ImageL: Francesca Clapcich (11th Hour racing)
HOLD AND RUN
Anyone who reaches Pointe-à-Pitre safely will be able to say, "I was there in 2026!" From the start, the Atlantic has been chaotic. A low-pressure system is sweeping from north to south, the kind that threatens to make you suffer until the very end! After four action-packed days of racing and demanding transitions, the skippers are digging deep and keeping a low profile. The Ultims and leaders of the IMOCA and Ocean Fifty classes are eyeing the tropical depression blocking direct access to Guadeloupe. Those in the Class40 and Vintage classes, lagging behind, are taking the brunt of the large, rapidly developing low-pressure system around the Azores. The race continues, but in a new way; they have to stand their ground.
From one depression to another
To try and get a clearer picture, the Atlantic is sending us four different views tonight. The 102 competitors still in the race are scattered like pieces of a puzzle over more than 1715 miles between the leader, SVR Lazartigue, and the last-placed Rémi Gérin (Faiaoahe)*. It's easy to see that not everyone is in the same boat.
For Tom Laperche, who now has a 370-mile lead over his two pursuers and is embarking on the final thousand miles of a flawless crossing, the challenge is to navigate a tropical depression near its center, circling 400 miles north of Santo Domingo. Passing to the west would be tempting, but would lengthen the route around Santo Domingo far too much. This is not the plan established by the routing team, which has already gybed Tom towards the eastern center of the phenomenon, as described by Jean-Yves Bernot: “ These tropical depressions are primarily stormy. There is no distinct front, but large cumulonimbus clouds that can cause the wind to gust from 15 to 40 knots in an instant.” So, we're very wary because, as these depressions are quite stationary, they end up creating quite a lot of sea . Once the phenomenon has passed, Tom will approach the Antilles in a South-Southwest wind, close-hauled, so it's definitely the world turned upside down!
The second small group consists of the top five Ocean Fifty boats, still led by the unflappable Basile Bourgnon (Edenred), accompanied by Corentin Horeau (MACSF), still in the lead with a 185-mile advantage in the IMOCA class. These boats were hit by the Azores low-pressure system overnight, with a sudden strengthening of the wind that had the advantage of throwing them at high speed towards the southwest. "I went from 8 knots to 40 knots in 30 seconds, it's quite a shock! " recounted Corentin Horeau this morning, helmet on, in a very shaky video. This sudden change proved too much for Erwan Le Draoulec on Lazare X Hellio: " I was reefing, standing on the sprayhood, and I was thrown off. While trying to hold on, I dislocated my left shoulder ." While the race doctors were able to guide him in realigning his leg, they also strongly advised Erwan to abandon the race. Disheartened, the skipper set sail for Horta this evening…
The battle continues to rage elsewhere. In the IMOCA class, behind Corentin Horeau, Boris Herrmann (Malizia 4) and Francesca Clapcich (11th Hour racing) are holding on in the same conditions, and the best performance of the night was made by Sam Goodchild (Macif Santé Prévoyance), who has moved back into the top 5. He was the fastest, along with Boris Herrmann, over the last 24 hours, covering 353 miles, and is benefiting from the same challenging but fast conditions in the same channel. The strong westerly winds from the low-pressure system will significantly affect the IMOCAs further east, such as Maxime Sorel (Vaincre la Mucoviscidose) and Davy Beaudart (Bureau Vallée), who will be sailing at a tighter angle, which won't work in their favor. Ambrogio Beccaria, on the other hand, has made a strong comeback and has also had to put on his helmet. He is the most exposed to the elements today, with Sébastien Simon taking the prize, even predicting " 60-knot gusts and 6-meter waves for a tricky twelve hours ." Nearly 2,000 miles from the finish, the race is far from over in the IMOCA class, especially with a major transition expected in 36 hours as they encounter a tropical depression that will shift slightly eastward, adding another layer of challenge.
At the heart of the spin dryer
The third group is the Class40s, in the middle of which are IMOCAs with daggerboards and Vintage Monos. Here again, the situation is quite varied, with a 400-mile north-south gap between the far northerly Mathieu Claveau (Inherent Phare 40) and Robin Follin (Solano), the southernmost. In the middle of the pack, Guillaume Pirouelle (Sogestran Seafrigo) still leads the way with ten boats in his direct wake, less than 40 miles behind. Ian Lipinski (Crédit Mutuel) has moved back a bit towards the center. Everyone says they want to fine-tune their trajectory, but the die is cast. Downwind sails and other gennakers will be stowed away in the locker or on deck, where they will need to be securely strapped down for a return to flat sails and sailing on the doors.
With a radius of 800 miles, the depression will affect everyone. Quite complex to understand, it consists of several centers, as many fronts, occlusions, and the different models didn't represent it in the same way even yesterday. Not simple!
Of note in the Class40 standings is the return to the forefront of Achille Nebout (Amarris), Corentin Douguet (SNSM Faites un don!), and Axel Tréhin (Exalt), who didn't have the best start to their Route du Rhum Destination Guadeloupe but clearly haven't given up. Slightly behind in the downwind VMG at the beginning, their Lift V2 and V3 boats are formidable upwind and reaching, the points of sail on which the race will be decided in the next 36 hours.
In the Vintage Mono class, Patrick Isoard, winner of the Transat CIC on his Groupe Cogedis Enfants du Mékong, has also bounced back. He climbed to second place, ahead of Kieran Le Borgne (Armor Lux-Le Finistère Assurance) and Sidney Gavignet (Le Cigare Rouge). Still led by Tanguy Caradec (Eurvad), who is having a superb start to the race, this small quartet has pulled away from the second group, led by Echo Mer, Wilfried Clerton's Kriter VIII.
The dodge
As is often the case, it's the stragglers in the Class40 and Vintage Mono fleets who will pay the heaviest price for the low-pressure system that will shift east-southeast on Friday and Saturday. The fourth group in this Route du Rhum, composed mainly of Vintage Multis, is trying to avoid the storm, notably Fifty Fifty and ACapella-Proludic - La Chaîne de l'Espoir. On these wooden boats, which are prone to lifting their keels and have a reduced mass, it's essential to work with the weather rather than try to defy it. The two catamarans in the class and the two ORMA trimarans still racing are significantly more exposed and will bear the brunt of the storm. This will be a high-stakes race that will leave no room for error for another 24 to 36 hours.
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