Vendée Globe: "Missing Boris" - the dispersed top misses the Malizia man
Tatjana Pokorny
· 02.12.2024
It was "Paprec Arkéa" dynamo Yoann Richomme, in third place on the 23rd day of racing, who described the current picture at the front of the Vendée Globe fleet so aptly: "The level is pretty similar to the previous races. We have Seb Simon, who has really improved recently - he's the big step forward. Other than that, it's the usual suspects. The big one missing is Boris. Other than that, the level is what I expected."
High duty for Herrmann's Cape Passage
Around 1300 nautical miles behind leader Charlie Dalin, Boris Herrmann crossed the longitude of the Cape of Good Hope on the afternoon of 2 December. The first of the three great capes has been reached. But the price for Boris Herrmann was much higher than he had hoped and expected. At the start of the fourth week of the race, the power players with whom the Hamburg native wanted to compete at the top were several days ahead of him.
The top boats, among which the "Malizia - Seaexplorer" was counted by competitors, experts and fans after two second places in the Transat races in the spring, are far behind. Boris Herrmann now wants to start his race to catch up in the Southern Ocean.
Missing the doldrums and bad luck in the form of black clouds a fortnight ago during the equatorial passage meant that the 43-year-old was unable to catch up with the pacemakers in front, who were soon able to reach completely different speeds in a different weather window. In the Atlantic final sprint, Boris Herrmann and the group sailing close to him also had to struggle through the lack of wind once again, while the leading boats galloped away.
The Vendée Globe winners have a three-day head start
Now the cards may be reshuffled. Boris Herrmann has also reached the Indian Ocean. He passed the Cape of Good Hope about 340 nautical miles south at 40 degrees south latitude. 22 days, 2 hours and 31 minutes after the start, the first of the three large capes along the Vendée Globe course was completed, with "Malizia - Seaexplorer" reaching its longitude in twelfth place on Monday afternoon at 15:33 German time.
The harsh realisation for comparison: front runner Charlie Dalin had already been there almost three days earlier. And the other members of the leading group immediately afterwards. That's not a gap that can be made up in the short term. Boris Herrmann's own routings recently told him that he could reach Cape Horn on 30 December or 1 January. With a possible gap of 700 nautical miles - a long-term prospect that could change many times over.
On the afternoon of 2 December, Boris Herrmann was not yet sure what would happen in the coming days. He told Vendée Globe TV presenter and circumnavigator Dee Caffari: "There are completely different scenarios for me between 100 and 90 per cent. If I can continue eastwards quickly at 100 per cent, then I will make good progress. If I'm slower, I might end up in a strange position to the approaching low, maybe even a little downwind."
The Indian Ocean is always a sailor's least favourite because the sea is often much more confused than in the Pacific." Boris Herrmann
The Southern Ocean extends its claws
When Boris Herrmann said this, he was already sailing in winds of between 26 and 29 knots in the choppy Agulhas Current. He was sailing with a small gennaker and one reef in the main and said: "I might have to reef further and change the headsail if the wind picks up again tonight. The Indian Ocean will certainly be very challenging. It looks like a lot of wind. I'll be glad when we're in the Pacific."
Boris Herrmann continued: "Cape Horn is my big goal. I have resolved to round Cape Horn by 1 January at the latest. This entire month of December is my southern month. That's the Southern Ocean Passage. I've already seen albatrosses. It's still quite warm, especially here in the current. There's also some sun in between."
On the other hand, Boris Herrmann is already feeling the first Southern Ocean claws: "There is also unsteady wind, very harsh conditions, squalls. Overall, it's very difficult to sail. The boat is bucking a bit in the sea. Even with our seaworthy boat, there are small nose dives and a lot of water above deck. It's very jerky in the boat. You are tossed back and forth. The conditions are tough at the moment. If it gets any rougher, we'll have to ease off the throttle a bit and just sail through safely."
The Vendée Globe fleet faces tough tests
The coming days will present him, his team and the leading group with very difficult tasks. The current top players are expected to face a major low in the Indian Ocean on Wednesday. They have already prepared and positioned themselves for the encounter.
On Wednesday and Thursday, winds with gusts of more than 50 knots and choppy seas are forecast for the leading Imocas. At the moment, the main focus is on checking and choosing alternative options. "It's all a bit complicated. Our aim is to position ourselves as well as possible to get through this low-pressure area that's coming our way and get us into negotiable winds," explained defending champion Yannick Bestaven ("Maître CoQ V"), who had moved up to seventh place on Monday afternoon.
Just the day before, there had been various alternative options for the soloists. But these no longer existed on Monday. "There is no more passage across the south," warned Bestaven. His assessment was confirmed by Vendée Globe weather consultant Christian Dumard: "All soloists will logically pass to the north of the system. If they were to sail at lower latitudes, they would suffer much longer in the system, but would also be confronted with more wind and more swell."
Escape from 65 knots of wind and ten-metre waves
The longer route to the north is not the ideal one, but will probably save the sailors from gusts of 65 knots and waves ten metres high. It extends their course by up to 500 nautical miles and takes them north past the Kerguelen archipelago. However, the leading trio Charlie Dalin ("Macif Santé Prévoyance"), Yoann Richomme ("Paprec Arkéa") and Sébastien Simon ("Groupe Dubreuil") could be hit by the depression as it continues to expand on their way east and they have few other options, according to the Vendée Globe headquarters.
Behind the top three, Thomas Ruyant ("Vulnerable"), Jérémie Beyou ("Charal"), Nicolas Lunven ("Holcim - PRB"), Sam Goodchild ("Vulnerable") and Yannick Bestaven still had and still have the opportunity to sail northwards. They took advantage of it, as recent pictures from the tracker showed. You could almost see the boats heading north as if they were fleeing.
"We'll still get 40-45 knots, which is strong, but ultimately a bit like the usual strong stuff in the south," Yannick Bestaven summarised the scenario. Preparing as best he can for the first 'hot potato' of this Vendée Globe, he said: "Today is the boat inspection day. We are preparing for the heavy weather to set the appropriate smaller sails." The same was true for his pursuers, who will be the first to reach the system.
Extreme winds and heavy seas ahead - here Sam Goodchild explains what lies ahead for the Vendée Globe sailors in the Indian Ocean and why he is accepting mileage losses:
Here, a video by Justine Mettraux shows how close the Swiss woman and the "Malizia - Seaexplorer" skipper kept getting until Monday morning:
