Uncomfortble Sailing conditions for Figaro competitors

Conditions on the water are rough, 30 knots of Southwesterly wind, with gusts of up to 40 and rough choppy seas. Overnight the fleet as split into three distinct groups from North to South, currently above Ushant, to find the best angle of approach to the next major point of passage, the Brittany weather mark some 250 miles West off Brittany.

“The wind came in gradually,” explains Jacques Caraës from on board the race office boat, “we have 30 knots from the South, southwest and it’s damp. The skies are dark and the sea is rough with a short and uncomfortable chop which is only going to worsen,” he continues. So not nice conditions for the Figaro Bénéteau boats to make headway in and there is more to come, “the wind continues to come in from the south, southwest with 25 to 30 knots and gusts of up to 40. The shift to the west, southwest should come from around 23:00 tonight” predicts Richard Silvani from Météo France. “It is going to get worse and worse and we could well see 4 to 5 metre waves close to Brittany Buoy,” concludes Silvani.

The lateral gap, 45 miles this morning between the fleet, shows three the distinct options the fleet have chosen. Spearheading the central group we find Eric Drouglazet (Luisina), leading some of the strong contenders, Jean-Pierre Nicol (Gavottes), Gildas Mahé (Le Comptoir Immobilier), Erwan Tabarly (Athema), Jeanne Gregoire…

But it is a southerly positioned breakaway group that makes the most gains on the leader. Nicolas Bérenger (Kone) in 2nd place at 16:00 and 0.2 miles behind de leader, is followed by Frédéric Duthil (Distinxion Automobiles), Thierry Chabagny (Suzuki Automobiles) in 8th and 1 mile behind, Armel Tripon (Gedimat) and Nicolas Lunven (Foncia). Opting for the route closest to shore, the southerly bunch were able to make gradual gains on the central pack throughout the morning, using the favourable tide and current to gain ground. The wind from the Southwest has also given those to the south a more comfortable angle of approach to the Brittany Buoy.

Furthest north, the third group is led by Romain Attanasio (DCNS 97) in 34th place and 11.8 miles from the leader and followed by the current overall leader Nicolas Troussel (Financo), Thomas Rouxel (Défi Mouquetaires), Jean Charles Monet (Degrémont Suez Environnement), Gerald Veniard (Macif) and Andy Greenwood (Imtech. This group opted for a northerly course that saw them pass above Aurigny on a route taking them closer to the cargo traffic lanes before tacking south.

The fleet will converge on the final approach to the next mark, for now however the advantage in terms of both distance to finish and boat speed lies with those placed furthest south.