Dream of mast crack comes true

Press, 21 January 1982, Page 28

Dream of mast crack comes true

PA Auckland A bad mast crack could have ended Ceramco New Zealand’s Auckland - Mar del Plata hopes in the Whitbread race, the crew revealed yesterday. Soon after rounding Cape Horn, the rigger, Don Wright, dreamed that Ceramco was to lose her mast on the way up the Argentine coast. He went on deck to check the spar, and found that it was cracked through for half its circumference. The Ceramco crew were

able to repair the mast, bolting metal plates over the cracked area and fitting a wire strop from the mast to the bow. “It was fine after that but it could have been costly had we not discovered the crack and done something about it,” said the skipper, Peter Blake. "Thank goodness we have a dreamer aboard.” Ceramco was the second of the round-the-world contestants to reach the third leg finish, a matter of hours

behind the first boat home, Flyer, skippered by Cornelius Van Reitschoten, of the Netherlands. It was the second successive time that Ceramco had taken the runners-up place on absolute time to Flyer, after dismasting on the first leg of the six-month ocean ordeal, from Plymouth to Cape Town. On the second leg, from Cape Town to Auckland, Blake steered Ceramco to top place on handicapped time. Flyer is four metres

longer than the New Zealand boat, so to finish only a few hours behind the Dutch boat was a powerful performance. On his arrival, Blake said that he had rounded Cape Horn a mere 30 minutes behind Van Rietschoten after 18 days at sea. The Dutchman had earlier said the gap was 52 minutes. Indeed, the two boats conducted a battle royale throughout the third leg, which only Eric Tabarly, of France, aboard Euromarche, could get anywhere near. Blake said: “We never had

any really bad storms. The wind was ideal for speed, from 30 to 35 knots carrying us up to Cape Horn. Therefore, on three successive days we were able to cover 315, 302, and 322 nautical miles. “The smaller boats still at sea are struggling with winds of more than 60 knots. It is just not the same course.” Ceramco will now start favourite on the final leg to Plymouth. The New Zealand boat arrived in the early hours of the morning to a near-de-

serted quay, but were cheered to find the Flyer crew still there to welcome them with beer and sandwiches. Flyer covered the 5800 miles from Auckland in 24 days, one hour, 22 minutes, and 30 seconds. Flyer was in almost flawless condition on arrival at this ocean resort and Van Rietschoten declared his conviction that another win on absolute time on the final leg across the Atlantic to Plymouth was within his grasp.