With an exceptional overnight performance, Frenchman Thomas Ruyant sailed to the top of the table for the first time at the 10th Vendée Globe this morning. The "Vulnerable" skipper benefited enormously from his position to the west of his rivals, which he had consistently held for several days. In his third Vendée Globe participation, Ruyant was the first skipper to free himself from the doldrums. In the meantime, he logged double the speed of his team-mate Sam Goodchild, who was positioned around 80 nautical miles to the east, and ultimately took the lead.
Four years ago, it was Ruyant who chased Britain's Alex Thomson across the equator some 80 miles behind. Both gained an immediate lead over the fleet in the South Atlantic when they caught a low-pressure area - a scenario very reminiscent of the current one and also of that of 2016/17, when Thomson and Record holder Armel Le Cléac'h escaped the main field. Today it is Ruyant who, according to the tracker, is currently 13 nautical miles ahead of the first chaser (i.e. taking into account the shortest distance to the finish. As the crow flies, the distance between the two boats is just under 100 nautical miles) and is about to cross the 0th parallel.
Don't miss: "Weather systems are like trains"
How important it is not to let Ruyant get away now had Top favourite Charlie Dalin already emphasised this morning: "We can't get stuck here for too long. Weather systems are like trains: when it's time to go, you have to go! If we want to catch the low pressure area that will take us south-east, now is the time to get out of the Doldrums!" He himself also worked his way up to third place with good speed values.
And no one behind them wants to miss the boat either. British skipper Pip Hare, among others, has been very successful on her mission to close in on the leaders and is currently in 13th place, having also reduced the gap from 250 nautical miles yesterday morning to around 100 nautical miles behind Ruyant this evening via a very westerly route. "I had a pretty good night, which I wasn't expecting," said the 50-year-old. "Being in the west is the better option and yesterday I was very, very alert to the clouds all day. I had a satellite image in front of me the whole time. It's incredible how accurate it is on my computer screen, and then it popped up on the radar and I was able to stay out of the way of things. I think that really helped me," she continued.
"I can't complain" - will Boris Herrmann make it back to the top?
The decisive factor for the British skipper is that she now has at least some chance of jumping onto the first low in the South Atlantic together with the leading group. The situation is similar for Boris Herrmann, who is one place behind, but was able to maintain solid speeds of over 15 knots throughout the day. After the race to catch up that began yesterday night, he has also taken a very fast route through the Doldrums with the westerly tendency he initiated this morning and should soon be sailing in similar winds to the leaders ahead of him.
"I can't complain. We got through the Doldrums very well and now it's an interesting situation for next week," said Herrmann. This will probably result in a clear division of the field. Yoann Richomme in particular had already feared this yesterday when the Doldrums proved to be a little tough for him. The Frenchman, who is one of the top favourites, had previously set a new solo 24-hour record with 551.84 nautical miles.
Vendée Globe: Clear division of the field in the South Atlantic imminent
When he reached fresh winds this morning, he said: "We were in there for 24 hours. For 12 to 15 hours we were in a bit of a tight spot. We were really stuck, but we've all seen much worse scenarios than this!" After crossing the equator in the course of the evening, the journey continues down the South Atlantic in a south-easterly trade wind. The 41-year-old is now in sixth place with his Finot-Koch design "Paprec Arkea".
And thus in a good position to reach an area of low pressure just north of Rio de Janeiro in a few days. This would be the ideal window to then speed towards the Cape of Good Hope. Boris Herrmann predicted record rides for those who get into this weather system. For him, it will be a tough battle against the clock.
"I will only reach the low if I match my polars one hundred per cent. If it's only 90 per cent, I'll miss it and lose 1,200 nautical miles to those who make it," says Herrmann about his situation. Like presumably other skippers around him, the 43-year-old is therefore currently pushing a little harder than usual. At the 7 p.m. tracker update, the German was 134 nautical miles behind Thomas Ruyant in the lead.
