No half measures Light winds for the IMOCAs as they approach the Canaries, ULTIMs veer west.....

ULTIM: Giant slalom! 
 

A slight surprise this morning: SVR Lazartigue has slowed down north of Cape Verde and is now veering off to leave the archipelago to the east. Is this due to anticipating the optimal entry point into the Doldrums, which they will reach tomorrow morning? Is it a minor technical issue? Or is it negotiating the wind shadows off Santo Antão, the westernmost and highest of these volcanic islands? Franck Cammas explained during the radio check-in: “Tom and I have determined an entry zone into the Doldrums. We sailed all night across the track, but our route seems to be the best compromise between the optimal angle relative to the wind, which has eased, the wind shadow of the Cape Verde islands, and the strategy for the rest of the race. We just gybed to head south again!”

While SVR Lazartigue has seen Sodebo and Actual Ultim 4 catch up, having gained some 150 miles in twelve hours, SVR is expected to extend its lead again this morning on this new leg, maximizing its progress towards the finish line. “Yesterday, the wind was stronger and the sea was rougher. Sodebo is very strong in these conditions, and we’re trying to match their performance at this speed, where I’m still getting to know the boat, and which will also be crucial for the entire final leg of the race (between Encension and Fort-de-France),” Cammas continued this morning during the radio check-in.

At the high speeds the ULTIM trimarans are sailing, gains and losses are very rapid, which is why managing the passage around the islands—the final marker in the giant slalom the four trimarans are tracing on the chart—is so important. “Ultimately, our route is quite classic. What’s unusual is having gone so close to Africa to find wind,” concluded Franck Cammas, pleased to see “the level of competition between the boats, which have all improved significantly.”

The coming day is crucial, as the order and gaps at the entrance to the Intertropical Convergence Zone, which will mark the halfway point, could determine the entire course in the Southern Hemisphere and then towards Fort-de-France.

IMOCA: A weekend in the Canary Islands? 
 

This isn't a low-cost travel tour, but rather confirmation of what the competitors were all predicting back pre-start in Le Havre, a restart near the archipelago. With this ridge of high pressure driving them eastward, and which they can't seem to shake off, the weather situation is far from ideal on this Halloween day. The large monohulls are at a loss as to where to turn to find northeasterly winds on the other side of this barrier.

Macif Santé Prévoyance and Charal have shifted their positions to try and be the first to tack onto port tack. But in this battle of nerves, it's 11th Hour Racing that's coming out on top this morning. After a strong week so far Italian-American Francesca Clapcich and Brit Will Harris are reaping the benefit of all the miles they have sailed on the boat, no doubt right now some of their light winds experience in the Med, helping in a big way. Harris has tens of thousands of miles on the clock on the boat as Malizia, but even so it was a pleasant surprise this morning for ‘Frankie’ as the sun rose and she supped her essential morning espresso: 

“We have really had such a good week so far and I have to give so much credit to Will who has really worked so hard in the preparation and we have really stuck with our strategy. It is paying off. But we have seen how quickly you can have the boats get back together, we have nine boats in 30 miles and before we had a 100 miles of advantage so I think this will be a big restart at the Canary Islands. 
It is the most beautiful sunrise. It is really special and one of the reasons we do this sport. The sun is just coming up we are getting closer to the islands, we have six knots of wind and flatter water, so it is not much wind. We are slowly moving forwards and of course we have to go through this big ridge which is not so easy, after that it will not be easy to get into some good trade winds. I think the strategy is really important for the next 48 hours and then we will see. 
I think it is nice for Will and I that we have sailed the boat so much in the summer, we know it quite well. The boat is so impressive in the big winds and the sea state is hard, and so far in this light conditions on paper we are not the fastest boat in the fleet in these light conditions. We are still able to hold on the front back and we are happy to be here.”

Asked if the boat is at 100% she adds, “I am touching wood, we did not have that many issues after 36 hours we did a really big check around the boat to see that we were not missing any damage, the boat is in a really good shape and the technical team is just incredible, they worked so well to get the boat ready after The Ocean Race Europe. Seeing the boat is really reliable is a major thing. We had little bits here and there, things we took care of in five minutes.”

While the acceleration coming out of the ridge that the leaders could cross in the afternoon should further widen the gaps, the fleet will still emerge relatively close together. “All that for this?” some must be thinking, while others are content with this newfound moment of calm, like Sam Davies on Initiatives Coeur, who wrote last night: “The light winds are frustrating, but the positive side is being able to go out on deck and enjoy the view. We are accompanied by dolphins, a magnificent sunset, and now a sky full of stars. Just magic!!”

During this pause, everyone is trying to maintain their position, and some are recovering. Like the Association Petits Prince-Queguiner, which had left the pack the day before yesterday to repair a crack in its keel trunk and finds itself… The race is back on track. This is the case for all the IMOCAs up to ninth place, held by the duo Arnaud Boissières and Benjamin Dutreux on 4 CAD-La Mie Câline.

Much further back, Paprec Arkea and MSIG Europe are finding challenging but manageable sailing conditions. As for Les Petits Doudous, Armel Tripon and Tanguy Leglatin set off again last night at 10 p.m. from Cascais, Portugal. Thanks to the care of his team during his pit stop, Armel Tripon's brand-new IMOCA is back on course with a repaired forward ballast and new wind sensors to power its autopilots. The fleet of 18 IMOCAs is therefore complete on the Atlantic.

Ocean Fifty: It's going smoothly!

Edenred 5 is still leading the way in the Ocean Fifty. Like the ULTIM trimarans before them, the 15-meter trimarans are skirting the Western Sahara exclusion zone to stay within the narrow strip of strong trade winds. Each boat is searching for the best angle, with, according to Basile Bourgnon, "three to five gybes before reaching Cape Verde. The wind is fairly stable around 20 knots, and we're fully engaged, sheeting in hand. We alternate every hour and a half with Manu because you have to stay very alert!" described the co-skipper of Edenred 5, who continues to lead the pack with a comfortable 20-mile advantage.

Behind them, the competition isn't slowing down either: Viabilis Oceans climbed onto the podium overnight and had even moved into second place as these lines were being written, having had to stop early in the race. The duo of Baptiste Hulin and Thomas Rouxel seized their opportunity in the Canary Islands and clearly haven't given up yet on the road to Fort-de-France. "They're the ones who scare us the most downwind," admitted Basile Bourgnon. "We're very fast in these conditions, but so are they!" A speed race is already shaping up in the trade winds, and rounding Cape Verde will be a very significant opportunity for the Ocean Fifty boats, which could reach Fort-de-France on November 8th. "Each rounding is a new race that begins, and we wouldn't mind having a bit of a lead at Cape Verde to start a controlled race," said Basile Bourgnon before signing off.

Class40: Eve of Phase 2

While the Class40s enjoy their last tapas in La Coruña, three boats could enter the Galician port at the start of the second leg, which will begin at 1200hrs UTC tomorrow. “The Courbon brothers are still about thirty hours from A Coruña and could make a slow start. The others will likely arrive in the middle of the night and will be able to assess the condition of their boats to decide whether to restart. For them, the wind remains strong but manageable,” explained Francis Le Goff, the race director, this morning, who recorded the retirement of Rêve de Large 5 last night.

With a broken rudder, Rodolphe Sepho and Jean-Pierre Coutayar accepted defeat upon arriving in Lorient. After the three Ocean Fifty boats that capsized last weekend, this is the fourth retirement in the race, and the first in Class40.

Meanwhile, the Martinique Horizon crew from the Martinique reached A Coruña yesterday at midnight and have 36 hours to settle in and study the route to Fort-de-France. “For the start, the average wind will be 10 knots from the southwest,” explains Pierre-Yves Guilherm, the race meteorologist. “The wind will gradually strengthen as the competitors move away from the coast, while remaining manageable.”

Two scenarios will be open to the competitors. A southern route, in search of the trade winds, which isn't a winning option on paper. A route closer to the Azores (to be left to starboard) where they will have to navigate several troughs (extensions of low-pressure systems) before benefiting from a good trade wind flow from November 7th onwards, over a shorter distance. On your marks!