Vendée Globe: Record Breakers Gybe Ho!

These phenomenal speeds are faster than the speed records set in the 2007 Barcelona Race double handed round the world race, held by Alex Thomson/Andrew Cape, onboard Hugo Boss, GBR, traveling 501.3 miles, averaging 20.9 knots and just slower than the 2011 record set by Jean Pierre Dick/Loick Peyron, Virbac Paprec, FRA, covering 506.333 miles averaging knots.

Since yesterday, three boats in the fleet have smashed into smithereens Thomson’s record, including Thomson himself.
All speeds were recorded on the 1st December.

• Macif 1st December 0530 GMT 487.23, 20.3 knots average
• Cheminées Poujoulat 1200 GMT 482.59, 20.1 knots average
• Hugo Boss 1000 GMT 473.87, 19.7 knots average

Ultimately, of course, for now, the record has been broken by Jean Pierre Dick, but the race is young, and the conclusion is yet to be realised.

Fleet News

The record breaking Jean-Pierre Dick (Virbac Paprec 3) retains his lead by a thread. He said today, during the web tv show, Vendée Globe LIVE, “It’s great to be the new leader, the conditions are perfect, there’s a lot of wind. We’ve tried to be reasonable and the future will tell us whether we’ve done the right thing. Breakage can happen in any situation anyway, and in the long term too. But we also know our boats can take those intense conditions”.

But for the tallest skipper in the fleet life onboard can be challenging. “I spend a lot of time on my knees, it’s hard to stand, and do basic things like cooking. I feel like I’m camping. I also try to get some sleep, but it’s difficult, because we’re shaken hard and there is a lot of noise.  But after a while, you get used to that noise. But sleep is so important that at one point, you have to sleep, whatever the context, and when you’re as tired as I’ve been, you fall asleep anyway.”

The fleet is beginning to slow a little and the models depict the conditions lightening as they approach the first Ice Gate, Aiguilles. With only 20 miles between the leader, Armel Le Cléac’h (Banque Populaire) and François Gabart (MACIF) the first to cross the gate is still to be determined in this dramatic battle. With lighter conditions forthcoming at the second gate past Aiguilles, it could create an opportunity for the fleet to compress and the tailing trio of Jean Le Cam (SynerCiel), Dominique Wavre (Mirabaud) and Mike Golding (Gamesa) to claw back some miles. There are some tactically interesting times ahead.

Bernard Stamm (Cheminées Poujoulat) who is sailing his weapon, a new design by Juan Kouyoumdjan, said today on Vendée Globe LIVE today that he felt the boat still had more to give but he was happy with it’s performance and he didn’t want to push it to hard. Stamm was still clocking the fastest speed of 20 knots at the 1500 GMT ranking.

The front eight boats have gybed and are now on starboard tack. Today, on Vendée Globe LIVE Mike Golding (Gamesa) explained this process. “The shift, when it came, came pretty quickly, although I was semi prepared it was still quite complicated, because the shift was quite large it put us in to a nasty head sea which meant the boat was slamming, so not a great situation for a gybe but it went through alright with no problems and we got going initially on almost exactly the same heading with the same sail plan.” It’s not a small undertaking.

“You can do the whole thing in around 20 minutes, you are emptying ballast from one side and while the ballast is emptying you can be moving the heavy stuff like sails, you can drop it all down, depending how long that has taken you might be able to move some of the boxes as well, but if you can’t, if the ballast is empty you just go for the gybe and then you move the boxes later, so about 20 minutes for the whole process. It feels a bit strange on board because we are leaning the other way and it feels like everything is upside down.” Said Golding.

Trouble at the Back

The back-pack are floundering with frustration as the St. Helena High closed the wind window south of the small group of tenacious travellers. Javier Sanso (Acciona 100% EcoPowered) and Arnaud Bossières (Akena Verandas) chose to bypass the high pressure taking a short cut, whilst Bertrand De Broc (Votre Nom Autour du Monde avec EDM) seeks an alternative route to the west.

Alessandro Di Benedetto (Team Plastique) has only one choice but he is happy washing his laundry, growing his herbs and enjoying the adventure. Times are tough for the quartet. These delays continue to widen the gap between them and frontrunners. It is important they remain pragmatic, focus on the fundamentals of sailing the boat and take time to appreciate the joy of being at sea. To sail solo around the world on these fantastic boats remains a privilege that it would be churlish not to appreciate.

Watch web tv Vendée Globe LIVE every day at midday GMT to watch the latest news LIVE from the race track.

PHOTO: JEAN MARIE LIOT