Bouwe Bekking: We manage just to hang in with the leaders

We manage just to hang in with the leaders. What has happened to us is big disappointment for me and the rest of the guys, as we were, in our minds, ready to make more gains. We know that power reaching is a strong point for us.

We will investigate the daggerboard once we will reach Cochin. There was only 15 knots of breeze, but I reckon an impact with an object is the most likely cause. It is like a window in your car, it is very strong, but one little stone can shatter the glass into a thousand pieces.

Pepe Ribes dives to recover broken daggerboard. Southern Indian Ocean, 23 November 2008. Photo copyright Gabriele Olivo / Equipo Telefonica

I suspect that an impact damaged the board and this created the chain reaction. Frustrated, yes, but can’t change it back, keep chipping away and see what the future will bring us.

The boat is not easy to steer in these conditions, as we as we don’t have anything to prevent us sliding sideways. So every big wave, and there are many, hard pushes the bow down, resulting in making a big correction with the rudder, which of course creates drag. Normally if you look backwards, you can see a close to near straight line from the stern water, but now you can see that we zigzagging over the ocean. On deck it is back to normal, wet, wet, wet, the helmets and ski-goggles are out again, and the guys drive as hard as we can, as we know we are still in there.

Bouwe Bekking - skipper

Life aboard Telefonica Blue during leg 2. Southern Indian Ocean, 21 November 2008. Video copyright Volvo Ocean Race