Volvo Ocean Race

Today I decided to visit the Volvo village of the Volvo Ocean Race, Kochi Stopover. The village was declared open to public yesterday after the last yacht, the Russians arrived here. I basically went to see the yachts which had weathered many a storm in the yearly round the world race. The boats are around 30 mts long and are designed for a maximum speed of upto 40 knots. But the maximum that has been achieved is about 27 kts in 2007 which has not yet been beaten. These boats are made of composite carbon fibre, which makes them light weight, with two rudders for maneouvering. The boats also have a deep torpedo shaped bulb for stability and the aeordynamic shape helps in reducing the resistance and achieving high speeds.
The boats were in hoisted position and one was in the water, so you could appreciate the entire structure of the boats and the underwater hull.
Todays event was the traditional Pooram, the Kerala Temple festival. The teams and the foreign guests must have had a first hand experience of the Pooram, with 12 bedecked elephants standing in line and the traditional Panchavadyam ( an orchestra of 5 musical instruments) played out to the waving of the chamarams.
For the Indian visitors, there was a simulator, a ride in a covered carriage, which simulates the ocean waves, complete with the rolling and pitching. The exhibitions were just namesake and nothing to write home about. A huge stage set up will feature musical events and other choreographed events. Todays menu was Gujarati folk dance and a musical night by Hariharan.
The events go on till the 13th of December, and then begins the third leg of the ocean race, with the teams heading to Singapore.