Potential danger in the Strait of Hormuz
It is the leg that takes us from RAK up through the rest of the Persian Gulf and the coast of the UAE, around the top through the Strait of Hormuz (between Iran and Oman) and down the other side into Dibba, Oman into the Gulf of Oman.
According to World Atlas, the Strait of Hormuz,” The narrow Strait of Hormuz is considered one of the most, if not the most strategic strait of water on the planet. Through its waters, in giant ocean-going tankers, passes much of the oil from Bahrain, Iran, Iraq, Kuwait, Qatar, Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates. “
One only has to read CNN in the last year to know that there has been a great deal of action going on in the Strait, with Iran rattling its saber threatening to close the strait, while western forces (very much including the U.S.A. with our air-craft carrier) are here to make sure that doesn’t happen. I know our guys are in the area, and it sure makes me feel better. (Continue reading at CNN: Meet the U.S. ‘Top Guns’ with eyes on Iran here…)
Racing within the safety zone
Oman has relations with Iran and has been in contact with them regarding this race. Provided our yachts do not cross into Iranian waters, we should all be fine and should have no safety concerns. The fleet is required to stay within 10 nautical miles of the coast, which should ensure that we do not instigate an international incident.
Piracy is a real issue in yacht racing
The pirates, who used to be interested in taking over cargo and ships, have taken a recent interest in kidnapping… Concern over this caused the organizers of one of the premiere ocean races, The Volvo Ocean Race, to make a decision to ship the Volvo Ocean Race boats ( 70-foot high-performance machines) through these waters rather than sailing them through… After consulting with maritime security experts, the Volvo race organizers felt that they could not guarantee the safety of the boats and crew. Continue reading here…
Security measures activated for our fleet
The course set for Sailing Arabia 2012 will lead us through increasingly dangerous waters. There was a pirate attack just on the other side of the Strait of Hormuz towards the end of January this year, (Continue reading here… ) therefore our race organizers have put the following safety measures in place:
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An Oman Navy vessel will meet us at the border between the UAE and Oman to escort us to the top of the Strait. There, another Oman Navy vessel will take over and accompany us until they hand us off to third Oman vessel responsible for shadowing the fleet into Dibba.
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Two military helicopters will take turns tailing the fleet during the race.
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Additional “friendly” military friends in the Strait have been made aware of the race
So, it would appear that we are in pretty good hands. Although an expensive order, nothing beats a private, armed escort.
Well, almost nothing… because it turns out that our very near competitor, Team Renaissance, is skippered by Omani skipper Ahmed Al Mamari, and he is an ex-special Omani forces military man — so, on top of everything else, we seem to have a private guard!
Wish us luck! Keep tabs on us as we sail through the Strait of Hormuz.
I’ll send out another update as soon as I can!
K
