The Osaka Race continues to deliver a tactical “chess match”, with the main fleet now approaching the Solomon Islands and Equatorial doldrum region.
Earlier starters (Zero, Escapade and Curious Roo) have committed to their routing choices, with results soon to be evident.
It’s decision time onboard the main fleet yachts, to which way through this maze of islands will be the optimal path forward to reach the northern trade winds and on to Osaka.
It’s make-or-break territory and a critical point where route selection can spell glory or heartbreak. There are a number of options, but winds can be fickle, currents tricky, tropical thunderstorms and the volcanos surrounding adding their own twists together with wind shadows from the islands.
The shortest and most well-worn path by many in the past is the one that Zero and Curious Roo have selected, between Bougainville Island and New Ireland.
As every seasoned ocean racer knows, the shortest route on paper doesn’t always translate to the quickest passage. The Inter Tropical Convergence Zone (ITCZ) is a band of light and fickle air that sailors dread – and can stand as a gatekeeper here, holding them back from reaching the northern trade winds.
The westernmost passage has been the lesser path tested in the past, where one risks being forced into an upwind battle.
The eastern alternatives, such as Escapades path, can add hundreds of miles to the passage as they search to slice through the doldrums hoping for the shortest point with possibly a better wind angle to carry them into the Tradewinds.
We now wait to see which path is chosen and who will “sniff out” the best path of this meteorological trap to burst into the northern trades while others sit becalmed, watching their race prospects evaporate in the tropical heat.
The coming Osaka Race phase promises excitement as tactical decisions, changing weather patterns, and strategic gambles unfold across the advancing fleet.
