Storm-Damaged Yacht Continues Round the World Race

After more than a week of repairs at a marina in Oakland, recovering from the effects of being hit by a rogue wave which ripped off the yacht’s helm and injured four crew members, the Geraldton Western Australia yacht resumed racing Saturday by sailing under the iconic Golden Gate Bridge and back into the Pacific Ocean, a spokesperson for the Clipper Round the World Yacht Race said Saturday evening.

Two of the injured crew members were brought to shore April 2 by the Alameda-based Coast Guard Cutter Bertholf after a rescue operation some 250 miles offrshore.

According to the race spokesperson, "Leaving the marina, the morale was high on Geraldton Western Australia.

"Skipper Juan Coetzer said, 'Our boat is back in order. The sail is back on the boom, we have our steerage back in and we are all ready to go.

"Nik Brbora [one of the injured crew members brought to Alameda] is back on board. He is still sore, but has helped to prepare the boat and repair the sail. The crew is very excited to get back to sea and focus on racing again.'"

The 10 boats competing in the Clipper Race left from Jack London Square in Oakland Saturday morning with fans cheering them on, including Oakland Mayor Jean Quan. The Coast Guard led the fleet across the Bay to the Golden Gate Yacht Club for the official start of the race at 2 p.m.

The next leg of the race will take the boats to Panama, where they are expected to arrive about May 7. They will then transit the Panama Canal before starting a 2,100-mile leg to New York.

The race started in Southampton, UK on July 31, 2011 and will end there on July 22, 2012 after taking 51 weeks to travel over 40,000 miles, visiting 15 ports of call on six continents.