Vendée Globe Tuesday Update: The long and winding road to Les Sables d'Olonne
by Vendée Globe media 28 Jan 09:09 PST
28 January 2025
Benjamin Ferré (Monnoyeur - Duo for a Job, 19th) - Vendée Globe © Benjamin Ferré #VG2024
Passing Cape Finisterre off the NW corner of Spain this afternoon Germany's Boris Herrmann (Malizia Seaexplorer) remains in prudent, safe mode as he closes the finish line of the Vendée Globe which he should cross tomorrow (Wednesday) afternoon to take 12th place.
Briton Sam Davies (Initiatives Coeur) is about 78 miles behind and, like Herrmann, is moderating her pace in the face of strong winds and big waves, seeking to avoid the worst of a big Biscay storm whilst timing her final run into the finish line off Les Sables d'Olonne.
Finishing will be a blessed relief for both super experienced skippers who share the highest number of racing circumnavigations of the fleet. With waves over 10-12 metres on the Bay of Biscay today Davies had to make a U-turn four days ago to avoid arriving in the midst of this malicious system. Even so she and Herrmann have seen periods of winds of more than 50 knots and eight to nine metres waves.
"Depending on how the weather develops, we will see if we activate the 'storm line' again (a finish gate four miles out from the main line which becomes the line in the event of severe conditions)", explains Hubert Lemonnier, the race director. The storm line was in force most recently for Clarisse Crémer (L'Occitane en Provence) and Benjamin Dutreux (Guyot Environnement - ??Water Family)
Meanwhile the top finishing IMOCAs MACIF Santé Prévoyance and Paprec Arkéa could take advantage of this to leave Port Olona on Thursday and return to their home ports (Concarneau and Lorient respectively). In addition race management is in discussions with Guyot Environnement - ??Water Family and L'Occitane en Provence to plan the timing when Benjamin Dutreux and Clarisse Crémer will be welcomed back into the famous passage up the channel.
Some 1800 nautical miles to their SW the next big group, from 15th placed Damien Seguin (Groupe Apicil) to 26th placed Violette Dorange (Devenir) all now face the prospect of having to take a much longer route - well to the west of the Azores - because of a growing area of high pressure bringing light winds.
The race's weather consultant Christian Dumard explains "From Romain Attanasio (Fortinet - Best Western, 14th) to Violette Dorange (DeVenir, 26th) all the competitors seem to be passing to the West of the Azores, which significantly lengthens their route".
Romain Attanasio and Yannick Bestaven (Maître CoQ IV, out of the race) are largely round the anticyclone. The wind from a depression will now propel them towards the finish where they are expected this weekend, off Les Sables d'Olonne.
The same low pressure allows the group behind, made up of eight skippers from Benjamin Ferré (Monnoyeur - Duo for a Job, 19th) to Jean Le Cam (Tout commence en Finistère - Armor Lux, 23rd), to also pick up speed.
Le Cam has just woken up for the morning video call, happy to have repaired his J2 forestay: "In fact, there are lots of mini-Vendée Globes. There was one between the top two and there is one between all of us. There is always a battle, it comes and goes. It is very random and that is part of the game. After a while, you settle into a rhythm and for me it's mixed emotions, you want to finish and at the same time I'm happy here."
Alan Roura (Hublot) is looking forwards to getting in. He is 20th and said today, "Yesterday, while looking at my underwater camera, I thought I saw a piece of the boat hanging down below... I immediately slowed down and slid another camera underwater to check. It was the propeller shaft... Which I had completely forgotten! Then I understood that I was really burned out. So last night, I decided to prioritize rest to get back on track. It's done, I'm ready. The wind is still quite unstable in strength, sometimes it goes quite fast and all by itself, and other times you have to fight in 7 knots of wind to get the boat to plane. The group is right in front of me, we're not very far away and that's cool."
"Now, it's the very last straight, and I can tell you that I'm wound up like a (Swiss) cuckoo clock. A real final sprint, with a tiny bit of strategy but overall, it will be a speed sprint. I have organised my last bag of food for the next 6 days, it feels strange to think that this is it, it really is the end. Weather-wise, we are going to have downwind sailing for a good part of the route, then a finish of 100 miles close-hauled, tacking in light wind (the thing we love with my boat...). So I still have some work to do to get home quickly!" - Alan Roura, HUBLOT.
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