Yachts prepare for second leg

CAPE TOWN, South Africa (AP) - Eight yachts taking part in a grueling round-the-world race are poised to challenge new seas in a bid to avoid pirates off the coast of Somali.

For the first time in its 35-year history, the Volvo Ocean Race has included an Asian stop on its itinerary. The traditional second leg from Cape Town to Australia or New Zealand - a journey of howling storms, fierce seas, biting cold and icebergs - has been replaced by the unknown dangers awaiting the boats on a 4,450-mile journey to the Indian port of Cochin that begins today.

"I've never entered a leg of a race so confused about how the...