After two days in a rather peaceful Bay of Biscay, the leaders of the Transat AG2R La Mondiale are now off the coast of Portugal (while the latter is just rounding Cape Finisterre). The conditions are radically different as they now have to deal with a minimum of 30 knots, gusts sometimes gusting to over 40 knots, a swell of three to four metres and almost non-existent visibility since the moon set in the middle of the night.
Sébastien Simon & Morgan Lagravière ( Bretagne CMB Performance ) made the most of their seven mile advantage at the entrance to this Hispanic funnel at the start of the night to pick up around ten miles on their two direct pursuers, Gildas Mahé & Nicolas Troussel ( Breizh Cola ) and Adrien Hardy & Thomas Ruyant ( Act Recovery ). The trio
Abandonment for medical reasons
On Tuesday 24th April 2018, as the fleet was skirting the Iberian coast at an average of 11 knots, a duo warned the race directors of their withdrawal. Damien Cloarec - co-skipper of Damien Guillou on Saferail is suffering from severe back and shoulder pain (which was treated as best he could before the start), which is preventing him from steering in some tough conditions.
" What was hurting me in one spot on the cervical side eventually spread, explained Carantec's navigator . I have a muscle pain in the trapezius muscles that presses on a tendon and extends into the shoulder and arm. I've been crying all night, I even cried. As a result, I can't steer at all."
Dematuring of Skipper Macif
On Wednesday 25th April 2018, at 6:22 am, the race directors were informed of the dismasting of the Skipper Macif boat, led by Martin Le Pape/Yoann Richomme, when she was about 40 miles west of the Portuguese coast. It was the mast that gave way in heavy sea conditions: winds of 30 knots gusting to over 40 knots and a swell of three to four metres. The duo is securing the boat and will then decide on the port of destination.
Dismasting of Sateco-Team Vendée Formation
A 2nd Figaro Bénéteau 2 dismasted on 25th April. It is a Sateco-Team Vendée Formation (Benjamin Dutreux and Frédéric Denis). They informed the race directors at 8:07 this morning and after securing the boat, are now heading towards Lisbon (150 miles away) with the engine. They were 5 e in the rankings at the time of the damage and encountered the same conditions as the rest of the fleet: winds of 30 knots gusting to over 40 knots and a swell of three to four metres.
