Clipper Ventures’ fleet of round the world yachts are gearing up for their departure from Cape Town on Race 13 of The Times Clipper 2000 to Salvador, Brazil, following a week-long stopover hosted by the Royal Cape Yacht Club in South Africa’s oldest city. The fleet will set sail on the last part of the fifth and penultimate leg of the eleven-month circumnavigation from Cape Town at 1530 local time (1430 BST) on Saturday 30th June 2001.

The exact route for the 3,375 nautical mile race to Salvador will be determined by the positioning of the South Atlantic high-pressure system. A straight course to Salvador would take the racing yachts too close to the centre of this, leaving them with too little wind. Instead the eight identical 60-foot yachts will firstly charge to the north, then head northwest, before racing westward to Salvador. Tactically the skippers will be looking to find the optimum balance between taking the shortest and most direct route to Salvador with the risk of running out of wind, or opting for a route with greater distance and potentially more breeze.