There was only one small difference in this afternoon's lopsided duel. For a brief, shining moment, the Italians made a race of it. In fact, the Prada crew showed some true heart in the early going and, at one point up the first windward leg, even held the lead. But it gave it away with a tactical error that summed up its sad overall performance in the regatta. Frankly, once again, the better team won.
Testing means different things to different manufacturers of foul weather gear.
And you can be assured there aren't many of them testing their products in the Southern Ocean. But that's exactly what Douglas Gill did. Working with the crew of Chessie Racing in the last Whitbread Race, they pushed their products to the limits, and then listened to the sailors about modifications. As a result of this interaction, Gill has increased the comfort and protection for everyone who sails. The Storm Trysail Club is officially renaming the proposed Havana to Baltimore Race to the Key West to Baltimore Race.