Transat Jacques Vabre: Best in the West? Two Imoca duos dare

Since the evening of 10 November, the 16th Transat Jacques Vabre in the Imoca fleet has new leaders. The mixed team Justine Mettraux and Julien Villion on "Teamwork.net" lead the classification ahead of Sébastien Simon and Iker Martinez on "Group Dubreuil". A glance at the map reveals that the two duos have started an attempt to break out to the west. At least in the short term with success and quickly building up a lead of over 100 nautical miles.

Short-term losses, long-term gains?

While the majority of the fleet continues to sail south towards Madeira with "Initiatives Cœur", "Paprec Arkéa" and "Charal" before crossing the Atlantic, "Juju Mettraux" and Julien Villion as well as Sébastien Simon and Iker Martinez have turned westwards. They are heading directly for the Azores. What they are looking for there is clear: the shorter route overall and more wind in the short to medium term.

It is also clear why the vast majority of the fleet is nevertheless sailing a southerly course: after the current and, for some crews like Team Malizia, agonisingly slow crossing of the light wind zone, they are looking for the more stable winds that will later carry them faster into the Caribbean between about 25 and 10 degrees north latitude without any major doldrums. Their game looks like this: They accept short-term losses for the hoped-for long-term gain.

Memories of the Transat Jacques Vabre 2019

Looking back: Four years ago, Boris Herrmann and Will Harris set out on their first joint Transat Jacques Vabre on the route that the two runaways on "Teamwork.net" and "Groupe Debreuil" have now opted for. For Herrmann and Harris, the attempt backfired. "You can quickly be out of the top ten again," Boris Herrmann recalled his mishap four years ago before the start of the current edition.

Herrmann's memories are not glorious: "At Will's and my premiere two years ago, we made a mistake with the navigational decision. It went south - we were in the west." Herrmann and Harris crossed the finish line in twelfth place. They had lost the chance of a better position early on in the race when they - like the runaways now and unlike the majority of the fleet at the time - had opted for the more direct westerly course.

Will the courageous ride west be rewarded in the long term?

"The early westerly course looked like a good opportunity in our weather models at the time," recalls Boris Herrmann. This is likely to be the case for the two teams currently in the lead. The quick reward came when they took first and second place in the standings. But will the courageous ride be rewarded in the long term? In any case, it is remarkable that two mixed duos, Justine Mettraux and Julien Villion and Samantha Davies and Jack Bouttell on "Initiatives Cœur", are currently in the top three.

Team Malizia, meanwhile, fell back again after a strong comeback due to the compass problems in the light wind poker - to 16th place on Saturday lunchtime. Just how difficult the current passage is to master was shown on the morning of 11 November by the strongly changing boat speeds in the leading group sailing south between two and twelve knots.

Meanwhile, Andreas Baden from Kiel is battling alongside Fabrice Amedeo on the Imoca "Art & Fenêtres" in 30th place for maximum speed. His most recent greeting from on board came on Saturday morning:

We snuck into the transit zone just fine" (Andreas Baden)

"There was a great atmosphere this morning. Shortly after sunrise, Fabrice came on deck and we sat up together for a short time and enjoyed the moment. We had actually wanted to set the Code Zero because the wind was going down, but as it started to pick up again, we're sticking with the J2 for now, but we're looking forward to playing with the other larger headsails later. Apart from that, we're in good spirits."

Andreas Baden continued: "So far, we have sneaked into the transition zone well and have permanently had more wind than the forecast suggested. Even though we are currently one of the most easterly boats and further behind in comparison, we are speculating that our strategy of coming in from the east at a better angle will work out. We saw earlier that Thomas Ruyant's 'The People' did the same thing and it went quite well. So fingers crossed that it goes well a second time. Otherwise we would have a relaxed night here with 70 to 80 degree wind angles, relatively calm seas - perfect for enjoying. And I really like sailing at night ..."

It feels like we've been forgotten" (Melwin Fink)

In Class 40, the fleet looks more organised, more like a single file: Achille Nebout and Gildas Mahé lead the field with a 30 nautical mile lead over "Café Joyeux" and just under 60 nautical miles ahead of "Project Rescue the Ocean". Lennart Burke and Melwin Finke had less luck in the lighter winds on the Madeira course. The young professionals dropped back to 21st place.

The new Hamburg flatmates and sailing partners described their situation at the weekend as "extremely frustrating". Melwin Fink said: "It feels like we've been forgotten." While the fleet around them managed to stay on course, the "Sign for Com" had almost no progress at times. The physical strain from the start was now followed by mental challenges. This was reflected in the classification on Saturday with 21st place, although they had already managed to move up to 14th place once before. "We've never been so bad and so slow," Melwin Fink said.

Can "Café Joyeux" win despite giving up in stage 1?

The only purely German duo in this Transat edition still has hope of catching up. The field of the Class 40, which started one day before the Imocas, has already shrunk to 38 boats after a total of six retirements so far. "Alla Grande Pirelli", the outstanding winner of the opening leg from Le Havre to Lorient, was in fifth place at midday on 11 November.

Not to be forgotten when taking a theoretical look at the possible outcome of the Class 40 race: "Café Joyeux" - currently in second position - will be credited for the first leg not completed through no fault of its own with the time that the boat achieved on the place in leg 1 that the "Café Joyeux" skippers Nicolas D'Estais and Léo Debisse reach on the second leg. With a top result, the Frenchmen would still have a chance of winning the class despite having to retire at the start of the first leg.

"Banque Populaire XI" sails towards a tangible Ultim victory

While the Imocas and Class 40s are just about to make the leap across the Atlantic, the Ultims are already heading for the destination harbour of Fort-de-France in Martinique. Everything points to a sweet victory for Armel Le Cléac'h and Sébastien Josse on "Banque Populaire XI", who have recently been able to build up a lead of almost 130 nautical miles in the ongoing duel with "SVR Lazartigue". Defending champions Charles Caudrelier and Erwan Israël are now more than 400 nautical miles behind.

It is now also clear why the pre-start favourites can no longer maintain the speed of the boats ahead of them, contrary to all expectations. The team reported the reason for this under the headline "Serious damage to the steering system on board the 'Maxi Edmond de Rothschild'". Their report:

The Ultim title defenders stumble

"After twelve days of racing, the leading Ultims are tackling the home stretch of their 7,500-mile epic across the Atlantic. They are currently sailing on a downwind course towards the northern hemisphere, in the immediate vicinity of a large restricted area along the northern coast of Brazil. For the men of the 'Maxi Edmond de Rothschild', this last part of the race promises to be even more difficult than expected after an incident this morning."

They continued: "Since their start in Le Havre on 29 October, Charles Caudrelier and Erwan Israël have not been spared technical problems. So they had to try very quickly to get the best out of a boat that no longer had its full potential and adapt their race accordingly. This morning, the steering system was badly damaged by a blow. The sailors will have to deal with this serious breakage until the finish line, which is still 2,000 miles away."

Jean Le Cam under pressure

While crews in all classes have to fight their battles with the competition, their own boats and themselves at sea, other news is causing a stir. Vendée Globe veteran Jean Le Cam, for example, has cancelled his transfer to the Caribbean with his new non-foiler for the time being. He wants to wait for a better weather window and not risk his new boat in the harsh conditions. The decision is a brave one, as Jean Le Cam - like many other Imoca skippers - urgently needs to take part in the Retour à la Base regatta to qualify for the Vendée Globe 2024/2025.

The pictures of Tanguy Le Tuquais and Félix De Navacelle's "Lazare", which had arrived back in Lorient, caused some horror. The outer laminate on the starboard hull side of the Imoca is broken. The honeycomb core is exposed and has been partially washed out to the inner laminate. Nevertheless, the team announced on Saturday morning that it would do everything in its power to resume the race.

Transat exit for Oliver Heer

The latest shocking news came from the sea on Saturday afternoon: the Swiss team Oliver Heer Racing had to abandon the Transat Jacques Vabre with structural damage to the rig, having "completely lost" the forestay and also suffered damage to the deck and hull. The two sailors are doing well under the circumstances, but their disappointment is maximum.

Oliver Heer said: "There is no safe way for us to continue this race. I am incredibly disappointed. It's my first task in the Imoca Globe series. I now have to stay focussed on the main goal: That is to take part in the Vendée Globe. We will come back stronger than ever for the 2024 season." The crew intends to call at the Galician harbour town of Sanxenxo.

News from Team Malizia - Boris Herrmann and Will Harris have deployed their measuring buoys at 37 degrees north:

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