Too close to call IMOCA and Ocean Fifty podium spots up for grabs

Looking back to go forwards

Jérémie Beyou and Morgan Lagravière (Charal) seem set to win the IMOCA division which had 18 starters in Le Havre and still has all 18 boats still on course. Two years ago it was a disappointed Beyou who finished fourth into Martinique with none other than Franck Cammas as co-skipper. “we didn’t set out to be fourth.” Rued Cammas on the dock. They were compromised by the loss of their J0 early in the trade winds, but also – like the rest of the fleet –could not match winners Thomas Ruyant and Morgan Lagravière’s downwind sail combination on For People. 

Cammas said at the time: “We (Charal) really need to concentrate on downwind performance in 18-22 knots of wind and stop putting too much focus on lesser used angles. Yes, it hurts to lose for half a day because of a choice of sails, but if you’re winning for the next seven days, you should focus on making that your strength.” 

And so it seems Beyou and Charal have achieved that and got at least two principal things right in their search for the golden ticket on the Coffee Route, a great downwind sail configuration and recruiting the ultra talented, super fast Lagravière who is on course to win for a third time in a row as co-skipper. 

IMOCA podium, an unholy scrap for second and third 

Behind Charal the battle for the second and third steps on the podium is the most engaging aspect of this race yet, Sam Goodchild and Loïs Berrehar on the Vendée Globe winning Macif Santé Prevoyance in a thrilling street race against Will Harris and Frankie Clapcich on 11^th Hour Racing. Between Brits Harris and Goodchild it is doubtful if there are other IMOCA skippers or co-skipper who have raced more miles in the last two years. They are used to pushing hard but this is next level. 

This afternoon, with less than 750 miles to the finish line in Fort-de-France they two are less than five miles apart. And both are all too aware of the sticky, light wind pitfalls in the final miles between the iconic Roche de Diamant and the finish line. Goodchild missed out on second during the final miles in 2023 and Harris – racing on the same boat as Malizia – had to settle for seventh with Boris Herrmann when they had designs on Beyou and Lagravière’s fourth. 

“These last few days, our bodies are really starting to feel the strain. The conditions are intense and the fleet is tightly packed. The boat demands a lot: we’re constantly optimizing. We’re working flat out on the settings 24 hours a day. Every time we pass under a cloud, everything changes: the wind intensity, its angle, sometimes even the onboard strategy. There’s no such thing as routine on this express transatlantic race, more like a continuous routine, between observing the sky, analyzing weather files, and feeling the boat. The trade winds change a lot in strength and direction. Under the clouds, it’s a different wind variation. Every time, we have to consider gybing,” Goodchild explains 

The duo have decided to reduce rest periods, even if it means breaking up micro-naps. “There’s always someone on the sail trim. We’ve even shortened the watches to be as productive as possible. We sometimes lie down on the bunk to relax a little.” The Briton confides.

 “The guys on board Charal are incredibly fast, it’s impressive! But we’re really not giving up,” emphasizes Goodchild’s co-skipper Loïs Berrehar.

“We're walking a tightrope. No respite, but for the sport, it's fantastic! Suspense right up to the finish!” exclaims Goodchild. 

Ocean Fifty...three in the frame 

If Charal are firmly on course for Beyou’s first big victory since winning the New York Vendée in 2020, there is no such certainty to the Ocean Fifty podium.  The young guns, Pierre Quiroga and Gaston Morvan (Wewise) are going for it big time, holding a lead of less than three miles ahead of Baptiste Hulin and Thomas Rouxel (Viablis) with less than 90 miles to race. Anglo- French Luke Berry and his effervescent French co-skipper Antoine Joubert (Le Rire Medecin Lamotte) are only 23 miles – an hour at current speeds – behind. 

Class 40...a constant presence at the top 

One constant in the Class40 fleet is the leaders Faites un don sur SNSM.org, the Lift 40 V3 sailed by Corentin Douguet and Axel Tréhin. They are 25 miles ahead of second. Spain’s Pep Costa and Pablo Santurde pit-stopped in the Azores on VSF Sports making a rapid repair to a longitudinal stringer and were moving again this afternoon. Irish-American duo Pam Lee and Jay Thompson (#EmpowHer) were slowed trying to make sail repairs but still in eighth overall one place behind VSF. And Italians Andrea Fornaro and Alessandro Torresani (Influence 2) were sixth just behind double Vendée Globe winner Michel Desjoyeaux and Alexandre Le Gallais on Trimcontrol the new Class40 designed and built by Desjoyeaux’s companies Mer Agitée and Mer Forte.