It was almost a little eerie how "Hugo Boss" seemed to playfully leave the competition standing and in just under two days turned a 65 nautical mile deficit into a lead of over 40 miles at times - fans of Armel Le Cléac'h, who had been in the lead until then, may have wondered whether the Frenchman had a technical problem. But this morning the all-clear was given: "I haven't sailed well since Cape Verde, I couldn't find a good trim. But now everything is back in rhythm," he reported.
This is important because the peloton is now heading into the next big obstacle: the Doldrums. The low wind belt a little north of the equator is already slowing down the field today, Alex Thomson was travelling at only ten speed at times in the early morning. The belt of weak winds is about 150 nautical miles wide and will keep the participants busy until Tuesday. The routing tools showed an ideal passage between 27 and 28 degrees west, and the field is now aiming pretty much uniformly for this spot. Only Alex Thomson is much further east. Once before, it has not done him much good to have his own route far away from the main field. Let's hope that the Englishman has better luck.
In the meantime, the high speed of the first few days - if it continues like this, the record for the fastest equator passage could be significantly undercut - has cost the first technical victims. Tanguy de Lamotte's mast on his "Initiatives Coeur" broke yesterday. In the ensuing chaos, a headsail also wrapped itself around his keel. He is now trying to call at Cape Verde to carry out a repair at anchor - "only" the top 30 centimetres are broken off, Lamotte is considering whether he can repair the break in such a way that he can attach a new main halyard and continue sailing under 1st reef and with three headsails (which are lower) ( Watch the video of the break here)
Kojiro Shiraishi also had a tough time with his "Spirit of Yujo". His gennaker got caught in the water during a sun shot - and is now no longer operational.
Jean-Pierre Dick ("St. Michel-Virbac") had to tame his large gennaker on deck when the lower part of the furler broke. This seems to have cost him a lot of time, as he is now 237 nautical miles behind. Even the leading Alex Thomson was not spared technical problems, his engine apparently had water in the oil. After a few hours of work and a complete oil change, the engine is now said to be running perfectly again.
In the field, the French armada are watching the fast ride of "Hugo Boss", which they somewhat uncharitably call the "roast beef rocket", with suspicious eyes. "Safran" skipper Morgan Lagravière said: "I sailed close behind Alex the day before yesterday. He's either very fast or a bit slow. There doesn't seem to be anything in between. Then the wind came up and he suddenly took off. I think his boat has a very narrow band in which it sails really fast. It's not as versatile as 'PRB'. We'll see how that pays off."
You can't help but get the feeling that the Brit is starting to make the seemingly overpowering French team - no non-Frenchman has ever won the Vendée - nervous.
Video summary of day 8
A lot happened in the field at the weekend. Sébastien Josse and his "Edmond de Rothschild" were able to catch up with the top riders again, as his westerly course gave him fewer gybes than the competition. He is now on a par with Armel Le Cléac'h. Vincent Riou has fallen back a little with his "PRB", but he is just seven miles behind them. He may be able to capitalise on the light wind strength of his boat in the Doldrums. Behind them, the trio of Jérémie Beyou ("Maitre Coq"), Morgan Lagarière ("Safran") and Paul Meilhat ("SMA") sailed very consistently, but were unable to keep up with Thomson's speed throughout the weekend.
Behind them is the field of older boats, led by Yann Eliès ("Quéguiner Leucémie"), who sailed almost flawlessly, Vendée Globe legend Jean Le Cam ("Finistere mer Vent") and newcomer Thomas Ruyant ("Le Souffle du Nord"). From around this position, the next few days could be bitter: According to the meteorologists' forecast, the band of Doldrums is set to expand significantly to the north, which would slow down the majority of the field considerably.
Andreas Fritsch
Editor Travel
