"We're working our way back up in the east. The others are pulling down well in the west," said Melwin Fink, describing the situation for his team on Sunday. In the meantime, Benoït Hantzperg and Renaud Dehareng on "Belgium Ocean Racing - Curium" and Ian Lipinski with Amélie Grassi on "Crédit Mutuel" have reached about the 20th parallel south on their course to La Réunion. During the equator passage two days ago, the two boats were separated by just 33 minutes; on Sunday evening it was no more than 15 nautical miles.
Globe40: just under two weeks to go to the Cape of Good Hope
According to Melwin Fink, the current conditions are likely to accompany the three crews at the front for a while yet: "The winds will continue for another two days or so, always with a good 20 to 25 knots of reaching, sometimes over 20 or under 20 knots, so a little unstable. But we're making very good progress."
We're really struggling. It's not quite as comfortable right now." Melwin Fink
Fink also described the conditions as "somewhat monotonous". With the comment "Day in, day out - that's what it looks like here" the Next Generation Boating Around the World team released this clip on Sunday afternoon. Looking at the forecasts, the crew hopes to reach the Cape of Good Hope in the next twelve to 13 days. A little less than 3,000 nautical miles lay ahead until the first of the three large capes at midday on 12 October. The idea associated with the Cape Passage, says Fink: "As soon as we turn off at the Cape, it will go very quickly."
According to his assessment, the two leading boats "probably sail under code zero in the west, which we don't do". Fink added: "We're sailing a bit more pointed than they are. We don't know exactly why they do that. They're probably hoping to get into the new wind faster, which will then take us across the Atlantic. But we're not going with them now, we'll stay here in the east and gamble that we'll gain an advantage. It will definitely be exciting!"
Reaching with rumbling on course south
Fink reports that the crew themselves are doing well. "It's just very exhausting and uncomfortable with a lot of bumping," explained the youngest participant in the second Globe40 edition. And this too: "It's slowly getting cooler, it's still warm, but no longer like at the equator. We'll keep going!"
Amélie Grassi had also reported from "Crédit Mutuel" the day before: "We have the first night in oilskins behind us. Not that it's very cold. But it's getting a bit wet. We're always neck and neck with the Belgians." On course south, Amélie Grassi also talked about work on the boat: "I think Ian and I make a good craftsman duo. It runs smoothly, we always find neat solutions. We continue to check the boat so that it is just as fit and ready to attack the south as we are - the most powerful phase of this leg."
All crews fortify themselves for this. Melwin Fink and Lennart Burke demonstrated how this can work in culinary terms with a detailed cookery and fashion clip here. This is accompanied by "Funiculì, Funicolà". The piece was written in 1980 for the opening of the funicular railway up Mount Vesuvius. The Italian classic was played during the celebrated on-board production of Spaghetti Carbonara à la Fink.
Globe40: the pursuers fight
Meanwhile, the pursuers of the three leading scow boats are doing their utmost to keep up. In the meantime, however, the fourth-placed "Banco Brasil" is already a good 470 nautical miles behind the leading Belgians. They are followed by "Free Dom" and "Wilson Around the World" with Austrian Lisa Berge and her British co-pilot Jade Edwards-Leaney, 513 and 580 nautical miles behind respectively. Melodie Schaffer and Julia Virat are 733 nautical miles behind on "Whiskey Jack". Click here for tracking, with position updates every four hours.
