Vendée Globe: update 25Nov20

Catch up with the latest from British skippers Pip Hare, Miranda Merron (above), Sam Davies and Alex Thomson as their epic battle continues.

Charlie Dalin, Vendée Globe leader since yesterday morning, says he is in full ‘inshore mode, fighting for every metre I can gain,’ as he tries to break through to the Southern Ocean low pressure train which should finally catapult him eastwards towards the longitude of the Cape of Good Hope.

Last night Thomas Ruyant sustained damage to his port foil of LinkedOut. He had to stop for a short period to assess and says he will now be unable to use the foil on the port side for the remainder of the race.

Ruyant was awoken by a loud noise outside the boat. He did not, however, feel any shock to the boat. But on inspecting the boat with his head-torch he immediately noticed major cracks in the ‘shaft’ of his port foil. Ruyant immediately stopped the boat and sailed downwind to further inspect the damage.

“I have brought the foil in all the way so that it doesn’t drag in the water,” Ruyant says. “In daylight I was able to inspect the foil and it’s OK at the top and speaking with my team and the architects it seems safe. There is no water coming in and the foil well itself is undamaged. But the foil itself is cracked in a number of places. The structure of the foil is compromised. I am waiting for the designers’ analysis to see if I should cut it.”

The Doldrums remain active and frustrating for the group of seven IMOCAs near the back of the fleet, including Miranda Merron.

Hear from skippers around the fleet, including Kojiro Shiraishi as he deploys a weather buoy:


Sam Davies is really happy with where she is

“I was the fastest boat in the fleet yesterday afternoon and there was even foiling at 20kts.

“Great to be in this group, it’s exciting.

“I’m convinced the only option I had was to dive south, and it’s been really good.

“It’s great to be in this group sailing, my objective was to match the speed, and I’ve managed to do that, just.

“I’m ready to attach the Southern Ocean, 100%.”

Listen to her catch-up with race organisers this morning (05.00 25Nov20)


Pip Hare says ‘Medallia just cannot go any faster’

She’s “immensely proud for having stuck it out in front for so long,” Hare says on her blog (09.42 25Nov20).

“There are basically no tactics on this leg other than sail fast and then we are constrained by the boats we have. Medallia has done me so proud to this point but the fact is that a 20-year-old design just does not have the power on a straight line fetching course that the more modern boats have. We are all sailing as fast as we can and Medallia just cannot go any faster.

“My new goal now, rather than staying ahead is to try and keep as close to the others as I can.

“We changed a lot on Medallia in the six months prior to the start of the Vendée, including investing in a whole new sail wardrobe and some outriggers and that meant in terms of how the boat handled and what speeds it could achieve we had to rewrite the book on how to sail this boat fast.

“It’s relentless work, takes a huge amount of focus but I love the open-endedness of this kind of challenge. There is no one to say you could not do better, you just have to try. Sometimes what I try makes the boat go slower, then I know not to try that again. I am in my own little bubble, I can’t see my opposition so I have to drive myself.”

Watch Hare’s life on a lean (18.11 24Nov20)


Miranda Merron is closing in on the Equator

Merron is about 170 miles away from crossing the equator for the 8th time in her sailing career.

The small group that accompanies Merron to the southern hemisphere includes Alexia Barrier with whom Merron is anticipating a ‘nice day of regatta, in contact!’


No news from Alex Thomson

But here’s his recent Q&A from onboard Hugo Boss prior to starting structural repairs. Find out about Thomson’s daily treat of Christmas cake, top speeds and how much he misses his family. (15.45 21Nov20)


Watch yesterday’s summary from race organisers

(17.27 24Nov20)


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