“It's splendid, exciting and… complicated!”
Before flying to Brazil to welcome his protege Isabelle Joschke, expected in Salvador de Bahia on Sunday on his damaged boat (damaged keel), Alain Gautier shares his enthusiasm for the intense fight at the head of a 9th Vendée Completely crazy globe.
"It's a very interesting game", sums up the winner of the 1992-93 edition, quite unable, like everyone else, to announce the name of the one who will join him in the pantheon of offshore racing.
“What is certain is that we will have a very good winner.
We must above all hope that all goes well ”.
"When you have four or five boats right behind you, you can't control them all!"
Alain Gautier
Because the former security man around the world is still a little chickweed: “I hope that these minimal gaps will not push the boys to push too hard.
In the past, the former has often fought with only one boat, like Armel (Le Cléac'h) against Alex Thomson in 2017 or Armel behind François (Gabart) four years earlier.
There is a sort of control.
When you have four or five right behind you, you can't control them all !, crashes the director of the MACSF sailing project.
The danger is that the first ones will try to force and they will go red, especially in the Azores-Les Sables part where it can be very
touchy
at this time of the year ”.
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A week from the finish, the first were making good progress in the trade winds at the latitude of Cape Verde on Wednesday morning, still in a pocket square.
If Charlie Dalin remained first at the 5h00 check-in and sent on Apivia (18.5 knots on average over the last 4 hours), Louis Burton (Bureau Vallée 2, +110 miles) seems to have the advantage.
Located about 200 miles west of the Normand and therefore further from the direct route, the Malouin is moving quickly (19.5 knots) on an intact port foil, unlike Dalin and Thomas Rettant, tough 3rd despite his struggles (126 miles).
Burton should be able to hold sacred averages for another 48 hours before the obstacle of the Azores high pressure, located very south, at the level of the Canaries.
"We must be wary of Boris (Herrmann) who can be formidable"
Alain Gautier
“Louis has demonstrated the ability to go very fast, it's true, but his mainsail is not optimal (rail repaired at Macquarie Island).
It does not translate into its speeds but we do not know what can happen when you have a boat that is not in perfect condition ”, tempers Alain Gautier, not very far from putting a note on… the German rookie Boris Herrmann who also puts coal on SeaExplorer-Yacht Club de Monaco (4th, +143).
“We must be wary of Boris who can be formidable.
Even if he may not tell us everything, his boat looks in better condition than those of the others.
Its foils, the same ones we have on MACSF, are very efficient at certain speeds.
His boat is potentially superior to Bureau Vallée.
There will be speed differences depending on the condition of the boats, predicts the Lorient.
The history of bonuses (6h for Herrmann, 10:16 for Bestaven, 6th at 181 miles) can also push us to go faster.
You have to be very strong in your head. ”
The war of nerves has already started.
Check-in at 5:00 a.m.
1. Charlie Dalin (FRA / Apivia) 2,519.3 miles from the finish
2. Louis Burton (FRA / Bureau Vallée 2) 110.0 miles from the
leader 3. Thomas Rettant (FRA / LinkedOut) 125, 8
4. Boris Herrmann (GER / Seaexplorer-Yacht Club de Monaco) 143.2
5. Damien Seguin (FRA / Groupe Apicil) 180.5
6. Yannick Bestaven (FRA / Maître Coq IV) 181.2
7. Giancarlo Pedote ( ITA / Prysmian Group) 228.6
8. Jean Le Cam (FRA / Yes we Cam!) 340.2
9. Benjamin Dutreux (FRA / OMIA-Water Family) 345.3
10. Maxime Sorel (FRA / V And B Mayenne ) 616.0
11. Armel Tripon (FRA / L'Occitane en Provence) 807.4
12. Clarisse Cremer (FRA / Banque Populaire X) 1.234.1
13. Romain Attanasio (FRA / Pure-Best Western) 1.743.4
14 . Jérémie Beyou (FRA / Charal) 2,482.2
15. Arnaud Boissières (FRA / La Mie Câline-Artisans Artipôle) 2,621.1
16. Alan Roura (SUI / La Fabrique) 2,679.6
17. Pip Hare (GBR / Medallia) 2,779.8
18. Stéphane Le Diraison (FRA / Time For Oceans) 3,053.4
19. Didac Costa (ESP / One Planet One Ocean) 3,230.1
20. Kojiro Shiraishi (JPN / DMG Mori Glo
bal One) 3,283.5
21. Manuel Cousin (FRA / Groupe Sétin) 3,792.3
22. Miranda Merron (GBR / Campagne de France) 4,078.9
23. Clément Giraud (FRA / Compagnie du lit-Jiliti) 4,210.6
24 . Alexia Barrier (FRA / TSE-4myplanet) 5,866.9
25. Ari Huusela (FIN / Stark) 6,017.7
Isabelle Joschke soon in Brazil
[VIDEO ON BOARD] 10 days already that @ IsabelleJoschke is sailing, out of the race, towards Salvador de Bahia!
In safety, Isa is sailing at 5-7 knots to avoid the # IMOCA # MACSF heel and take the opportunity to rest ... before returning to the tumult of a big city!
pic.twitter.com/khxpffJvUn
- VoileMACSF (@VoileMACSF) January 19, 2021
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