Up to 36 knots of wind from the north-east made for a fast but uncomfortable night for the crews. "The sea was horrible," says Amory Ross, reporter for Team Alvimedica. Although the waves were only around 30 centimetres high, they apparently came in very rapid succession, which made the boat movements very choppy and uncomfortable.
"Life on board is 200 per cent different than before," writes reporter Corinna Halloren from on board the SCA. "That makes it not only interesting, but also a little painful. New bruises have appeared, our stomachs are not at 100 per cent and we are a bit exhausted."
In the current position report, there were only six nautical miles between the leading team Brunel and Vestas Wind in last place. However, the latter had not reported a position and their location was estimated. The six other teams were separated by only one to two nautical miles. However, the field had spread out to around seven nautical miles apart - effectively a restart on a broad reach. All the boats sailed a south-westerly course towards the Canary Islands with the wind from starboard.
After the extremely strenuous Mediterranean leg with lots of sail and course changes, the race has now switched to a new mode, with technique rather than tactics currently shaping the character. Who can trim their yachts best and get the most speed out of them?
The fastest so far was Team Alvimedica with 21 knots over ground, the best 24-hour distance was achieved by Mapfre with 247 nautical miles. Neither was quite enough to take the lead.
The next few hours will show how the new single class will affect the character of the race. Will all the yachts remain close together because they are identical, or will one team be able to gain an advantage?
There have apparently been no major failures so far, except for Team Brunel, where an outrigger broke. In principle, this is a pole that is set aft to leeward. It is used to move the hoisting point of the code zero or gennaker further outwards, to leeward, in order to achieve a greater angle of attack without destroying the profile in the sail. However, it was possible to repair the outrigger with on-board equipment, as the video shows.
Repairing the outrigger
Lars Bolle
Chief Editor Digital
