Clipper Race 2013-14: calm finally prevails after gruelling few days but Race 8 course is shortened Looking at the weather forecast, we should now be in for a few days of lighter weather, albeit still from an inconvenient direction meaning that we are going to have to beat most of the rest of the way to the finish, but at least it should be a marginally more comfortable beat! After a late start to Race 8 Mission Performance continues to make steady progress and is now just 35 miles behind Invest Africa. Matt Mitchell, skipper of Mission Performance, describes the teams next move: 'In the early hours of this morning the wind started to abate somewhat, and now we are wafting gently along with our largest Yankee, stay sail and full mainsail. By all accounts the wind will decrease further over the course of tonight, and then start to build and swing around to the east which is what we have been aiming for. I am hoping that we will then be able to make some fast downwind progress towards our waypoint off the southern island of the Philippines. All positions reported as at the time of writing and are changing frequently. Check the Clipper Race tracker for the latest positions. The Clipper Race tracker charts the fleet's progress to Singapore The northbound Qingdao boat - skippered by Gareth Glover - has at last changed course. Glover talks tactics: It's time to start heading west. Last night after heading north it started to take us further away from the next waypoint so we tacked south west and climbed a place on the leaderboard and made good gains on the rest of the fleet. We were hoping for a more westerly course but the wind did not fill in as forecast so we did make up as many miles as we were hoping. Yet, any gain is a good gain and the winds have been around 25 knots most of the time so boat speeds have been good but not always in the right direction. We still have a long way to go to the next waypoint which is 950 miles away, with the leaders around 800 miles ahead of us we are going to need a lot of luck and the wind to do what the forecast is showing us. The next 12 hours or so will see if heading north has paid off or not, so you will just have to keep an eye on the Race Viewer for a bit longer. The Race 8 course will be shortened because of the unseasonable weather conditions which have hindered the fleet's progress towards Singapore. Clipper Race director Justin Taylor said that just as in Race 2, where the Doldrums lasted an unseasonably long time, the fleet is now experiencing uncommon and unexpected weather patterns. Justin said: "The sea area where they are sailing in currently should be characterised by north easterly trade winds which should be allowing for fast downwind sailing conditions. Instead the fleet is battling against strong headwinds which are being produced by a depression which is north of them. These strong winds are forecasted to last for another four to five days, therefore the intention is to shorten course at Sarangani virtual mark. When Sarangani virtual mark bears true north (000T) each yacht shall record their time. The cruise phase of the race will then commence from this point and not Basilan Gate as originally intended. Sarangani virtual mark is a GPS position that the yachts are required to leave to their starboard side. It is already on the original race route and will not cause any of the yachts to deviate from the tactics and strategy that they have chosen. The shortened course finish line will update on the Race Viewer shortly. The front of the fleet is about 850 miles from Sarangani and where the course will be shortened which is approximately five days' sailing in these conditions. Due to the headwinds that the fleet is tacking through, it is now impossible for the fleet to arrive in Singapore as planned. It is anticipated that the first arrivals will be on Feb 10 and into Feb 11. Race restart from Singapore to China will now be on Feb 16 and not on Feb 15.