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Vendee Globe - The Horn Tonight!

The Horn in less than 57 days!
Jean Le Cam (Bonduelle), Vincent Riou (PRB) and Mike Golding (Ecover), currently the three frontrunners, do at least agree on one thing: they are all in a hurry to leave the southern seas behind and enter the Atlantic Ocean. The start of a new chapter, leaving the stress of the ice and freezing cold behind them. The hours spent inside watching the instruments. Time to turn left and enter the home run in this Vendée Globe, which is not necessarily the easiest stretch. Tonight, Jean Le Cam will be leading the way around the legendary rock, followed later in the day by Vincent Riou. Mike Golding will have to wait almost 24 hours longer than Jean to feel this relief. After 56 and a half days of racing, a new record is about to be set. In 2001, Michel Desjoyeaux took more than 62 days. Jean Le Cam will therefore be five and a half days ahead of the last winner, as he rounded the Horn. At an average of 11 knots, the leading trio may make it back to Les Sables d’Olonne by the 29th January.

Carpentier about to retire
Having set back out again last Friday morning from Tasmania, where he spent almost three days repairing his boom, Patrice Carpentier (VM Matériaux) must now face up to reality. He no longer has the means to repair his boom, after his makeshift repair job failed to hold. Right in the middle of the Sea of Tasmania, Patrice has therefore decided to head off towards New Zealand to carry out some proper repairs on this spar, which will require some outside help. Like Marc Thiercelin (ProForm) last Friday, Patrice will therefore be eliminated from the race, but has every intention of finishing the round the world voyage, once the repairs have been made. For the moment, Patrice has not yet sent his official message announcing his retirement from the race. He will therefore continue to appear in the rankings, until that happens.

More than an ocean apart
While the leading trio is preparing to leave the South Pacific behind, the three at the other end haven’t yet finished with the Indian Ocean. Karen Leibovici (Benefic), Raphaël Dinelli (Akena Vérandas) and Anne Liardet (Roxy) are struggling against some unfavourable weather. Just in front of them, Benoît Parnaudeau (Max Havelaar-Best Western) and Bruce Schwab (Ocean Planet) have with some relief entered the Pacific to the south of New Zealand. The final group is now more than three weeks behind Jean Le Cam.

A narrow escape for Dinelli
Raphaël Dinelli (Akena Vérandas) really thought he was going to have to retire from the race too. After several days of severe gales, Raphaël is now parked up on a high-pressure ridge with no wind. During an inspection, Raphaël realised that his gooseneck was about to break. Reacting quickly, the French skipper managed to repair it in time. Meanwhile, Raphaël is suffering from lumbago and having to ration himself to ensure he has enough food to get back to Les Sables d’Olonne.

Quotes:
Raphaël Dinelli (Akena Verandas): “The start of the year almost marked my exit from the Vendée Globe. The spindle on my gooseneck was about to break. The boom would have come away from the deck. Without a boom, it would have been the end. I noticed just in time and I spent the day making a replacement part. I think a bolt must have worked loose during the battering in the storm. Now I’m becalmed. The boat is being tossed around by the swell and the sail is flapping from one side to the other. It’s really when there is no wind that the boat suffers the most. I’m not feeling very upbeat. Stopped here on this ridge, where I can see no way out, while Jean is about to round the Horn. Behind, Karen (Leibovici) is creeping up on me. The finger is better. I’m looking after it. It’s my lumbago that really hurts now. Karen and myself are really the cripples in the Vendée Globe. (Laughter).”

Mike Golding (Ecover): “Four years of work to get here and three weeks to get out of it at top speed. A strange dilemma. The conditions are fairly pleasant, with a 25-knot northerly, which is warming things up a bit. I haven’t been staying outside much, as it’s overcast and raining. The visibility is poor, so I prefer to keep watch for icebergs on the radar, which we can feel are not far off. I think I got up fairly close last night, but my radar didn’t go off. It’s funny how you get used to the wind and speed. I went out on deck and thought about hoisting some more sail, then I saw that we were already doing 19 knots. In any case, I’ll be happy to get out of here. I think I’ll be at the Horn on Tuesday early in the morning French time. Of all my races in this area, this Vendée Globe has been the most stressful.”

Vincent Riou (PRB): “Second at the Horn? I think before the start I would have said yes immediately. It’s not over yet and it looks like being a great race up the Atlantic. It would be nice to round the Horn during the day and not too far off. There’s a favourable wind at the moment, around 25 knots, which is perfect. I think it will increase as we get close to the Andes. It’s funny how you get used to everything. 30-knot winds mean nothing to me after a month in the south. The Horn is a gateway, a passageway, and a way out. It will be the first land I’ve seen since the Canaries.”

Dominique Wavre (Temenos): “I’ve still got a steady 40 knots of wind. That is nothing in comparison to what I had yesterday. I was a bit surprised when the front went over. The wind got up to 60 knots. I had too much sail up, two reefs and the solent. The boat was zooming along at more than 30 knots, slamming into the waves, which submerged the boat completely. They were squally snow showers, which were freezing. I had to go outside to take in another reef and roll up the solent. I fought it out for two hours before setting off again in 50-knot winds. I was soaked, frozen and exhausted. Climbing around on all fours, with huge, icy waves breaking over you…Once again Temenos was brilliant. Everything was in place thanks to the work of my preparation team, and the boat behaved remarkably. Even with little sail up, she remained stable. The speed enabled us to deal better with the breakers, in spite of the 8-10 metre troughs. Once again, Happy New Year to everyone. Thanks to all those, who sent me their wishes, above all to the President of the Swiss Confederation, Monsieur Schmidt, I was very moved.”

Patrice Carpentier (VM Matériaux): “It was three in the morning in France. There wasn’t much wind and a little chop. The sails were flapping around. The boom split in two. The sleeve I fitted broke and the battens I’d put in place to strengthen it slid out. As I was leaving Tasmania, I put some strain on it to test it. It wobbled a bit, but I thought it would hold. I now have some major repairs to do, so I can bring the boat home. However, these repairs are going to require some outside assistance, as I’ve used up everything I have on board. So I’ll be eliminated from the race. It is a huge disappointment to leave the Vendée Globe, but I can’t cross the Pacific without a boom. I’m heading towards South Island (New Zealand), but I’m not sure exactly where. I’m not the first to retire, but I hope to be the last.”

Source : Vendée Globe 2004