Vendée Globe: update 11Dec20

The leading pair in the Vendée Globe, Charlie Dalin (Apivia) and Thomas Ruyant (LinkedOut), are just 214 miles apart and making less than 12 knots in the lighter wind conditions – giving them a chance to recover from the Indian Ocean storm which hit them earlier in the week.

It’s Dalin’s first time in the Southern Ocean, having never previously raced south of Itajai, Brazil before now. “I feel like I have earned my Southern Ocean spurs,” says Dalin.

The race is on for third place with just 10 miles between Yannick Bestaven on Maître CoQ, whose speed, composure and smooth strategies are keeping him ahead of Louise Burton.

Hear from skippers across the fleet

With blue skies, conditions are not as Pip Hare expected

Listen to Pip Hare as she checks in (09.30 10Dec20)

Miranda Merron has reached the Cape of Good Hope

′′Second session of sailing in the big time for me since the start. The sea and wind started forced yesterday afternoon, with gusts at 35 knots. Hard to know what sail, while wondering if it’s physically possible to roll some of these sails in 35 knots of wind.

“The boat retained its mast. At night, the front passed, not leaving much wind in its wake for a while. But it wasn’t over, at dawn the wind climbed to 38 knots and the end of the front passed over us, wrapping us in mist. Conditions now calm down, the barometer goes up, but there are still gusts at 30 knots and so in order to preserve the material, I’ll wait a bit before I’m too ambitious changing my sails. (09.01 11Dec20)

Watch yesterday’s round-up from race organisers

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