The race has a new, clear leader. Team Brunel under Bouwe Bekking has sailed away from all the others on the longer, bold northern route. In the morning, the lead over the next boat, Abu Dhabi Ocean Racing, was 78 nautical miles to the finish. But this is somewhat deceptive, as the boats are north of the shortest course; in fact, there was a gap of around 100 nautical miles, measured using the race viewer's distance tool.
In the night to Sunday, Team Brunel was still parallel to the quartet further south, but then ignited the turbo. With a slightly lower course than the rest of the field, they were able to set a much faster pace, allowing Brunel to overtake upwind and secure their lead. It was astonishing how clearly the team pulled away.
How Team Brunel overtook everyone
The women from Team SCA, also placed to the north, were unable to follow. Actually, if Brunel's advantage was only due to the wind and course, they should have benefited just as much. But obviously Brunel was also significantly faster than Team SCA. On 12 February, both boats were still on an equal footing in their northern position, but then Brunel pulled away inexorably, ultimately covering more than 117 nautical miles. How bitter this must be for the women's team: they not only dared to make the extreme move northwards, but also initiated it, but were not rewarded for it.
The latch of the large genoa breaks in the middle of the night at the Dongfeng Race Team. After seven hours of work, the damage is repaired
Another very interesting development took place in the chasing quartet. Abu Dhabi Ocean Racing was able to slowly but steadily pull away to currently seven nautical miles. Apparently Ian Walker and his crew like the conditions with around 20 knots of half wind.
Even if Brunel's lead is comfortable at the moment, it is no guarantee of victory. This is because the intra-tropical convergence zone, known as the Doldrums, lies directly ahead with its doldrums. And as every regatta sailor knows: whoever sails into a doldrum first gives their pursuers the chance to react.
Lars Bolle
Chief Editor Digital
