After a very fast night sailing upwind but with a favourable swell, this morning things are more difficult for the IDEC SPORT maxi trimaran, slowed down more than her rivals in a wind hole. In lashing rain at night and thick fog, the five men on board have been giving up their rest to carry out manoeuvres to attempt to get away from this disturbed area, where the wind is playing hide and seek with the boat.
At daybreak, things got moving again for IDEC SPORT and theb men attempted a different option to get to New York. “We’re not making any mystery of the fact that, we are all keeping an eye on each other on the AIS,” declared Francis, with the three leaders keeping a close watch on each other. “As soon as one boat changes tack, the others follow in the following hour.” They are having to use their radar in the thick fog caused by “the warm air coming up from the Gulf of Mexico and the cooler waters of the Gulf Stream,” added Francis, “So we need to keep an eye on the radar.”
In spite of the tiredness, the short-handed crew on IDEC SPORT remains upbeat. “There is still a great atmosphere on board, including with those who saw their rest cut short this morning, as we needed some extra hands to get away from this wind hole. It had been great until then during the night with speeds of thirty knots or more, sailing upwind. The boat is performing really well in that point of sail, which we didn’t see in the round the world record. Quentin (Ponroy), the rookie and youngest member of the crew is surprised. Things shifted against us this morning, as Macif was not held up in this wind hole, while Sodebo narrowed the gap behind us. With so little between us, our amazing boats can easily see the pecking order change. A lot is going to happen in the next three days. Particularly as the finish off New York looks like it is going to be very calm.”
Follow the progress of the IDEC SPORT maxi trimaran here
