Vendée Globe Race Saturday Update: Christmas box-office blockbuster at Cape Horn
by Vendée Globe media 21 Dec 2024 18:00 GMT
21 December 2024
Kojiro Shiraishi - Vendée Globe Race © Kojiro Shiraishi #VG2024
The tactical battle at the front of the Vendée Globe is every bit as engaging as any Christmas TV thriller except in this instance there is no bad guy, no evil villain to hiss at.
Indeed the leader on this Sunday night before Christmas is Yoann Richomme (PAPREC ARKÉA) who regained first position this morning ahead of Charlie Dalin (MACIF Santé Prévoyance).
Richomme has gybed back on a NE'ly course and has opened ten or so miles on his rival. The pair are now more than 200 miles ahead of third placed Seb Simon (Groupe Dubreuil) and 1000 ahead of fourth positioned Thomas Ruyant (VULNERABLE).
Richomme's move is a 'banker' whilst Dalin is pushing further south a few more miles towards the ice exclusion zone hoping for a better, faster angle back after he gybes. But it seems very likely the duo will go round Cape Horn together some time late on Monday. They might be aware that in the nine previous editions of the Vendée Globe only one leader at Cape Horn has not gone on to win the race. Vincent Riou rounded second behind Jean Le Cam but went on to win the 2004-5 race. On the last edition Yannick Bestaven led by 14 hours ahead of Dalin who went on to cross the finish line first in Les Sables d'Olonne but Bestaven won the race thanks to his 10 hours 14 minutes of time compensation.
Dream sequence
The leaders have the best weather scenario playing out for them for their exit out of the Pacific, an ocean which has been both fast and relatively decent to them. But, as usual there are extreme contrasts through the fleet, winds are variously too much, too little or from the wrong direction. Without doubt the two leaders are having their shared Christmas present early and are now well ahead of Armel Le Cléac'h's 2016 record pace.
"Currently, we have between 20 and 25 knots of wind downwind and that will generally be the case until Cape Horn. Once the boat is settled, it's pretty much doing it all its own. There's not much to think about, it's very simple," enthused Richomme (PAPREC ARKÉA), who went on to say he and Dalin are benefiting from an "incredibly effective weather scenario since we entered the Southern Ocean".
Bah humbug!
For their rivals behind, however, the situation is far from being as "easy". Some are in the middle of a storm, facing big waves and relentless wind. Others are prisoners of a treacherous anticyclone, struggle in a stifling dead calm, and still others laboriously advance close-hauled, fighting against headwinds that bite through the cold and put the machines to the test.
"For my part, I stop looking, listening and reading what the guys in front are saying and doing. It's so the very opposite of what I'm experiencing! They're cracking on, surfing away while I'm struggling to make meaningful progress in a rough sea. We really are in totally different universes and it's all a bit infuriating!" commented Éric Bellion from 22nd place this Saturday.
"What we've been doing since the beginning in the Indian Ocean is trying to find routes to slip through and pass the depressions without getting hammered. It will be a bit the same in the first part of the Pacific. We will have to find the right routes, not necessarily the shortest, but the smartest and ultimately the fastest in the end. This requires patience," added Bellion who knows that in this type of situation, it is better to rationalise and stay practical, especially when the routings suggest very unusual. Indeed today one option suggested going straight to the north of New Zealand. This might be optimal on paper, in reality, a more southerly route will surely prevail for Bellion and the band of skippers near to him on Stand as One - Altavia..
Battery not included
They are getting to a transition zone of light upwind sailing, a sequence that is far from appealing but it could offer Kojiro Shiraishi (DMG MORI Global One) and Oliver Heer (Tut Gut.) the opportunity to climb back up the rankings. The same goes for Guirec Soudée (Freelance.com) who was catapulted- from his bunk. "I had been sleeping soundly for 20 or 30 minutes. Suddenly, the boat turned on its side. I was thrown violently, like in a car accident. It took me a minute or two to understand what had happened. I took a good bang on my left shoulder. Fortunately, it was more of a scare than harm in the end," recounted Soudee.
Meantime Belgium's Denis Van Weynbergh (D'Ieteren Group) and the redoubtable chinese skipper Jingkun Xu (Singchain Team Haïku) have been through a furious front, with gusts between 60 and 65 knots which should have only lasted a few hours.
Tools out
And nearer the front of the fleet in the awkward sea states making good on small problems becomes time consuming, costing hours here and there. Nico Lunven (HOLCIM PRB) in fifth has had to repair a batten car on his mast, Jérémie Beyou (Charal) has had to replace his mainsail hook and Boris Herrmann (Malizia Seaexplorer) took time to recover from an involuntary pirouette.
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