Anyone who sees the pictures suffers with them: Yesterday, the British Sam Davies from her "Initiatives-Cœur" and Sébastien Simon from his "Arkéa Paprec" reported with similarly heartbreaking expressions, sending videos of torn laminate and water sloshing through the boat. Both have collided with flotsam, both have suffered serious damage, both are bobbing south of the Cape of Good Hope and are trying to keep hope alive. The hope of a small miracle, with their teams and designers presenting a repair plan that makes it possible to sail to the end of the Vendée.
But when you see the pictures, you don't really believe it. Simon explained yesterday that the centreboard box had torn out of the bottom of the boat and that there was a crack through the structure in front of it that wasn't there yesterday. "I would have to saw the foil, which weighs 300 kilos on its own, in order to reduce the forces that it is transferring into the boat. I'd need calm weather for that, but it doesn't look like that's going to happen for the next 12 or even 24 hours." He looks despondent, he grumbles - he doesn't deserve this. Anyone who sees the large quantities of water sloshing through the floor assembly may not really believe that it can be repaired. But the Vendée is always good for small miracles.
Sam Davies is also hoping for this. She described how her boat hit an obstacle with its keel at 20 knots at night and practically came to a complete standstill. "The impact was violent, there was a loud crash." And now the keel is still stable in its swivelling axis, but there are cracks in the box surrounding it and some water has also entered. When you see the pictures of the two of them, you inevitably get the feeling that two sailors are clutching at straws that don't really exist. But it's all too understandable when four years of work come to such an abrupt end.
Video daily update from yesterday
In the meantime, the field is closing in fast. At the front, Charlie Dalin is now defending himself against Louis Burton's attacks of the last few days and was able to keep the gap constant at 149 nautical miles overnight. And Thomas Ruyant is squeezing everything out of his "LinkedOut", which is currently sailing on the bow without a foil, to catch up. He was able to make up ground recently and is now only 200 miles behind. You can imagine how hard he has to push the boat without a foil.
Boris Herrmann has noticeably shifted down a gear. He sent a video from on board yesterday in which he reports that the confused swell is putting enormous strain on the boat and that it is constantly oscillating between 10 and almost 30 knots when "Seaexplorer" accelerates on a wave or drills into one again. "The Imocas are real beasts. Mine really wants to destroy itself all the time! I'm sailing the average speed of a Class 40 with 100 times more stress for the skipper!"
He took his foot off the gas to conserve the material, but that cost him plenty of places. Jean Le Cam's "Yes we Cam", Yannick Bestaven's "Maître Coq" and Damien Seguin's "Groupe Apicil" passed him by last night.
Jean Le Cam sent a video from on board yesterday in which he and Kevin Escoffier, who he rescued, meet for morning coffee. It is clear that the swashbuckler is enjoying the brief, wonderful moment of sharing his experience with a fellow sailor. It won't last long: French President Manuel Macron, who spoke to Le Cam on the phone and congratulated him on his rescue, announced that Escoffier's rescue would be declared a matter of state without further ado. The French frigate "Nivose", which is stationed in the Indian Ocean, will work out a rendezvous point with Le Cam that will allow Escoffier to be rescued in calmer weather. This would be possible in the Kerguelen Islands or by helicopter, and a suitable weather window is currently being sought. Imagine if Angela Merkel were to send a navy ship with a crew of hundreds to do this. The outcry from the opposition would probably be heard as far away as the Eiffel Tower. But in a sailing-mad country like France, nothing is impossible.
French-German Isabelle Joschke also sailed a good race with her "MACSF". After impressing with strong performances since arriving in the Southern Ocean, she was already right on the heels of Sam Davies and has now moved up to ninth place following her and Simon's retirement. She is now only 80 nautical miles behind Boris Herrmann, at one point it was over 600. She is obviously finding a good mix between taking it easy on the boat, as she did at the very beginning when she sailed well around the storm Theta and the first front with a very defensive tactic, and stepping on the gas, as she has done in the last few days. It will be interesting to see how she tackles the next few days.
Because now stormy times are coming again, the huge storm low far to the south is sending plenty of wind today and for the next few days, with gusts of over 40 knots and high seas. However, the chasing pack will soon be sailing out of the Agulhas Current area, which caused rough seas south of the Cape of Good Hope. All of the skippers are now hoping for longer, calmer seas, which are ideal for making fast etmals. After the turbulence of the last few days, they deserve it.
Andreas Fritsch
Editor Travel
