New York Vendée: Exciting weekend for Boris Herrmann and the rest of the leading group

It is far from clear who will be the first to reach the next front, which is only around 150 nautical miles away and will again bring fresh to gale-force winds. The weather models have been way off the mark since the beginning, as Boris learnt painfully when he had to deal with a weak east-southeast wind tonight, Central European Time, when it should actually still be blowing steadily from the northwest.

What looked on the tracker like a sequence of a good half dozen gybes was actually a cruising speed cruise - "Malizia - Seaexplorer" was only logging 4 to 6 knots, while the boats sailing further south-east around Charlie Dalin were making a good 10 knots. Boris quickly lost around 40 nautical miles to the position of the "Macif" skipper, who many consider to be one of the hottest contenders for victory in this New York Vendée.

At eight o'clock this morning, the Hamburg-based company was still doing comparatively well in the rankings, only slipping from first to third place. But that doesn't reflect the whole truth. Because Boris is closer to the great circle course, the shortest line between start and finish, he is currently benefiting mathematically. Tactically, however, he could have lost more. It is quite possible that the 43-year-old will be pushed to the back of the leading group over the course of the day.

You could sense his disappointment in a video from on board that went online this morning. He struggled with the influence that the Gulf Stream has on wind strength and direction. "I have no idea how it is possible for the wind to be deflected so much," he said. Standing on the deck of his bobbing Imoca, he surveyed the situation and wondered. "I should actually be sailing with 10, 15 knots on the beam ..." He wondered how the others were faring and whether he was the only one getting stuck. "I really hope we can get out of here."

He sounded even more confident last night. He was in the lead and among the fastest. He was aware that he was somewhat exposed in the north. But he made a conscious decision to follow the wind and his own tactics instead of staying closer to the competition. Sam Goodchild, who had followed him for a long time, was different. He jibed onto a south-easterly course just in time at around 10 p.m. and was thus able to significantly reduce his gap to the leaders.

Boris isn't the only one who is having a headache with the erratic weather. Sam Davies decided to try her luck on the other side of the field. She is currently 120 nautical miles south of the "Malizia" skipper and won't be entirely happy with her position either.

Benjamin Dutreux, the unlucky skipper of "Guyot Environnement" in The Ocean Race, took an even more extreme step. He sailed 60 nautical miles further south than Davies on a lonely course - an option that Yoann Richomme, the winner of the Transat CIC, had considered hopeless yesterday morning, at least for himself.

There's no chance of boredom this weekend! Not even for the two soloists who have possibly found the best, fastest way through the systems at the moment: Boris' Ocean Race tacticians Nico Lunven and Charlie Dalin. They have the chance to break away as soon as they reach the next front in the east. But that will be no walk in the park, as it will bring winds of between 20 and 40 knots - certainly enough to push the skippers and their boats to the limit.

Curious to see what happens next? Then go straight to the New York Vendée tracker - please click!