© Rick Tomlinson/volvo Ocean Race

SCA, the VOR's first official entry, snatched up PUMA Ocean Racing's mar mostro, and turned the Kraken and shoe into a pink field of grass and dandelions. The boat will be used for selection of the all-women's team.

For both the Groupama Sailing Team and Puma Ocean Racing, official announcements have been made confirming the end of their Volvo ambitions. While a setback for the Volvo Ocean Race, both sponsors are still keenly committed to sailing. Puma is a technical sponsor to Oracle Racing’s bid to defend the America's Cup, while Groupama will continue to support Franck Cammas in the Little Americas Cup and France’s Tour de France à la Voile. For the other teams from the past race, no official announcements have been made regarding their futures.

© Volvo Ocean Race/Farr Yacht Design

A new canting-keel 65-footer from Farr Yacht Design is the new face of the Volvo Ocean Race

With the recent announcement that an all-female team has placed a deposit for the first VO 65 One Design, the decision to move to a one-design boat appears to have been vindicated for the next Volvo Ocean Race. "I reckon that with the old boat, the Volvo Open 70, we would not even have thought about this," says Richard Brisius, head of Atlant Ocean Racing, the management team behind the female SCA team. "The new 65-foot design is still a monster--still a huge boat--but it's now at least possible, even though you could never say it's going to be easy."

On May 11, a great ocean race will be departing from Charleston, S.C., and no, I’m not talking about the Volvo Ocean Race. The Atlantic Cup will soon be here, and 14 Class 40s are set to do battle in a doublehanded series up the U.S. East Coast. Departing Charleston on Friday, May 11, the fleet will speed northeast, finding the Gulf Stream Current to help propel them towards the first leg finish in New York City. After a short break and Pro-Am Race in New York Harbor, the fleet will depart on Leg 2 from New York to Newport, R.I.

© IAN ROMAN/Volvo Ocean Race

PUMA bowman Casey Smith, who spent part of Leg 5 laid up with a bad back, waves to the crowd gathered to welcome in winners of a grueling Southern Ocean leg.

“We heard a loud bang, and then in slow motion we saw the mast fall over the side.” Groupama’s bowman, Brad Marsh recalls of the moment their team went from leading Leg 5 to becoming the race’s latest casualty. It was a bang heard around the world, as critics called the attrition rate in this leg unacceptable. Volvo Ocean Race CEO Knut Frostad was even forced to issue a public statement concerning the safety of the Volvo 70 design. "It is not acceptable that in a race like this we have so many failures.