Arkea Ultim Challenge: Historic Cape Horn Passage - Caudrelier on the home straight
Tatjana Pokorny
· 06.02.2024
Charles Caudrelier is back in the Atlantic! After more than 18 days in the Southern Ocean, the "Maxi Edmond de Rothschild" skipper has begun his Atlantic ascent back to the start and finish harbour of the Arkea Ultim Challenge. The Southern Ocean is behind him on this leg. Caudrelier still had around 7,000 nautical miles to go before reaching the finish line of the premiere of the Arkea Ultim Challenge on the evening of 6 February.
Arkea Ultim Challenge: Front runner passes Cape Horn
From Cape Agulhas, the reference point in South Africa that marks the entrance to the Indian and Southern Oceans, to the legendary Cape Horn, Team Gitana's giant trimaran travelled over 11,900 nautical miles at an average speed of 28 knots. This figure is also impressive because Charles Caudrelier had to take his foot off the accelerator shortly before Cape Horn at the end of his Pacific passage. Between 1 and 3 February, he went into a 48-hour "holding pattern" at a greatly reduced speed in order to avoid getting caught in a heavy storm off Cape Horn in consultation with his team.
After successful strategic timing, this Tuesday will remain a key date in Charles Caudrelier's impressive solo circumnavigation of the globe. The 49-year-old family man from Fouesnant crossed the longitude of Cape Horn at the southern tip of South America at 18:08 German time after a total of 30 days, 4 hours, 38 minutes and 40 seconds since the start of the Arkea Ultim Challenge on 7 January. With a lead of around 2,500 nautical miles over second-placed Armel Le Cléac'h on "Banque Populaire XI", the leader is heading for the finish line with a lead of several days.
Caudrelier was faster in the Indian Ocean, record holder Gabart in the Pacific
Charles Caudrelier recorded the fourth-fastest time of all circumnavigations and the second-fastest of all solo circumnavigations. While the "Maxi Edmond de Rothschild" (also known as the "Gitana 17") had already ploughed the Indian Ocean on 28 January in a new record time of 8 days, 8 hours, 20 minutes and 36 seconds, its skipper Charles Caudrelier was denied the record for the Pacific.
When he won the Trophée Saint-Exupéry in 2017, compatriot François Gabart only needed 29 days, 3 hours and 15 minutes to complete the section between Ushant and Cape Horn, which was a good day less. Gabart's record for the fastest solo circumnavigation has stood at 42 days, 16 hours, 40 minutes and 35 seconds since 2017. He will be hard to beat in the Arkea Ultim Challenge, even by an outstanding Charles Caudrelier after the delay of the last few days.
Historic premiere: a trimaran foiler passes Cape Horn
For two-time Ocean Race winner Charles Caudrelier, it was the fourth Cape Horn passage of his career, but his first as a soloist. It is also the first time in sailing history that a flying maxi trimaran has mastered this legendary passage. Excited and happy to have completed the Southern Ocean and the "Cape of Redemption", the number one in the Gitana racing team dedicated this third and final Cape to his operators and his team.
Charles Caudrelier's message from Cape Horn:
"For me, this cape stands for so much. It's my fourth passage, but this time it's a historic one! It's historic for me: my first single-handed passage. It's historic for the boat, for the Gitana team and for the sport of sailing, because the boat is the first flying maxi trimaran to pass Cape Horn. We did it!
In 2017, the Gitana team launched this revolutionary boat, which had been developed three years earlier with Guillaume Verdier's team. Seven years later, the vision of this team and its operators - Ariane and Benjamin de Rothschild - led to us deservedly leading the fleet at Cape Horn. That will go down in history; it's magical.
What a magical moment to pass Cape Horn single-handed" (Charles Caudrelier)
Inevitably, it is also magical for me personally. What an emotional moment to pass Cape Horn single-handed. I've dreamed about it since I was a child, but I've never done it. When the opportunity presented itself, I took it. I'm proud of myself and the whole team. It's a milestone. There's still a long way to go, but even if I don't win the race, I've passed Cape Horn and that's important. That is anchored in my memory.
It's an important stage, but we still have a lot of work to do. My boat is in good condition. It's not perfect, but I have a boat that can pretty much realise its full potential. My goal now is to control the lead we have and finish the course. I can win this race. I know I can, and the others know it too.
We have a big lead and I will try to manage it well" (Charles Caudrelier)
The next section is not easy. I still have four to five somewhat complicated days ahead of me, but once I've joined the trade winds off Rio, we'll know where we're heading from then on: on a straight course at least as far as the Azores. After that, I don't know what the end of the course has in store for us. The aim is to get the boat ahead as quickly as possible in the trade winds, because there are still strong winds and some challenging crossings. But we have a big lead and I will try to manage it too well."
Just 300 nautical miles behind second-placed Armel Le Cleac'h, Thomas Coville on "Sodebo Ultim 3" is also battling his way towards Cape Horn in the Pacific. Almost 6,000 nautical miles behind leader Caudrelier, fourth-placed Anthony Marchand on "Actual Ultim 3" has just passed Cape Leeuwin, the second cape of his solo circumnavigation, and still has the Pacific ahead of him. Last-placed Éric Péron still had around 1,100 nautical miles to go to the longitude of Cape Leeuwin on Tuesday evening.
Another race, the same milestone: an Ocean Race homage with commentary by Boris Herrmann at Cape Horn:
Tatjana Pokorny
Sports reporter
