Leaders differ
The two leaders of the fleet, Neutrogena and Cheminées Poujoulat are trying to make headway in very unstable winds and squalls that are sometimes very violent. At the leader of the fleet, Poujoulat Chimneys bernard Stamm is even wondering about a return to the Doldrums. Behind this front, the wind is light and the route south is full of pitfalls.
Based on this observation, the two leaders have chosen, for the first time since they entered the Atlantic, to separate by taking two different routes. Jean Le Cam and Bernard Stamm have chosen the North and continue to sail along the front at good speed, while Guillermo Al Tadill and José Munoz have chosen the South and the powerful westerly winds, favourable to records. the 400 miles separating the two leaders is not decisive, since according to the first routings, it will end in a draw, with a gap of less than three hours at the longitude of the Cape of Good Hope.
As for the rest of the fleet
They all know that the Deep South is more and more concrete and that in a few days, they will enter a universe where man is only allowed intermittently. It will be cold, the wind will be strong, the risks of damage are high and the noise of the boat deafening. It is a beautiful stage that awaits the sailors because taming the Indian and the Pacific remains an adventure.
GAES Centros Auditivos, composed of Anna Corbella and Gerard Marin, attempted a southern incursion before following in the footsteps of the French-Swiss crew. For them, the important thing is to take advantage of the same weather conditions as the first two.
On board Renault Captur, Jörg Riechers and Sébastien Audigane have picked up speed and will probably be able to keep the last two Spanish teams, We are Water and One Planet, One Ocean & Pharmaton, at bay. Spirit of Hungary continues to catch up. While a week ago it was 600 miles from the 6 ème crew, it is only 200.
Finally, at the entrance to the southern seas, two distinct groups will be sailing, the first composed of the three leaders and the last more concentrated in a pack.
The ocean of all records
The crews will be entering a sailing zone that is conducive to record-breaking and are likely to achieve significant daily averages. Powerful winds and flat, orderly seas are ideal conditions for IMOCA boats. It was in this area that Jean-Pierre Dick and Loïck Peyron broke the 24-hour distance record on an IMOCA boat, covering 506 miles, before being dethroned by François Gabart during the Vendée Globe in 2013-2014. The absolute record is now 545.3 miles.
Ranking
- Cheminées Poujoulat (B Stamm âeuros J Le Cam) 19 378.7 miles from the finish
- Neutrogena (G Altadill âeuros J Muñoz) at 130.5 miles
- GAES Centros Auditivos (A Corbella âeuros G Marin) at 248,1 miles
- Renault Captur (J Riechers âeuros S Audigane) at 642.9 miles
- We Are Water (B Garcia âeuros W Garcia) at 900.4 miles
- One Planet One Ocean & Pharmaton (A Gelabert âeuros D Costa) at 1139.0 miles
- Spirit of Hungary (N Fa âeuros C Colman) at 1353.2 miles
