Dalton might be leading race

Press, 2 November 1989, Page 40

Dalton might be leading race

PA Wellington The Fisher and Paykel skipper, Grant Dalton, believes he is leading the second leg of the Whitbread round the world race because he suspects that the Argos satellite is not giving the true picture of the yachts’ positions. Dalton told his sponsors in Auckland by telephone yesterday that he felt the computer should be predicting the yachts’ positions at 55 degrees south instead of 50 degress south. He said if so, he had calculated that he was now actually one mile ahead of Steinlager 2. On current conditions, Dalton said since they hit a front on Tuesday when they were well positioned to take advantage of the change in weather, the ride had been uncomfortable and wet. “The sun has only just begun to come out,” he said. Earlier reports yesterday said Fisher and Paykel had moved into second place behind Steinlager 2. The satellite pass showed the New Zealand yachts just'miles apart with Union Bank of Finland only a mile behind Fisher and Paykel. Most of the maxis in division A were still closely grouped during the early stages of the second leg from Punta del Este in Uruguay to Fremantle in West Australia. Only 77 miles separated Peter Blake’s Steinlager 2 from the Soviet entry, Fazisi, skippered by American Skip Novak, in tenth place. A group of three yachts, Charles Jourdan, British Satquote Defender and Gatorade, broke away from the pack and were 200 miles further south.