Arkea Ultim Challenge: Up and away - Caudrelier flexes his Gitana muscles
Tatjana Pokorny
· 21.01.2024
At the end of the second week of the historic premiere of the Arkea Ultim Challenge, Charles Caudrelier is the Indian Ocean mileage king. His lead over second-placed Thomas Coville on "Sodebo Ultim 3" had grown to almost 1,300 nautical miles on the third Sunday of the race. In keeping with the motto "The rich get richer", Caudrelier on "Maxi Edmond de Rothschild" roared past the Crozet Islands in the southern Indian Ocean on 21 January.
People talk to me a lot about record times. But my goal is to pass Cape Horn with a boat in good condition and win this race" (Charles Caudrelier)
The former French merchant navy officer, who was born in Paris and grew up in Brittany, flexes the muscles of his Ultim giant from the Gitana racing stable. On course for Cape Leeuwin, Caudrelier's giant foiler recently reached an average speed of more than 32 knots over 24 hours. Caudrelier's video clip at the end of the article shows what this looks like in reality at around 45 degrees south latitude in the Roaring Forties.
"People talk to me a lot about record times. But my goal is to pass Cape Horn with a boat in good condition and win this race," Charles Caudrelier made clear at the weekend. The two-time Ocean Race winner said: "I'm trying to find a good speed - not too fast. And I try not to go over 40 knots."
Arkea Ultim Challenge: veteran Coville passes Cape of Good Hope in second place
Caudrelier's pursuer Thomas Coville has now passed the Cape of Good Hope in second place and also reached the Indian Ocean. At 3.18 am German time, he crossed the relevant longitude after 13 days, 13 hours and 48 minutes during the non-stop circumnavigation very early on Sunday morning. The oldest of the six skippers in the Arkea Ultim Challenge, at 55 years of age, therefore needed around one day and just under 13 hours longer than Charles Caudrelier for this first leg of the race around the world.
While Charles Caudrelier is currently making good progress with a steady north-westerly wind, which is expected to shift to the south-west on Monday morning, Thomas Coville has to pass a front and will probably face several gybes during the course of the day. Charles Caudrelier is therefore likely to extend his already huge lead for the time being.
Duel in the Southern Ocean: Le Cléac'h and Marchand wrestle with lighter winds
More than 2,700 nautical miles behind Caudrelier, the pre-start co-favourite and "Banque Populaire" skipper Armel Le Cléac'h is engaged in a thrilling duel with Anthony Marchand on "Actual Ultim 3" after his repair stop. The gap between Le Cléac'h, who was superior on paper, and Marchand had recently narrowed to just 30 nautical miles.
Armel Le Cléac'h and Anthony Marchand still have to free themselves from the clutches of the weaker winds. "At the moment they are behind the area of high pressure that is moving with them," explained Pierre Hayes, the assistant race organiser. "Unfortunately, they will have to fight with it until the Cape of Good Hope." As a result, the average speeds of "Banque Populaire XI" and "Actual Ultim 3" were recently "only" around 21 knots. Which is why they are constantly losing ground compared to the boats in front.
"SVR Lazartigue" skipper Tom Laperche is expected in Cape Town on Monday
Bringing up the rear, Éric Péron on "Adagio" has now turned his bow to the east, almost 4,000 nautical miles behind the leader "Maxi Edmond de Rothschild". Hays says: "He has a north-north-easterly wind of 15 to 18 knots, which allows him to sail on a relatively direct route." The 42-year-old "Adagio" outsider from Quimper was travelling at a boat speed of more than 20 knots on Sunday morning.
Tom Laperche, meanwhile, is expected to arrive in Cape Town on Monday with his "SVR Lazartigue", which was damaged in a "UFO" collision last week. The SVR Lazartigue technical team will be waiting for him there to examine the demolished boat and decide on the next steps.
The situation is not getting worse" (Tom Laperche)
With a stable situation on board, Tom Laperche on "SVR Lazartigue" still has around 400 nautical miles to go to Cape Town on Sunday morning. He is expected to arrive late on Monday. In the live programme for the race on Saturday, Tom Laperche, who is only 26 years old, reassured his fans: "Things are going quite well on the boat. I'm doing regular checks. The situation is not getting any worse."
Sunday greetings from the southern Indian Ocean from "Maxi Edmond de Rothschild":
The Cape of Good Hope has been mastered! Thomas Coville dived into the Indian Ocean with "Sodebo Ultim 3" in second place in the Arkea Ultim Challenge in the very early morning of 21 January:
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Tatjana Pokorny
Sports reporter
