By Angus Phillips
Special to The Washington Post
Sunday, April 30, 2006

BALTIMORE, April 29 -- It's been a long, hard Volvo Ocean Race for local legend Bruce Farr, who has designed every winner of the prestigious 'round-the-world race since 1985, but whose four entries this time have lagged behind.

Saturday, Chesapeake Bay provided a spring bouquet of light and fickle winds. Farr boats went roaring to the front of the fleet and stayed there.

"It was Farr day," said Paul Cayard, skipper of Farr-designed Pirates of the Caribbean, which was third in Saturday's 16-mile in-port race just north of the Bay Bridge, behind first-place Movistar and second-place Brasil 1 and just ahead of fourth-place Ericsson. All four are Farr boats.

Indeed, the powerful fleet leader, Dutch entry ABN Amro 1, was just one place from last as a soft northerly breeze dwindled under bright sunny skies. ABN's sixth-place finish, just behind sister ship ABN Amro 2, earned it one point, but it still holds a 19 1/2 -point lead over second place Movistar in the overall standings with three legs to go.

The slender Farr boats showed a speed edge in light winds over the wider, stabler ABN boats, which are built for stronger winds, and over last-place Australian entry Brunel, which was seventh.

Farr and his chief engineer, Russell Bowler, were out among the 1,000 spectators boats crowding the course. They watched from separate power boats, then staged an exuberant race of their own back to Annapolis to celebrate. "Certainly they [the ABN boats] have the pace in some wind strengths and conditions, that's been apparent so far," said Bowler later. "But our guys are catching up. I'm just not sure there's enough race left."

Conditions were ideal for spectating as bright sunshine lit the bay and the breeze moderated between 5 and 12 knots, just enough to the keep the 70-foot boats moving. Movistar was second at the first turning mark behind Ericsson, then sped past on the run downwind and never relinquished the lead.

"The conditions suited us, that's for sure," said Movistar tactician Stu Bannatyne. "We, the Pirates, Brasil and Ericsson, all went through the water quite well.

Saturday's third-place finish moved U.S. entry Pirates into third overall, a half-point ahead of ABN Amro 2, which pleased Cayard. "We've been consistent -- second or third in seven of the last eight legs," he said. "You have to like that."