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The Kiwi-Australian duo of Conrad Colman and Scott Cavanough took first place in Global Ocean Race (GOR) Leg 4 from Punta del Este, Uruguay, to South Carolina with Akilaria RC2 Class40 Cessna Citation, crossing the finish line off Charleston at 05:45:00 GMT (01:54:00 local) last Tuesday morning. Colman and Cavanough took 28 days 11 hours and 45 minutes to complete the 5,700 miles from Uruguay to Charleston.
Crossing the finish line at #13 buoy to seaward of Charleston’s twin, offshore breakwaters, 28-year-old Colman and 30-year-old Cavanough lit orange flares in celebration as their Class40 ghosted north in minimal breeze on a long, oily swell beneath a half-moon and cloudless sky with the loom of Charleston’s city lights as a backdrop.
For Kiwi skipper Conrad Colman, this isolation at the head of the fleet was satisfying, but the lack of close combat left an empty feeling: “We actually felt a little bit envious of the others as we made a quick break at the beginning and then the wind favoured us, so we very quickly extended out,” he explains. “Then it was just us and the flying fish, whereas the other guys were bouncing off each other and having a good time,” says Colman. “I’ll never get sick of winning, but it was a fairly relaxed way of winning the leg.”
For the complete update from Oliver Dewar, Click here.
