrow. 6th will be a credible result for the crew after a hard race of constant beating into the wind. The boat has been on a pretty consistent tack as this picture of Lisa Gill helming shows.

The bonus will be that all of the teams are ahead of their (rearranged) schedule which should give a little more recovery time in port. Leg 6 / Race 9 is due to start soon after the new crews arrive on 21st April.

All depends on the progress of Durban and Western Australia who did not manage to join this race due to their mast replacement work. They are roughly half way through their journey under a mixture of sail and motor as the graphic shows. Sadly for them they are not enjoying the strong winds which have propelled the leading boats to achieve speeds in excess of 120 miles for a 12 hour run and are currently only managing some 60 miles per 12 hours.

With some 1,200 miles still to go theirs will be a very quick turnaround when they arrive in Santa Cruz.