Vigo (Pontevedra)
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In spite of the fact that in the minds of the skippers it is to conserve the material and not reach the Cape Horn pass with problems on board. The reality that the former do not lift gas given the progressions and tactical movements they are making when the “Maître CoQ IV” is 987 miles away and the “Apivia” at 1,120 miles.
Yannick Bestaven is cautious and calm in the interview this morning at 08:20, he is clear that the next few days will be crucial to reach the waters of the Atlantic Ocean when he has been racing for 53 days of Vendée Globe regatta: “I have a small front that passes over me: there is a bit of wind (27 knots)! That is also what I have come to look for to make a good trajectory to port to make the most direct course towards Cape Horn I have a north wind in a pretty nice sea with good speed, but behind the front, the wind is shifting to the NW so naturally it’s going to bring me back to the north: I should be making a good curve along the ZEA.
Twenty knots on average is a lot, especially since our “little” foilers are not very pleasant in these conditions. But it’s good to do miles! We hold on and spend a lot of time in the lookout seat or on the bunk. But you have to behave! It is not as cold as I have had to get used to. The inside of the boat is not very wet, but I am sailing with everything closed: I am dry! ”.
In the position report of 09:00 hours today, Thursday (December 31, 2020), «Maître CoQ IV» remains in first position with an advantage of 126 miles over the second «Apivia», 305 miles compared to the third « Groupe APICIL ”and 383 miles to the fourth“ LinkedOut ”. But in the IMOCA’s analysis of the weather forecast and polar performance, it could be that Charlie Dalin is the first to turn Cape Horn, at around 6:00 p.m. on Saturday, January 2, by just one length above Yannick Bestaven.
“Apivia” will gradually descend from parallel 53 ° to 56 ° South, converging with the trajectory of “Maître CoQ IV” until 2:00 pm tomorrow, Friday. Then he will follow in the footsteps of the leader by windward to benefit from the strong northwest winds – they will reach intensities above 40 knots – between them they will leave the islands of Diego Ramirez which are 57 miles from Hornos, and later Dalin will try to pass Bestaven just before to turn Cape Horn.
Damien Seguin will also try to do the same with Thomas Ruyant who has started to descend towards the southeast from the parallel 52 ° South. Seguin, in third position, will veer northeast to try to cross Ruyant’s path; but the prediction of the polar data of both IMOCAs indicates that it will not be able to achieve it and will have to yield at a higher speed of the «LinkedOut» with respect to the «Groupe APICIL» (it does not have “foils”). We will see how they solve it.
There are already many days around the world, fatigue takes hold of the lonely and they have to measure their efforts more and more while they are sailing in southern latitudes. The maneuvers aboard the new IMOCAS are demanding, and during a nap an opponent may escape because it has a little more wind. The temperature of the water is 6 ° Celsius and the air temperature does not rise above 3 ° Celsius; and in the face of these extreme temperatures, the ingenuity of sailors seeks resources to warm up, as is the case of Charlie Dalin who takes advantage of the heat from the engine to heat the inside of his sleeping bag.
Yesterday Clarisse Cremer, in position 12, had Armel Tripon only 27 miles from her stern; This morning Cremer’s lead on the “Banque Populaire X” rose to 105 miles over the “L’Occitane en Provence” as she was able to take advantage of the winds off a southwesterly front earlier.
“One Ocean One Planet” crossed the antimeridian point, the point 180 degrees from the exit, last night at 23:45 UTC, after 52 days and 10:25 hours after leaving Les Sables d’Olonne last night. November 8th. Which means that Dídac Costa is already at the point of the return trip on his way around the world.
In a message received from Dídac Costa this morning: “It hardly seems that the wind on this front is beginning to drop, which has been gently moving towards where I am for two days. It has been two quite calm days even though I have advanced quite fast, doing the minimum things: fixing the sails, eating, resting and look at the weather for the next few days.
Now I hope that the conditions calm down so that I can have a calmer end of the year and also to review the boat. In addition to drying everything well, checking that everything is ready for the next 10 to 12 days that, if everything goes well, they could take me to Cape Horn. Let’s see how the weather is confirmed, but it is already exciting to be able to make forecasts, albeit provisional and approximate, until the next great cape ”.
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