Transat Café l’Or: final rush for Imoca, brutal conditions for Class 40s

Day 11 of the Transat Café l’Or, with the Imoca 60s approaching the race’s final throes and dropped below the 1,000-mile mark from the finish line, and the Class 40s instead in the midst of a strategic gamble that split the fleet between those who went north and those who chose the south.

If little happened among the Imocas in the 24 hours, with the Trade Winds leveling the rankings and crystallizing them, for the Class 40s last night was a real battle in very tough conditions and gusts even above 50 knots.

Class 40, a night to tregenda

Transat Cafè l’Or. A first front hit the fleet last night, affecting both those who went north encountering the most severe upwind conditions and those who chose the south sailing on the slack. A second front is on its way but this time it will only touch the northern group that recently passed the Azores.

The choice has two options: stay north, suffer tougher conditions as the expected fronts pass, make less way but make it mostly upwind. Or go south, suffer less, make more way but make it at greater speed and in better conditions.

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In any case, for both choices last night was very difficult: wind gusting up to 55 knots, vertical and messy seas, with a fairly sudden rotation after the front passed. Those who went south made a night of more than 20 knots of speed, those who stayed north went slower slamming a lot. At the moment the bet rewards the north, not least because southerners in order to shake the anticyclone that is expected in their area will have to go as far as almost north of the Canary Islands to chase trade winds. Currently the lateral distance between the outriders of the two groups is 400 miles.

For the Italians at the Transat Cafè l’Or,  the northern route was chosen by Andrea Fornaro on Influense 2, currently seventh; all the rest of the homegrown sailors are south, with Maccaferri Futura, Ekinox and Les Invincibles leading the southern group. This choice currently pays for about 200 miles of delay In the lead, to the north, remains Corentin Doguet.

The final sprint of the Imoca 60

A whole different situation, and also wind conditions, for the Imoca 60. Their speed has carried them on their southerly course (which involved leaving the Canary Islands to starboard) avoiding all the nasty depressions. For several days now they have been sailing at averages over 20 knots in a robust and steady trade wind that is relatively easy to ride.

Jeremie bayou’s Charal managed to make a small break by increasing her lead over Macif in second to almost 80 miles. In third we find Francesca Clapcich with 11th Hour Racing 100 miles behind, Ambrogio Beccaria with Allagrande Mapei has 145. Martinique has 800 to go.

Tracking

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