14.11.2005
DAY 10: A GAME OF SNAKES AND LADDERS FOR MACARTHUR AND JOURDAIN
IN BRIEF:
AN ONGOING DUEL FOR THE LEAD AS VIRBAC-PAPREC AND SILL ET VEOLIA trade first place over last 48 hours – approx 440 miles to Equator
INACTIVE DOLDRUMS ALLOW SWIFT PASSSAGE south for Open 60 leaders: “At the moment the route through looks good, but as always with the Doldrums we cannot trust what we are experiencing too much…”
ORMA 60 MULTIHULL TIM PROGETTO ITLALIA CAPsizeS 400 miles west of the African coast
IN DETAIL:
From Ellen this morning:
“All is ok onboard ! I’ve crossed the Doldrums many times before and I’ve definitely had experiences far worse than this one, especially with the heat, there does not seem to be the same heat and humidity as I have experienced before. The boat is sailing well and we have no problems with her. The ambiance on board is very good. We’re laughing a lot and I’m really enjoying the sailing and being back out on the sea again. So for now it's not so bad and we continue south into the Doldrums. At the moment the route through looks good, but as always with the Doldrums we cannot trust what we are experiencing too much as we might still be surprised!”
The battle for pole position in the Open 60 monohull class is hotting up, as Virbac-Paprec and Sill et Veolia continue to play a game of snakes and ladders. After Sill et Veolia took the lead yesterday lunchtime, Virbac-Paprec crept back into pole position this morning, now with a marginal lead of 7.6nm (1500 GMT). Approximately 900 miles west of Freetown, Sierre Leone, the two boats are located at around 8 degrees north of the Equator, as they continue to sail close to the rhumb line in moderate 14-knot south-easterly conditions. As the leaders near the Equator their boat speed has been directly affected slowing to 8 knots, in turn allowing the chasing pack to close on them as Bonduelle (3rd), Ecover (4th) and Skandia (5th) have all made gains in the last 24 hours.
Sill et Veolia’s current position would normally place them within the unstable zone of the Doldrums that can often be located a few degrees north of the Equator, yet at present the Doldrums appear to be relatively inactive, allowing a relatively swift passage towards the South Atlantic. Whilst all weather models suggest that the Open 60 leaders may well not experience the unstable conditions, MacArthur and Jourdain must still be vigilant for any unpredictable squalls that can cause conditions to change instantly. The inactive Doldrums is unusual and may well be explained due to the established presence of the North Atlantic high pressure system known as the Azores High and the St. Helena High that sits in the South Altantic, both of which are reindexing fairly stationary, in turn creating more stable and consistent conditions along the Equatorial region.
With only 1500nm reindexing until the finish line in Brazil, the tactical options for Jourdain and MacArthur are limited against their rivals Jean Pierre Dick and Loik Payron on Virbac-Paprec. As the performance profiles for each boat differ in small ways [Sill et Veolia comes from the Marc Lombard design stable and Virbac-Paprec is a Farr design], it may allow one boat to out perform the other in the fluctuating south-easterly conditions, each team will need to work hard through the gains and losses, as they both fight for the edge. Currently located 440 miles north of the Equator, the frontrunners are expected to pass into the Southern Hemisphere on Wednesday afternoon/evening and both boats will need to think carefully over their gift to Neptune in order to secure the fastest passage south onto the finish!
In contrast to the monohulls, the multihull fleet are sailing further to the east, as they are forced to sail a longer course around Ascension Island in the South Atlantic. At approximately 0515GMT the 60ft multihull, Tim Progetto Italia capsized 400 miles south west of Dakar (Senegal). The autopilot failed and skippers Giovanni and Vittorio Malingri were unable to gain control. There were no injuries to the skippers and the shore team are now working to get a tow out to the boat, consequentially the ORMA multihull class now stands at only four boats.
OPEN 60 RANKINGS 1500 GMT:
1. VIRBAC-PAPREC / DISTANCE TO FINISH MILES 1378.9
2. SILL ET VEOLIA / +7.6 MILES
3. BONDUELLE / +87.6 MILES
4 ECOVER / +125.3MILES
5. SKANDIA / +161.6 MILES
FOR LATEST POSITIONS CLICK HERE
PARTNER OF THE DAY: NAUTIX
Official Supplier of Underwater Finishings to Ellen and the Offshore Challenges Sailing Team
http://www.teamellen.com/nautix
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION LOG ONTO: http://www.jacques-vabre.com
For further information, please contact Offshore Challenges Sailing Team:
Lou Newlands or Lucy Harwood
T: +44 (0)870 063 0210
E: lou.newland@ocgroup.com or lucy.harwood@ocgroup.com
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