Who, Charlie Dalin, the man of calculated calm, or Yoann Richomme, the daring strategist, will pass Cape Horn in the lead? Right now, even the wind is hesitant to take sides. One thing is certain: Cape Horn has not seen such a duel for a long time. In fact, the closest in the history of the event dates back to 2012. François Gabart then crossed the Atlantic gate 1h20 ahead of Armel Le Cléac'h. “ Who gets the bonus? I don't know. In longitude, I am a little ahead of Yoann. There will have to be a lot of right for him to be able to pass the point without jibe. On the other hand, it should hit the new wind first. So we will see », Cautiously recounted the skipper of MACIF Santé Prévoyance. Having already crossed the first two major capes of the world tour – Bonne Espérance and Leeuwin – the Le Havre resident would obviously like to score a hat-trick by confirming the adage: “never two without three”. However, he is not the type to start decorating the tree before having bought the stand, especially since the conditions, although manageable, look relatively bracing off the coast of the Tierra del Fuego archipelago over the next few hours. . “ We're going to have more than 30 knots and gusts to 35. In absolute terms, it's not huge compared to what we can have at this location. The good news is that we will pass quite close to the milestone, and in daylight if we maintain the routing rates “, specified Charlie, who is preparing to cross the southernmost point of South America for the second time in his career and hopes to make up for the frustration of four years ago, when he passed at night without even be able to see it.
Wrapped like onions
« This is a big step ahead. I'm happy to be back in the Atlantic. I think I actually like the Atlantic! », laughed the sailor, despite everything being aware of having benefited from relatively mild conditions during his crossing of the Great South. “ I was surely the luckiest of the whole fleet because I didn't have a single storm even though I felt the breath of a very, very big one on my neck in the Indian. he recalled, also impatient to put an end to polar temperatures. “ To avoid being too cold, I have layers and layers of clothing. I can't wait to be able to remove it little by little », assured the navigator, for the moment still bundled up like a Michelin man, with fingers that look more like frozen fish sticks than anything else. And for good reason, in the living area of his boat, the temperature peaks at 9°C. At some of its competitors, it's even worse: the mercury plummets and snowflakes sometimes cover the deck. In summary: the cold does not take half measures: it attacks from the front, from the back, and even through the socks. “ We're in the fridge. I take out the heated gloves, I take out the hat, I take out everything I can and I admit that it's not easy-easy. The weather is however rather nice. There is just enough wind. If it was warmer that would be ideal. », confirmed Isabelle Joschke (MACSF) who is struggling to keep her hands functional and her mind focused while she is still fighting with Jean Le Cam (Tout Commence en Finistère – Armor-lux).
A little respite that is good… or not
« We always end up finding each other again. It's really funny because we don't have the same boats at all. Besides, that's a bit why we regularly get lost before finding ourselves when conditions change. », Commented the Franco-German sailor, rather delighted to play elbows with such a rival. “ It's nice but it's especially nice to have managed to get out of the light airs because apparently, there was a way of getting stuck in it for a certain time! “, observed Isabelle. Some of its competitors continue to struggle in a formidable zone of dead calm, trying as best they can to scrounge up every mile on the road. Tanguy Le Turquais (Lazare) or even Benjamin Ferré (Monnoyeur – Duo for a job) seem stuck like flies on sticky paper this Friday, their trajectories on the map looking more like scribbles than rapid progress. In the long term, this situation should work in favor of Sébastien Marsset (Foussier) and Louis Duc (Five Groupe – Lantana Environnement), allowing them to regain a clear ascendancy after having fallen behind somewhat. The situation is a little similar further forward in the fleet where gaps are also made and broken.
Don't project yourself too far
« With the wind really on the axis behind, you have to pull away. Playing with the clouds and trying to jibe at the right times. Whether it's Nico (Lunven), Thomas (Ruyant) or me, we're in the same weather situation: we have no other choice but to move quickly if we don't want to be caught up too quickly by those of behind who can go straight unlike us », commented Jérémie Beyou who should, for his part, pass the famous Cape Horn next Friday. “ Ever since the first Indian depression where the first three managed to sneak up from underneath and put 1000 miles in our face, I have been praying that there is an opportunity to come back. There were none in the Pacific. So I pray now that this will be the case in the Atlantic. However, I'm afraid to look at what awaits us there because I'm afraid of being disappointed. », added the skipper of Charal. If the situation still has plenty of time to evolve – and even change radically -, it could indeed be that the Dalin – Richomme duo will benefit from an almost perfect scenario for their return to Les Sables d'Olonne. According to the latest models, it is possible to see it reach the Vendée in just 21 or 22 days. You thought this race was already thrilling, hold on, because the best is yet to come!
