Friday, January 8: Two months of racing
It has already been two months since the Vendée Globe solo sailors left the pontoons in Les Sables-d'Olonne. At this stage of the race, there are just 5?400 miles left to cover for the leader of the fleet, Yannick Bestaven, or 22% of the course. Four years ago, Armel le Cléac'h was getting ready to cross the Equator... What we can remember at this stage of the race is that 80% of the fleet is still in the race - usually there are 50% retirements - and that it has never been as compact as this year.
Pip Hare was able to replace her port rudder which had broken off, leaving 2 places in the rankings and gaining some bruising and aches. However, she will now be able to get back on track.
Those still sailing in the Deep South, from Alan Roura (15 e ) to Kojiro Shiraïshi (21 e ) are eager to leave the harrowing conditions of the past month behind them by crossing the 3 e course of their journey. Jérémie Beyou (18 e ) noticed a tear on her J2 and described violent conditions, with winds not below 35 knots and troughs of 6 to 7 m.
At the rear of the group, Manu Cousin had his share of trouble, following an involuntary gybe due to autopilot failure, his mainsail batten carriage broke, and the mainsail was partially torn above the 3 e laugh.
At the head of the fleet, it battles sévère?! Thomas Ruyant sails together with Apivia, the two men chasing the Yannick Bestaven. The latter has regained speed off Buenos Aires and is still some 400 miles ahead of the duo. However, the weather is still uncertain and he is likely to experience various slowdowns in his progress northwards.
Saturday 9 January: Exhausted bodies, rowdy boats
The sailors in the Pacific are being shaken all over the place, particularly Stéphane le Diraison, as he explained during the radio link-up: 60 knots with 8m waves breaking over the boat. Clément Giraud (24 e ) and Miranda Merron are also getting ready to face depression in the coming days.
Isabelle Joschke rounded Cape Horn and returned to the Atlantic, but has to deal with her keel problems, which she can no longer tip. She wonders how boats can resist such sea conditions..
At the front of the fleet, Yannick Bestaven saw his lead melt like snow in the sun. In 24 hours, the skipper of Maitre CoQ IV has lost half of his lead over Charlie Dalin, stuck between two anticyclonic cells which form a wall in his north. His two pursuers - mostly on their good tack (port) which allows them to lean on the starboard foil - are advancing strongly. Apivia even made a peak at 21.6 knots when Yannick Bestaven was only making headway at 9.7 knots.
After noticing the breakage of the false keel actuator on her IMOCA, causing a slight leak on board, Isabelle Joschke took the decision to abandon the race. She finished in 11 e position and first woman in the Vendée Globe.
Sunday 10th January: Battle at the head of the fleet, soon the Horn for 4 skippers
With the retirement of Isabelle Joschke, there are now only 26 skippers left in the race. 13 are in the middle of the climb up the South Atlantic and 13 are waiting to round Cape Horn, still in the Pacific.
For the top five in the fleet, we have to find the best transitions between the small weather systems while avoiding calm zones. Although Yannick Bestaven set off again a few hours ago, he will once again come up against a cold front off Itajai. Behind him, there are four chasers (Dalin, Seguin, Ruyant and Burton) who are sailing neck and neck and putting pressure on him. Between now and the first arrivals in Les Sables-d'Olonne around 29th January, there is likely to be some suspense..
Tomorrow, Arnaud Boissières, Alan Roura, Jérémie Beyou and Pip Hare will successively round Cape Horn. Conditions in the South Pacific are still difficult as they approach the mythical rock.
Further on, in 24 e position, Alexia Barrier will be gusting at 60 knots. Ari Huusela should encounter lighter winds thanks to its more northerly trajectory.
Monday 11 January: The bluff game
On this 64th e on the day of the race, all scenarios are possible, as the weather conditions are clouding the tracks. Yannick Bestaven's lead of 400 miles on 7th January has shrunk like a sore thumb. Less than 40 miles away, Charlie Dalin, Thomas Ruyant, Damien Seguin and Louis Burton could join the leader who has been at the helm of the race for the past 17 days. Certainly, the skipper of Maître CoQ has a time bonus of 10:15 for his involvement in the rescue of Kevin Escoffier.
Thomas Ruyant, deprived of precise wind data, was able to climb to the top of his mast (his 5 e ascent since the beginning of the race) to repair his aerial.
With this race configuration, where the top ten could be grouped together, the bluff sets in. Nobody says too much about the state of the sails, the general potential of the boats. We know that Apivia and LinketOut are deprived of port foil, that hook problems have been legion since the start, that sails have been repaired, but at the vacations, each skipper indicates being at "100%".
Arnaud Boissières doubled his 4 e Cape Horn at 12:35. At 1:30, it was Alan Roura's turn. Soon it will be Jérémie Beyou's turn - around 5 p.m. - then the British Pip Hare. Stéphane Le Diraison points 450 miles from the rock, happy to have finally emerged from the depression.
Tuesday 12th January: 127 miles difference for the first 9
It's a race within the race that is played out in the leading pack of 5 skippers - Dalin, Seguin, Bestaven, Ruyant and Burton - only 25 miles apart. And that's without counting their 4 pursuers - Herrmann, Dutreux, Pedote and Le Cam. In total, these 9 sailors stand only 127 miles apart.
In total, the fleet stretches out over less than 7?000 miles and there are now 17 IMOCA boats sailing in the South Atlantic since Pip Hare rounded Cape Horn last night. Two competitors are still being shaken up, Romain Attanasio and Alexia Barrier 800 miles west of Point Nemo. On the Cape Horn side, the next to round the cape will be Stéphane Le Diraison and Didac Costa.
After her retirement, Isabelle Joschke is sailing cautiously in very difficult sea conditions and is looking for the right place to make a stopover.
Wednesday 13 January: A very tight match at the top of the fleet
The group of 9 at the head of the fleet are sailing in 12-15 knots of east-north-easterly wind and are starting a race of speed which should no longer stop them as far as Les Sables-d'Olonne. The first 4 are grouped into 34 miles: Apivia, Maitre Coq IV, Bureau Vallée 2 and LinkedOut.
Dalin, the new leader, is shifted east and probably has more opportunities to play on the angles and go fast. Bestaven, in the West is more constrained and is forced to tighten the wind or risk getting too close to the Brazilian coast. The wind could give way - turning to the East - and therefore favour those who are off to the East.
At 2:03 p.m., Stéphane Le Diraison finally doubled the Horn. Next up will be Didac Costa, and Kojiro Shiraïshi tonight. Manu Cousin passed the symbolic 500-mile distance in front of the Horn.
Thursday 14 January: Titanic duel between Dalin and Burton
On this ascent towards the Equator, the wind varies sharply in strength and direction. In the 15:00 rankings, Charlie Dalin is in the lead, 20 miles ahead of Louis Burton. Yannick Bestaven was relegated to sixth place e position, behind Thomas Ruyant, 3 e Damien Seguin, 4 e and Boris Herrmann, 5 e . All are held in less than 100 milles?! An incredible scénario?!
Despite all the problems he encountered, Louis Burton has made a magnificent remontada?! He's in a real battle with Charlie Dalin, whose port foil prevents him from being fully efficient. The fastest of the group is Boris Herrmann, who with nearly 17 knots is back in the Top 5.
As far as Recife, we're going to have to deal with the lines of squalls, with strong winds at the edge and no wind under the clouds. Yannick Bestaven, shifted to the West has lost everything. With an average speed of 6.3 knots over the past 4 hours, he has been relegated 96 miles from the head of the fleet.
This speed race takes place exclusively on starboard tack and major manoeuvres are not on the programme. Only fine tuning and the study of the carto: little active doldrums, high pressure in the south of the Azores, then a big depression. Another 12-13 days to go before we know the big winner of the race.
At the back, the groups and duels formed since the end of the South Pacific have created strong links. Thus, Clarisse Crémer (13 e ) exchange with Armel Tripon and Jéremie Beyou (15 e ) discusses with Arnaud Boissières and Alan Roura.
Miranda Merron and Clément Giraud are only 1?000 miles from Cape Horn.
