Sam Goodchild at the helm of a very tight lead pack this Tuesday evening

Goodchild took advantage of his option to stick to the Iberian side. “I didn’t really look for this first place,” he confided on Tuesday. It's a nice surprise. The offshore route offered less risk of collision (Editor's note: due to maritime traffic) but it involved strong winds on rough seas. I opted for a more direct route, less stressful for the boat. » The man slept little and maneuvered a lot.

Less wind

Tuesday at 7 p.m., eleven boats were within 80 miles. Their lateral gap is much wider (150 miles) and will perhaps make the difference today. Especially since the wind will drop to 7 knots between the Canaries and Madeira… After the repositioning of numerous boats towards the west, including the resolute one of Goodchild, it is Yannick Bestaven (“Maître Coq”), 7th, and Boris Herrmann (“Malizia Seaexplorer), who follows him like his shadow (8th) who are furthest to the east.

Glitches and injuries

Note a succession of glitches. Small ones, like a packet of algae stuck to the keel of “Paprec-Arkéa”, which forced Yoann Richomme to turn around to free himself, before returning to the podium. Most serious, a small leak at the front of Thomas Ruyant's “Vulnerable”, which “pumps regularly” and will plug it as soon as possible, tinkering on a rudder for Nicolas Lunven (“Holcim – PRB”)