Sport Features

Sir Robin on Saga Insurance

Sir Robin: Race Diary

Friday 30 March

The Devon yachtsman Sir Robin Knox Johnston has finally completed the second leg of the Velux 5 Oceans race.

He crossed the finish line in Norfolk, Virginia just before midnight on Friday 30th March 2007.

He was the fourth yachtsman to finish the leg, and his arrival time puts him in fourth place overall. He had been in third place at the end of the first leg.

Sir Robin was held up by the winds: "It's been a nightmare from a racing perspective, too much time lost through faulty equipment and untrustworthy weather information.

"From a sailing point of view I have had some wonderful moments, but right now, I want to get away from the boat for a few days - away from the sea even - and deprive myself of both so I can rebuild my usual enthusiasm for the final leg and forget this one, which I never want to repeat."

Sir Robin says his aim now is to capture the overall 3rd place at the end of the race.

Race leader is Swiss sailor Bernard Stamm; Kojiro Shiraisi from Japan is in second; and Basque yachtsman Unai Basurko has overtaken Sir Robin in third spot.

New Zealander Graham Dalton is in fifth place. He has had to put into port in Brazil, after his yacht was damaged in a collision with a mystery object.

Monday 26 March

Sir Robin Knox-Johnston is battling to hold onto his overall position of third place in the Velux 5 Oceans Race.

Sir Robin finished third in the first leg from Bilbao to Fremantle, but is currently fourth on the second leg which finishes in Norfolk, Virginia.

Saga Insurance in calm waters (OnEdition)

Basque skipper Unai Basurko has already reached Norfolk. He started this leg with a five day deficit to catch up on Sir Robin, which means the Devon-based yachtsman has until Thursday 29 March to stay in third place overall.

Basurko is the third racer to finish leg 2, following leader Bernard Stamm from Switzerland, and second placed Kojiro Shiraisi from Japan.

Sir Robin, from South Devon, is feeling tired after a gruelling leg, and he's not being helped by the low winds which are holding him back.

Meanwhile, New Zealander Graham Dalton in fifth place is still in Brazil after his yacht was damaged in a collision with a mystery object.

Wednesday 21 March

After crossing the Equator on his 68th birthday on 17 March, Sir Robin Knox-Johnston is now heading on towards the end of the 2nd leg at Norfolk, Virginia.

Sir Robin, from South Devon, is now 2,200 miles away from Norfolk - but he's encountering 'bumpy' conditions.

"I got lurched today when we hit a wave and I landed on my left wrist. It is still not right."

However, he will no doubt be cheered to learn he has been awarded the 'Oldie Seadog of the Year' award by the Oldie Magazine in London!

Sir Robin has moved up into 4th place on this leg, after Kiwi Graham Dalton had to put into Brazil.

Dalton's yacht suffered damage when it hit an object and it's not known if he'll be able to resume the race.

Race leader Bernard Stamm from Switzerland and Kojiro Shiraisi from Japan have already reached Norfolk. In third place is Spaniard Unai Basurko.

Monday 12 March

Yachtsman Sir Robin Knox-Johnston is 4,500 miles away from Norfolk, Virginia - the end of Leg 2 in the Velux 5 Oceans Race.

Sir Robin, from South Devon, is making his way up the coast of South America on board his yacht, Saga Insurance.

He's at the back of the five-strong pack of racers - leader Bernard Stamm has already reached Norfolk.

Sir Robin is being held back by the north-easterly breeze, but is enjoying conditions never-the-less.

"Another lovely sailing day on board the good ship Saga Insurance," he reports on the race website.

"Blue rippled seas, white puffy clouds, winds at 4-5 knots, and the boat slipping along nicely, if not always in the desired direction."

Monday 5 March

A navigational error has left Devon yachtsman Sir Robin Knox-Johnston trailing at the back of the pack in the Velux 5 Oceans Race.

Sir Robin is having to sail and tack away from the Brazilian coast, after taking a westerly course.

Since making that decision the winds have turned north-easterly, which means he is heading towards the Brazilian coast.

He admits that in retrospect he should have followed the more easterly path of some of his competitors, including race leader Bernard Stamm, who has finished the 2nd leg in Norfolk, Virginia.

But Sir Robin says he was misled by his weather forecasting equipment: "The reason I am where I am now is that I trusted the weather technology and I shouldn't have done."

Sir Robin is 5th out of five on the 2nd leg of the race, having finished the 1st leg in 3rd place.

Thursday 1 March

Veteran sailor Sir Robin Knox-Johnston has decided to catch up on some much needed rest, and has slipped to the back of the pack in the Velux 5 Oceans Race.

Sir Robin, from South Devon, is in 5th place, some 49 miles behind Kiwi Graham Dalton in 4th place.

"I took it pretty easy yesterday and tried to catch as much sleep as I could, so I feel a lot better," said Sir Robin, who is 300 miles off the Uruguay coast.

The competitors are on the 2nd leg of the solo, round-the-world race. Swiss sailor Bernard Stamm is on course for winning the event.

The next stop is Norfolk, Virginia.

Sir Robin finished the 1st leg - in Fremantle, Australia - in 3rd place.

Monday 26 February

Sir Robin Knox-Johnston is in 4th place on the 2nd leg of the Velux 5 Oceans Race, as the competitors head towards Norfolk, Virginia.

Sir Robin, from South Devon, has sneaked ahead of New Zealander Graham Dalton, who had to put into the Falkland Islands for repairs to his yacht.

The Devon yachtsman, on board Saga Insurance, is heading towards some bad weather and stormy conditions - and he'll be sailing right into the teeth of the gale.

Meanwhile, Sir Robin has been doing some wildlife watching: "A nice group of dolphins came and swam with us for a while but there has not been much other wildlife. The birds are still rare."

The other thing playing on Sir Robin's mind is that he has run out of bacon: "Finished the bacon today," he reports. "The stews won't be the same."

Leg leader is Swiss sailor Bernard Stamm, who also won the first leg from Spain to Western Australia.

Stamm is the holder of the race, having won the previous event in 2002-3, when it was called the Around Alone.

Thursday 22 February

Devon yachtsman Sir Robin Knox-Johnston is back in the Velux 5 Oceans Race, after stopping for emergency repairs in Argentina.

Sir Robin is set to pass by the Falkland Islands, after repairs to his yacht, Saga Insurance.

He is 5th out of five on the 2nd leg of the single-handed, round-the-world race.

However, he has his eyes set on 4th position, as New Zealander Graham Dalton has had to put in for repairs at Port Stanley - some 140 miles ahead of Sir Robin. 

Monday 19 February

Sir Robin Knox-Johnston is on his way into Ushuaia for urgent repairs to his yacht, Saga Insurance.

Sir Robin successfully rounded Cape Horn, despite several problems with the yacht.

The vessel is now under tow en route to Ushuaia, Argentina - the most southerly city in the world.

Members of Sir Robin's team have flown out with parts, to carry out repairs to the mainsail and weather equipment.

Sir Robin, who lives near Ipplepen in South Devon, is 5th on leg two of the Velux 5 Oceans Race.

It's hoped that the repairs will enable Sir Robin to race more competitively in the remaining 7,000 miles of the solo, round-the-world race.

THE BACKGROUND

The race began from Bilbao, Spain, on Sunday, 22nd October with eight skippers.

In 1969 Sir Robin became the first person to sail non-stop around the world alone, and at 67 he is the oldest participant in the Velux 5 Oceans.

He was 30 when he took 312 days to circumnavigate the world in his 32ft wooden yacht Suhaili in the Sunday Times Golden Globe race. He was the only competitor to finish.