It was the night before Christmas Eve

It looks increasingly likely that Yoann Richomme (PAPREC ARKÉA) and Charlie Dalin (MACIF Santé Prévoyance) will go round the cape in quick succession.  Both are sustaining speeds of more than 23 knots in conditions which are much more conducive to speed than for all the chasing groups.

They duo are racing side by side, 20 odd miles lateral separation, Richomme slightly closer to Cape Horn in terms of rhumb line distance, but really they are all but even making very similar speeds but they still have over 300 miles to go to make the passage of the Horn. 

And they continue to eke out their lead over Seb Simon (Groupe Dubreuil) who is now over 400 miles behind, his lost foil hurting his boat speed. He still looks set to have the tougher passage of Cape Horn with NW’ly winds to 40kts in the gusts and big seas and so getting much more typical conditions. 

Behind the front the conditions continue to be painful for the chasing pack which now sees about 400 miles between fourth placed Thomas Ruyant (VULNERABLE) and 11th positioned Justine Mettraux (TeamWork-Team Snef). Especially for the leaders of this pack the winds continue to be very gusty and squally and the seas messed up and lumpy with crossed waves. 

Ruyant reports philosophically in his morning video, “It is not easy, it is like the Doldrums of the Southern Ocean, you get these little squalls coming through, the Big South squalls, they are impressive, they go from 15 to 40 knots, not easy to deal with the gusts, the big gusts. But that is what we have, the conditions at the moment and the depression is very active with all these squalls.”

And so the best of the festive cheer is with the front of the fleet which faces a cell of lighter winds for their first miles back in the Atlantic. Meanwhile bear in mind that for the second main pack the climb up the Atlantic – come what may – will remain close and even now, weeks out, we can anticipate a flurry of close finishes into Les Sables d’Olonne. 

Crémer reflects

In 12th Clarisee Crémer (L’Occitaine en Provence) is trying Christmas for size, trying to get into the festive spirit and not be the Grinch compared with Sam Davies (Initiatives Coeur) who already has her lights up inside the cabin. She is counting her blessings, not least compared to her partner Tanguy Le Turquais (Lazare) who has had days with very light winds which is even less preferable to the upwind or close hauled conditions she and Davies have endured, 

“The Vendée Globe is still a big, long race, and to think that it is played over all it, then it is not unfair, because in any case there is no notion of justice in sport and in sailing even less, but it is a bit sad, it is not very much fun! I have a bit the impression, it is seasonal, of being the turkey of the piece with Sam! But looking beyind that I'm not the only one, when I see what's happening to Tanguy and Benj Ferré there, oh la la, the poor things, they're getting pissed off while it's going ahead for them, the poor things! I don't know what we have in the family but we have a problem with the trains, we miss the trains! But overall I've digested it, it doesn't weigh me down at all all day, on the other hand in terms of competition, performance, I'm a bit fed up. It feels all the more because I was a bit on cloud nine being in my little group with Sam, Boris and Justine and that that thing stops, it's hard, because I realize that it was sustaining me. And there, on top of that, everything else rub salt in the wounds: the leaders round Cape Horn four days ahead of you, potentially in slightly easier conditions, you quickly start comparing yourself and seeing everything in black! But overall everything's fine, it's just a bit annoying! And then there's Benj Dutreux who's coming back behind, and then I didn't route Romain and Damien but they're just coming back, so not only did I do five days of close-hauled sailing, but now I'm stuck in a ridge of high pressure, you think "well that's OK but when will it stop?"