Start, Race 2

More wind than expected was a welcome relief to the crews aboard the 19 vessels as they headed out for the start of Race 2 of the Historical Seas Tall Ships Regatta this afternoon off Varna.

Thousands of spectators watched as the ships sail into the bay in preparation for the start.

The wind, from the south, allowed a west to east start seven-miles offshore in a relatively steady 12kts of breeze.

There were two starts, Class A and B going off together followed by C and D.

In the Class A and B start Dar Mlodziezy, Poland, and the Class B schooner Bodrum, Turkey crossed the line at exactly two minutes and nine seconds after the start gun. One second later, Kaliakra, Bulgaria crossed the line third, and Mir, Russia was another 30 second behind her.

Most of the fleet in Class C and D opted for a windward end of the line start with Akela, Russia (Class D) first over the line followed by Hansa, Spain and Mati, Croatia in third. In an effort to keep in clear air, Adonis started halfway down the line and had good speed as she crossed in fourth place.

The winds are expected to remain south-west to west Force 2-4 for the next 24 hours. The first waypoint is 56 miles south-east from the start.

The first scheduled report will be published on the website tomorrow morning at 0700 UTC/GMT.

To track the Historical Seas Tall Ships Regatta fleet as they race click here. 

To view the current placings of the race click here. 

To view the combined race results of Leg 1 and 2 of Race 1 click here.

The Historical Seas Tall Ships Regatta is organised by Sail Training International.