Less than 900 miles to go for Ericsson 3 that faced tough conditions

Hopefully the last tough night behind us on leg 5. Fighting against a front and staying in it has been on the agenda many times on this leg. You may win a lot of miles by doing so and if you fall short the wind will back and you start to loose. This is why again on the night the 19 th we had a blast in really mixed up sea state.

But we are human beings not robots so we too start to feel tired and especially fed up with these fights, due to it has been most of the times tight reaching instead of nice downwind sailing.

Chris Bedford, Ericsson Team meteorologist, talks looks at what's approaching in terms of weather and wind for Ericsson 3 and 4. 21 March 2009. Video copyright Ericsson Racing Team

You have lots of speed, people are flying around in the cockpit and the constant water hosing makes you crazy. The only thing that keeps you fighting is the commitment to the team and the loyalty to others. As a team you feel stronger and perform better during the tough times.

But for now hopefully we can start to change to shorts and t shirts. Its been a long ride so far all the way from Taiwan. Just waiting to get to Rio and get a couple of beers and meet my wife and the kids. But lets first fight to the finish.

Thomas Johanson, Watch captain
Ericsson 3