Progress in the South Atlantic remains a struggle on the 17th day of the tenth Vendée Globe, which has now begun. While the front nine boats, from leader Charlie Dalin to "Biotherm" skipper Paul Meilhat, made southeastward progress on Tuesday afternoon with the "Cape Town Express", it remains an up and down battle for their pursuers.
"Malizia - Seaexplorer" at breakneck speed
After a rather slow night with often only 13 knots of wind, Boris Herrmann raced towards the Cape of Good Hope on Tuesday afternoon with "Malizia - Seaexplorers" at the highest speed since the start of the race on 10 November: In the middle of an online press conference, the 43-year-old skipper was able to report 34 knots of speed - and was impressed himself. But according to his own assessment, it won't stay that way in the South Atlantic accordion game.
Boris Herrmann was able to reduce his deficit to Charlie Dalin by a few miles to 393 nautical miles with the next position update on Tuesday afternoon. But his trembling continues.
On the one hand, there are the formidable spurt phases in the South Atlantic on the wind-variable edge of the depression that everyone now knows as the "Cape Town Express". On the other hand, there is the "rather slow" last night, for example, and the worrying prospects for the pursuers, who are gradually being thrown off the train. The stop-and-go game continues. Boris Herrmann believes that the boats in front will be able to leave the chasers much further behind when the wind drops for the chasers like him.
My nightmare scenario could still materialise." Boris Herrmann
The five-time circumnavigator explained: "The gap is still manageable. But it will increase. I reckon that in two days' time, with less wind, those ahead of us will be sailing even faster. Then I'll jibe to the south and try to cheat my way through the light wind zone. The gap could still increase to 1000 nautical miles."
"Armchair dance" at the Vendée Globe
Outside in the South Atlantic, it's a bit like the party game "armchair dancing", where there is always one less chair for the players than the size of the group. When the music stops, one player can no longer find a seat. The current situation is similar in the Vendée Globe: if the wind "runs out", there is no room for one or more sailors in the top group on the "Cape Town Express".
This is also how the experts see it. The reason is simple: while more and more skippers will be forced to wait for the next turn because the wind is getting lighter for them at the end of the "Imoca chain of pearls" on the course for the Cape of Good Hope, Charlie Dalin and his direct competitors will continue to make rapid progress in the strong winds that persist for them at the front. They will probably be able to turn south very quickly and settle on the edge of the Antarctic exclusion zone.
Race organisers shorten exclusion zone in the Southern Ocean
The race organisers have decided to shorten this zone by almost 100 miles - at least as far as the Crozet archipelago. This variant enables the sailors to take a shorter route on the one hand and on the other hand offers the chance to take advantage of the low-pressure areas that are currently circulating very far to the south. According to Herrmann, it was of course "not desirable" for the leaders to spread out further. He and the other chasers are fighting for every mile so that they are not left behind. And if they do, then as late as possible.
At the same time, Herrmann paid tribute to the front-runners, who have beaten the 24-hour monohull solo record several times in the past few days and have had an outstanding race so far. The record is currently held by French "Paprec Arkéa" skipper Yoann Richomme with 579.86 nautical miles. Boris Herrmann said: "I have great respect for the leading boats. The sailors are extremely well prepared."
New low provides a small glimmer of hope
Meanwhile, his own hopes are pinned on another area of low pressure that could soon follow the first. "That might even things out a bit," says Herrmann. But we'll have to wait and see. Herrmann still trusts his boat "Malizia - Seaexplorer" "100 per cent". He is also not worrying too much about fleet development at the moment: "I have to sail my own race. A lot will still happen."
The "Malizia - Seaexplorer" skipper reported at the press conference, which he held in his blue upholstered pilot's seat: "I climbed all the way to the front for the first time during the Vendée Globe in the doldrums, checked everything and can't find anything wrong." He hopes to make up for the miles already lost and those that could be added in the coming days in the Southern Ocean.
Greetings from Sam Goodchild from the South Atlantic washing machine on the afternoon of 26 November. The Brit had recently dropped back to seventh place, but had led the fleet in the North Atlantic for a long time:
Boris Herrmann's latest report from on board - published on 26 November at around 6 pm:
