Aarhus leg start day - VO65s start at 16:10 --- IMOCAs at 18:15 (local timings)

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VO65 fleet - Aarhus -> The Hague (ETA June 11)
Leg start at 16:10 local time

IMOCA fleet - Aarhus -> Kiel Fly By (ETA June 9 afternoon) -> The Hague (ETA June11)
Leg start at 1815 local time

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1320 local / 1120 UTC: Expectations are for a 5 to 7 knot sea breeze today, under clear sunny skies and probably the warmest day in Aarhus so far this year, up to 24-degrees. So it won't be the fastest start, but stronger conditions are forecast for Friday.

1130 local / 0930 UTC: Leg 6 from Aarhus to the Hague gets underway today with 10 boats in two fleets taking on a tactically complex leg.

First off will be the VO65s. 

Starting at 1610 local their race begins with laps of the square inshore course in front of what is expected to be a busy spectator fleet before then heading north towards the tip of Denmark. From there, the amended course takes them out to a mid-point in the North Sea before heading back towards the Danish coastline where they will turn south and head towards the finish off the Hague.

“We have looked carefully at the weather forecasts and have decided to add two virtual marks into the course in order to have the fleet finishing in The Hague on Sunday afternoon,” said Race Director Phil Lawrence.

IMOCA race to The Hague via the Kiel Fly By

The IMOCA fleet gets underway at 1815. They too will complete laps of the square inshore course but will then head south for a fly-by in Kiel (ETA Friday afternoon) before then heading back north where they will exit the Baltic. From there, it’s expected to be a brisk reach south to the finish in the Hague (ETA June 11).

With light winds expected for the start and a forecast for a significant variation in wind direction as well, the opening stage of Leg 6 promises to be challenging for the teams as they try to balance the desire to chase the best breeze, against maintaining the quickest route to Kiel. Local effects and tide will be playing a big part in their tactics as it will for the race management as well.

“We are looking at achieving a target time for the Kiel fly-by of around 1600 local on Friday 9 June. To achieve this we may be looking at extending the course,” said Race Director Phil Lawrence. “The high performance nature of the IMOCAs means that their speeds can change significantly with small variations in the wind strength, so adjusting the course to make the best of what looks set to be an impressive section of the leg is something we will be watching very closely.”

Weather forecast 

A high pressure system to the west of Norway that is moving northeast along with a low pressure system south of Sweden looks set to deliver mainly clear skies and a light westerly gradient breeze by midday. 

Overnight and into the early hours of Friday morning the breeze is expected to be a light northwesterly for the IMOCA fleet and a light southwesterly for the VO65.

During the daytime on 9 June the wind will start to build from the east to 15-20 knots and remain through until the finish on Sunday 11 June where it may become more variable in direction.