Vendee Globe: Race favorite takes lead as fleet rips through Atlantic - Day 2
by Richard Gladwell/Sail-World.com/nz 11 Nov 2024 03:10 EST
11 November 2024
Sam Davies - Initiatives Coeur - Start Vendée Globe - Les Sables d'Olonne - IMOCA60 - November 10, 2024 © Jean-Louis Carli
Race favorite Charlie Dalin has taken the lead of the Vendee Globe single handed non-stop around the world race, on the morning of Day 2.
After yesterday's start in light airs, the fleet has picked up a breeze to take them gybing downwind Cape Finisterre, at a speed of 16-17kts. He is sailing in a 20kts NE breeze, and is currently (0630hrs CET - 0530hrs UTC) heading west. However course projections have Dalin taking a zig-zagging course to Finisterre.
Dalin sailing MACIF was in second place earlier in the day, trailing Seabastien Simon (Groupe Dubreuil) who is travelling at a slightly slower speed, but in the same direction. Third is British sailor Sam Goodchild, making 15.3kts, also sailing in a westerly direction. Goodchild is just over 3nm behind Simon, who is 2nm behind Dalin.
Conrad Colman (NZL/USA) started an hour late after fouling his propeller with a sheet, which the team decided to fix before starting and lowered his mainsail. Under the race rules he had to start an hour later, and did so at 1417hrs CET on a new start line set by race officials. At 0630hrs CET on Day 2 he had recovered to lie 17th overall in the 40 boat fleet.
However according to the latest information from the Event, Colman was suffering an electronic blackout, it is not stated if this is repairable. In the 2016 race, he suffered an electrical fire. Colman is endeavoring to sail the entire race without using fossil fuel - a feat he achieved in the 2016 Vendee despite dismasting 800nm from the finish and sailed out the race under Jury rig. Sail-World has been advised by his team that the blackout has been fixed and there are no major problems.
Despite his late start Colman on MS Amlin was able to pick a more favourable course than the fleet, and for a time was the lead boat. In the dawn sked he told Vendee Globe media: “The night has gone well, we are gybing in the shifts to take advantage of the variations in the wind to make it south west, the shifts are quite big 30-35 degrees, so lots of gybing and each gybe represents a lot of work, mental and physical, and there is a lot of VHF chat between each of us to coordinate gybes. But is all going well, it’s been a good night, I’m just happy to be out here now but it’s lots of work.”
He explained yesterday evening that sheet of his large gennaker had slipped into the water and wrapped around the propeller. "It stalled the engine, it jammed the sheet and it stopped the boat from being manoeuvrable. So I kept the team on board with me, which meant that I didn’t respect the deadline [5 minutes before the start] to disembark my crew members, and so I couldn’t start like the others, even a little late! So I asked to benefit from the staggered start protocol.”
Justine Mettraux (SUI) - Teamwork - Teanm SNEF - is the leading female sailor in fifth overall and is 9nm behind Dalin. Clarisse Cremer (L'Occitane en Provence) is the second female sailor in 13th overall and is 18nm behind the race leader.
The most senior sailor in the fleet, Jean le Cam (65tyrs), a veteran of six Vendee Globe races, is lying in 10th overall and is the first of the daggerboard IMOCA60s. He is sailing a new boat and was making 14.5kts and was 15nm behind the race leader. The youngest sailor, Violette Dorange (23 yrs), who was being mentored by le Cam in the lead up to the start of the Vendee is lying in 20th overall, 24nm behind the race leader. Just behind her are two other female sailors, Britain's Pip Hare (22nd overall) and Sam Davies (GBR/FRA) who is 23rd overall.