Lizzie Nicholas, Race Secretary: “Durban 2010 and Beyond in particular needs to be careful not to make very much more westing as they still have to round the bulge that is Recife and the North East region of Brazil, and fighting their way back south east into south easterly winds could cost them some miles on their competitors.”

The headwind enables the spinnakers to be packed away and offers the chance for the skippers to get some rest in between the six hourly schedules.  Beating into wind again will also provide a little respite from the high temperature, from which all the crew have been suffering as Ricky Chalmers, Skipper of Durban 2010 and Beyond, explaines: “Hot, sweaty, tired and emotional, and that’s just the skipper.”

Liverpool 08 has continued to make some good gains overnight. After getting ahead of Hull & Humber at yesterday’s midday poll the team has extended its lead by 42 nautical miles to the finish. Liverpool 08 skipper, Ben Galloway, reported how hard his crew has been focussed in getting ahead and staying ahead of their nearest competitor.  “We currently have a squall stuck to us like a magnet and can’t shake it off, we’re going around in circles, its very frustrating but still in shorts and glad to have Hull & Humber behind for once. Although they’re probably ahead now after the past couple of hours of going in all directions other than south.”

Liverpool 08’s report explains the dramatic change in its course indicated on the race viewer, but their concern about Hull & Humber catching them is unwarranted as Lizzie Nicholas explains: “They need not have worried as Hull & Humber has also been battling with, “either zero wind or squally downpours,” which has made for scant progress in the last 12 hours. Westernaustralia2011.com is sailing in the same patch of squalls too, but if they can all keep their boats moving it won’t be long before they pop out of the ITCZ and into the tradewinds.”

For Qingdao, Uniquely Singapore and Jamaica the tradewinds seem a far cry from the conditions in which they currently find themselves. Qingdao skipper, Marcus Cholerton-Brown, reported: “Salvador seems a long way off, especially with 0.2knots of boat speed. Our SeaPro gives an arrival date in 2008!!”

Regardless of their distance to Salvador the crews will all be turning their imaginations to the next milestone, the Equator Crossing. With Durban 2010 and Beyond only 138 nautical miles away it is likely it will be the first to cross and should do so within the next 24 hours. For all those who have never sailed across the Equator before the crew will undergo various rites of passage and initiation ceremonies, performed by those who have already become what is referred to in the nautical world as ‘shellbacks’.