This race from Singapore to Qingdao, China, is proving to be the hardest so

far of the Clipper 07-08 Round the World Yacht Race. It can be seen from the

tracks on the race viewer on www.clipperroundtheworld.com that the teams are

still sailing upwind towards the finish line and the northerly winds are due

to continue for the near future. However it does appear that the fleet has

managed to break away from the very strong winds down the Taiwan coast that

battered the yachts over the weekend.

"The wind is now very patchy, going from 16 to 25 knots and the back again,"

says Durban 2010 and Beyond skipper, Ricky Chalmers. "The direction is

changing also. All this is making progress very frustrating."

Hull & Humber skipper, Danny Watson reports a, "Long black night with

oscillating wind making it quite unnerving on the helm. Temperatures are

down and mid-layers and thermals dug out. Morale is very good on board."

Hull & Humber and New York appear to have come through the weekend's heavy

weather sailing most successfully, at the cost of Jamaica and Uniquely

Singapore who have dropped down the leader board.

Jamaica skipper Simon Bradley says, "Having lost the lead that we held for

about 12 days we are now fighting to get it back. No doubt like the rest of

the fleet we are licking our wounds after a couple of tough days, the

weather took its toll on both crew and yacht, but we never give up on

Jamaica - One Love!"

Two years ago during the Clipper 05-06 Race the area the fleet sailed

through during this stage was a mass of Chinese fishing boats. This year the

Race Committee has included some waypoints further offshore to try to keep

the fleet clear of this hazard. Even Dame Ellen MacArthur, who was making a

record breaking attempt around the Asian coast onboard B&Q, commented that

it was the largest number of fishing boats she had ever seen. So far, based

on the reports coming back from the fleet, the additional waypoints have

helped reduce this hazard.

The Race Office is now established in Qingdao and the team is preparing for

the fleet to finish later this week and over the weekend in time for the

formal prize giving for Race 6 on Sunday night. The media office,

maintenance team and the rest of the shore team will be on location at the

Olympic Sailing Harbour by Thursday.

Security at the marina is extremely tight and nobody is permitted entry

without a pass. Crew joining the boat for Leg 5 and friends and family must

contact the relevant city liaison officer to arrange to obtain your pass so

that you can enter the marina. The name and contact details of each of the

liaison officers can be found online in this race report at

http://www.clipperroundtheworld.com/index.php/race_news/comments/crews_mop_u

p_after_weekend_battering/

Please note: Clipper Ventures, organiser of the Clipper 07-08 Race, cannot

issue the passes. Family and friends will need to provide passport details

the name(s) of the boat and crew member you are supporting. Leg 5 crew

members will need to show their passport to obtain their pass.

Berths are now available for the Clipper 09-10 Round the World Yacht Race.

For more information call +44 (0) 2392 526 000 or email

oceanracer@clipperroundtheworld.com

RACE POSTIONS AT 1200 GMT, 11 FEBRUARY 2008

1. Hull & Humber: Distance to Finish (DTF) 519

2. New York: DTF 503 (Distance to Leader +11)

3. Glasgow: Scotland with style Clipper: DTF 540 (+21)

4. Durban 2010 and Beyond: DTF 546 (+27)

5. Jamaica: DTF 564 (+45)

6. Uniquely Singapore: DTF 573 (+54)

7. westernaustralia2011.com: DTF 577 (+58)

8. Liverpool 08: DTF 609 (+90)

9. Nova Scotia: DTF 645 (+126)

10. Qingdao: DTF 738 (+219)