Key takeaways
Tom Laperche (SVR-Lazartigue) is expected to reach Guadeloupe sometime in the middle of the coming night (French time). He was racing upwind in a gusty SW’ly wind this morning still making 23-25kts.
A low-pressure system near the Azores continues to affect the vast majority of the solo skippers. With unstable winds, punishing seas, exhaustion, and equipment damage, there is no respite in sight.
Jérémie Beyou (Charal), who was forced to retire on Tuesday, is reported to have sustained multiple fractures to his vertebrae and ribs, as well as a head injury. He is scheduled to be brought back to France this weekend.
In the Rhum Mono class the youngest skipper in the race Titouan Pilliard (Use It Again for Youth) has managed to fix a leak in his boat, but he has now no power or an autopilot.
In one world is leader Tom Laperche (SVR-Lazartigue), closing in on Guadeloupe at the front of the Ultim fleet. In another the low-pressure system that seems to have taken up permanent residence over a large section of the fleet. Six days after departing from Saint-Malo, the solo sailors in the Route du Rhum – Destination Guadeloupe the majority of sailors are still looking for some kind of respite.
The final stretch
Less than 300 miles from the finish, Tom Laperche is almost there. The first Ultim is expected to cross the finish line in the middle of the coming night (Paris time), following an unconventional approach to the Antilles. Deprived of the trade winds, the young skipper must contend with a southwesterly wind—blowing almost directly against him—on a course that could take him close to Montserrat and Antigua. It is a challenging final, though it get easier once he rounds "Tête à l'Anglais" for the final stretch toward Pointe-à-Pitre.
"I’m keeping a close eye on all the tacks we’ll need to make, the way the wind behaves around the islands, and the navigation around the buoys. We’ll have to be precise. We’re sailing upwind, with the breeze coming almost straight at us—it’s going to be a real physical test all the way to the finish!" After working his way out of the light winds of a tropical depression yesterday, Laperche has been hitting speeds of up to 25 knots in the last few hours.
"The wind is extremely unstable. We’re constantly hitting squalls with gusts up to 30 knots, while in between, it drops back to 15 or 20. If we keep all the sail up, things get a bit scary when the wind picks up. I’m not going to do anything foolish!"
Laperche has made sure to get some sleep in preparation for this final leg. "You need to arrive with a clear enough head to be precise. On boats this big, if you’re exhausted, you quickly start making mistakes—and fixing them ends up costing twice as much energy. It becomes a vicious cycle. So, you have to take every bit of rest you can get!"
Ocean Fifty, the endless rodeo
In the Ocean Fifty class, Basile Bourgnon (Edenred) continues to lead the pack, holding a cushion of well over a hundred miles. Behind him, the competition is fierce. Currently in third place, Thibaut Vauchel-Camus (Solidaire En Peloton by Delanchy) is locked in a tight battle with Pierre Quiroga (Wewise), Léonard Legrand (Sodebo Fifty), and Baptiste Hulin (Viabilis Oceans). The wind is expected to shift to the east and build to around 30 knots, bringing with it potentially violent squalls.
In the IMOCA class, Corentin Horeau (MACSF) has maintained a comfortable lead for the past three days, still sitting some 265 miles ahead of second place, now Sam Goodchild (MACIF Santé Prévoyance) But Horeau had a shock this morning : "The hatch tore off, and the sail locker filled with water. I spent two hours bailing it all out! I got incredibly lucky, though—I found the hatch wedged in the lifelines at the stern. I’ve managed to reattach it, but I still can’t get the boat to perform the way I’d like. It’s been a rough night!"
The leader hasn't lost his sense of humor: "It’s all part of the game—one disaster a day!"
Sam Goodchild has broken through to hold second place ahead of Boris Herrmann (Malizia 4) who is positioned about 11 miles to the Franco-Brit’s NW. Francesca Clapcich (11th Hour Racing is now in fifth)
News from the Azores where Jérémie Beyou (Charal) has medical examinations. He has a head injury several vertebral and rib fractures. His repatriation to France is scheduled for this weekend.
With every wave, anxiety
Among the Class40 fleet, the low-pressure system continues to exact a heavy toll. Guillaume Pirouelle (Sogestran – Seafrigo) and Achille Nebout (Amarris) are battling it out at the front of the pack but they talk of a constant, unrelenting struggle. "I’ve just about had enough of this depression! We’ve just crossed the front; the wind has shifted, and the pounding is much more intense. Yesterday, we had sustained winds of 40 to 45 knots—and that was already expected to be severe. Right now, it’s less than forecast, so we don’t even know what sail configuration to choose. It’s truly exhausting," sighs Pirouelle. He says he expects more manageable conditions later today but makes no secret of his exhaustion. "I’m at the end of my rope. I’ve barely slept. Just as I manage to close my eyes, a jolt wakes me up. Mentally, all these noises and the constant state of worry are draining. I’m very happy with my race, but I also know that hitting a single wave too hard could bring everything to an end." Aboard Amarris, the tension is just as high, "Gusts of 40 to 43 knots, squalls, a highly unstable wind... We’re constantly making adjustments to keep the boat from slamming too hard. And, above all, there’s that persistent fear that with every descent into a wave trough, something might break. It’s exhausting—just exhausting. Truly brutal!" "It’s not easy to sleep, not easy to eat—in fact, it’s not easy at all!"
The leading Class40s have split into two camps: those to the south have opted to sail upwind to avoid the worst of the bad weather, while the group to the north—led by Italian Luca Rosetti (Maccaferri Futura)—attempted to cross the center of the weather system to reach more favorable conditions sooner. The interim tally: the southern group covered about 100 miles in ten hours, compared to just 25 for the northern group, who have been slowed by light winds. On the other hand, the northerly group allowed the worst of the weather to pass ahead of them
Getting through the chaos
In the Rhum Mono class, leader Tanguy Caradec (Eurvad) spent much of the night wearing his helmet, moving between his chart table and the small cockpit shelter. "It’s absolute chaos—there’s stuff everywhere! I think the worst is behind us. The wind has dropped back below 30 knots, but I saw gusts of up to 47 knots and hit surfing speeds of 22–25 knots in heavy seas. The autopilot did its job well." For Titouan Pilliard (Use It Again for Youth), who sits in eighth place in the same category, the puzzle is of a different sort. After long hours of work with his technical team back on shore, the young sailor managed to plug a leak. However, the water that got on board damaged all his electronics—leaving him without power, navigation instruments, or an autopilot. It’s a major handicap for the youngest competitor in the race, who still has a good stretch of the Atlantic to cross.
With the exception of the two leaders Éric Péron (French Touch – Oceania Hôtels) and Damien Seguin (Arkea – Handicap International)—the Rhum Multi class has not been spared by this seemingly endless ordeal near the Azores.