Vendée Globe 2008 - Chasing group make gains

by Event media on 15 Nov 2008
Loick Peyron (Gitana Eighty) still leads the Vendee Globe but Jean Le Cam (VM Materiaux) continues to advance in second as the leading pack compress slightly. Speeds are dropping slightly among the leaders and the chasing group are making steady gains.

Derek Hatfield, CAN, (Algimouss Spirit of Canada) re-started this morning and makes good progress through his first day back on the race course. Front runners are feeling the pressure. Making around 13-15 knots heading south west off the Portuguese coast this afternoon spurred by 15-20 knot winds Loick Peyron's Gitana Eighty had overhauled Paprec-Virbac 2 by a matter of just 1.5 miles, leading a small breakaway group of six which have gained a jump of more than 20 miles.

Since Sunday's start in Les Sables d'Olonne, nine of the record fleet of 30 IMOCA Open 60's have returned, or are returning to Vendee port. Two skippers have restarted, Switzerland's Dominique Wavre on Temenos 2 left again on Sunday night and has made up to 18th place.

Of the three which sustained broken masts Groupe Bel (Kito de Pavant) and Marc Thiercelin's DCNS have officially retired from racing. After fixing his engine problems Michel Desjoyeaux (Foncia) returned to the race course early this morning, and this afternoon was more than 400 miles from the leaders.

The intensity is telling at the front of the Vendee Globe fleet but as the breezes appear to be getting a little lighter ahead so the pressure will only increase among the leading group. Peyron has seen his lead shrink from more than 30 miles in the early morning to 24.3 miles later this afternoon while the gains for third placed Seb Josse (BT) also continue.

But as the fleet converge again after their choices at the Canary Islands today, there is still less than 100 miles, in terms of distance to finish from 10th to first, and the lateral separation is still about 120 miles from Jean Le Cam in the east, who is sticking to his lane inside Peyron, while out in the west Vincent Riou (PRB) and Armel le Cleac'h (Brit Air) have separated slightly with Brit Air taking a small lead.

Jean-Pierre Dick (Paprec-Virbac 2) spoke today of his tiredness, his vivid dreams where he considered Jesus to be trimming his sails, but more importantly of losing time when he had to recover a gennaker from the water. 'I let go my gennaker halyard and the sail fell into the water. It was like a big trawl net. It was an hour-long struggle to get it back on board.' He told today's radio broadcast.

Brian Thompson, GBR, (Bahrain Team Pindar) also admitted to having been wrestling with a gennaker, but his problem was both more time consuming and more compromising. He spoke of wrapping his crucial all purpose big gennaker around the inner stay, tearing it to the point that it requires a big repair.

Thompson had been making ground on 10th placed Mike Golding, GBR, on Ecover 3, until the damage, but the tables have been turned since and Golding has built a cushion of 70 miles, after admitting that he thought he had been able to see Ecover 3 yesterday.

Sam Davies, GBR, (ROXY), 14th, seems to have taken the upper hand again in her all girl duel with Dee Caffari, GBR, (Aviva). Davies' westerly route, to Caffari's easterly option has given a lead of 17 miles.

Unai Basurko, ESP, (Pakea Bizkaia) reported in to the radio vacations today that he was now in good breeze, taking the most inshore route, some 125 miles off Essouira.

Derek Hatfield, CAN, (Algimouss Spirit of Canada) was making good ground in light winds today after restarting very early this morning. Ahead of him, Bernard Stamm, SUI, (Cheminées Poujoulat), around 90 miles in front and making slow progress in soft winds, frustrating after he started again 24 hours earlier than the Canadian. But can the former Mountie' catch his man'?

Vendee Globe - Standings at 15:00GMT, Friday Day 5

1- Loick Peyron (Gitana Eighty) 22,222.8 miles to finish
2- Jean Le Cam (VM Materiaux) at + 24.3 miles
3- Seb Josse (BT) at + 28.3 miles
4- Jean-Pierre Dick (Paprec-Virbac 2) at + 31.3 miles
5- Yann Elies (Generali) at + 47.7 miles

Selected international:

10- Mike Golding, GBR, (ECOVER 3) + 92 miles
12-Brian Thompson, GBR, (Bahrain Team Pindar) +112.4 miles
13- Dee Caffari, GBR, (AVIVA) + 169.9 miles
15- Sam Davies, GBR,(ROXY) + 216.5 miles
16- Dominique Wavre, SUI, (Temenos 2) + 248.9 miles
17- Steve White, GBR, (Toe in the Water) + 306.5 miles
18- Johnny Malbon, GBR, (Artemis) + 361.1 miles
20- Unai Basurko, ESP, (Pakea Bizkaia) + 411.2 miles
21-Rich Wilson, USA, (Great America III) + 449.6 miles