24.11.2008
Gitana Eighty - Which way to turn?
Though this Monday 24th November announces the fleet’s entry into its third
week of racing, it is also marked by some rather pleasant sailing conditions
for the solo sailors. Indeed, whilst the latter have been heeled over,
upwind, for several days, a fleeting overnight rotation of the wind offered
them a few hours of sailing with slightly eased sheets, which everyone
seemed to appreciate despite the wet conditions reigning on the deck of the
60 footers. With each day and each ranking that passes, Loïck Peyron and
Gitana Eighty are confirming their leader status. However, in their wake,
Sébastien Josse – in a solid second place – and Jean-Pierre Dick reindex a
threat, 21.8 and 36.2 miles astern respectively at 1600 hours.
“I’m in Olympic shape. We’re in perfect harmony Gitana Eighty and I!” These
were Loïck Peyron’s closing words with the Paris Race HQ today and revealed
the state of mind aboard the monohull in the colours of the LCF Rothschild
Group. It has to be said that the day had started out very well: “We’ve been
making fairly good headway since last night. The wind has shifted round to a
better direction. It’s really pleasant even though we still have messy seas
and it’s very wet on deck. This wind rotation has revealed itself to be a
lot further left than the forecasts. We have an average of between 20 and 25
knots and though the chaotic close-hauled sailing of the past few days is
virtually a thing of the past, its return isn’t really a long way off.”
Positioned off Brazil, the leading group has benefited from a temporary E’ly
shift of the SE’ly tradewinds, thus enabling them to open their sails and
appreciate a few hours of increased speeds. At the 1600 hour ranking, the
slight upturn in conditions late this morning seemed to have come to an end
though, as the speeds of the top three bare witness, with around 13 knots at
present compared with 17-18 five hours beforehand.
However, although the wind shift was clearly on the minds of all the sailors
today, there was another cause for concern: the Saint Helena High. After a
far from classic Doldrums, this second key passage in the Atlantic also
seems a little off colour. Indeed, it is proving difficult to decipher the
weather configuration in the southern Atlantic at the moment… The zone of
high pressure, positioned off Uruguay for several days, is shifting
eastwards and will soon piece back together the Saint Helena High. However
the return of a more classic outline will once again favour the chasing
pack. In fact, the latter may well be able to save on the miles by rounding
the Cape of Good Hope more directly, which is a move the current conditions
aren’t allowing Loïck Peyron and his closest rivals to pull off. If all this
becomes a reality, we may see a further bunching of the fleet, which the
skipper of Gitana Eighty confirms: “For the time being, we’re heading
straight into the zone of high pressure rather than rounding it. What’s
shaping up won’t be easy to overcome. The future situation isn’t necessarily
the best scenario for those at the front. The negotiation of Saint Helena
may well be another tricky passage which will favour those on our tails…”.
After fifteen days of racing, everyone has now got into the groove of the
race and are settled into their own routines. The high emotion of the start
and the adapting to the first few days is a thing of the past now, and the
skippers are presently easing themselves into a quite guarded routine, as
Loïck Peyron admitted at noon: “This part of the race, along the Brazilian
coast, is fairly routine and it will be the same again on our return. You
still have to constantly have your hand to the sheets nevertheless. The
point of sail is routine but the manner of sailing isn’t.” It is worth
noting that certain competitors would have gladly enjoyed a taste of this
‘routine’ for a few more days, as was the case for Jérémie Beyou. Victim of
a broken spreader yesterday, Sunday, the solo sailor is currently heading
towards Salvador de Bahia in Brazil to evaluate the damage suffered to the
starboard section of the rig. Once there he will perform a complete
assessment of the mast and will decide if he can make repairs himself and
reindex in the race, or if he will be forced to retire. This heavy blow has
been dealt by fate and the sailor has reminded the others about the
importance of vigilance, given the considerable pounding these latest
generation 60 footers are being subject to.
Ranking on Monday 24th November – 1600 hours (French time)
1. Gitana Eighty (Loïck Peyron) 20,555 miles to the finish
2. BT (Sébastien Josse) 21.8 miles behind the leader
3. Paprec Virbac (Jean-Pierre Dick) 36.2 miles
4. PRB (Vincent Riou) 51.4 miles
5. Brit Air (Armel Le Cléac’h) 53.1 miles
...
Translated by Kate Jennings – Expression
|
