Yachting: Dad tracks son across wild blue yonder

Bill Sanderson is relying on computer software to keep track of his son's progress in one of the most dangerous legs of the Volvo Around the World race.

The Whangarei orthopedic surgeon's son, Mike, is the skipper of ABN Amro One, the boat currently leading the race and making its way north to Rio de Janeiro after rounding Cape Horn on Friday.

The last 48 hours has seen stress-free sailing for the first time in several days.

"Your always concerned when they're sailing in those sort of seas, it's pretty hairy down there and anything could happen, they could get a hole like Movistar," Sanderson senior said.

The rough conditions saw one of the leading boats Movistar narrowly avoiding sinking after a hull breach on Thursday night.

The boat Mike Sanderson is on is the first from a new design and they are relatively untested in the conditions of the Southern Ocean.

Sanderson senior said there is always a certain amount of worrying involved with your son aboard a yacht in the Southern Ocean but being able to track the boat with a high degree of accuracy takes a lot of the uncertainty out of the equation.

"We follow his progress on virtual spectator, which is the website people set up for the America's Cup."

The site follows the yacht's progress with GPS tracking and creates a virtual race board.

"It's very hard to keep in touch but we try our best ... I log onto that (Virtual Spectator) every six hours, or each time it is updated, to see where they're up to," he said.

There are also a number of other websites that are covering the race - so dad can stay in the loop.

When the race made its brief stopover downunder last month - it gave the family a chance to catch up.

As many of the family as possible went down to Wellington to greet the fleet, more of a few of them including Bill, had also been to Melbourne at the previous layover.

But among all the focus on the ocean race, there is another event that is gathering attention among family members Sanderson senior explains

"We're flying over to the Portsmith stop because Mike is getting married there ... they're due to get there about May 23 and he's getting married on May 26," he said.

Mike will marry Emma Richards but the couple will have to wait for a honeymoon as the skipper is back on the boat two days later, before sailing to Rotterdam and then Gothenburg to complete the race.

Richards will understand - the British sailor has completed a round the world yacht race herself - she was fourth in the single handed race, Around Alone, in 2003.

Bill isn't surprised Mike has become one of country's most successful sailors.

"Our family have always been sailors and Mike grew up sailing. People ask me, when did he become interested in boats and I can't answer that - he's never been interested in anything else," he said.

- NORTHERN ADVOCATE (WHANGAREI)