The fleet is expected to continue to compress as the trailing boats gradually catch up with the two leaders – Team AkzoNobel and Team Brunel – and then the leg might effectively re-start as the crews make their way towards the Irish coast, currently 400 miles east of them.
During the heavy stuff Dongfeng Race Team has held its own and over the last 24 hours the crew led by Charles Caudrelier has managed to move back ahead of Vestas 11th Hour Racing to retake third place, 45 miles behind AkzoNobel.
Once again, the critical element is the position of MAPFRE, which is now in fifth place and 32 miles astern of Dongfeng. However, if the finish of the last leg told us anything, it was that MAPFRE is always a threat until any leg is over. Xabi Fernandez and his crew never give up and although they have been under-par for much of the second half of the race, they can still pull results out of the bag and the upcoming compression could suit them…
Caudrelier summed up the dramatic change in the weather coming up. “Ahead of us is a big, big light spot and, I hope, a big compression,” he said. “Unfortunately for the leader, there is a big wall of no wind. I don’t think someone will be able to cross it because it is moving with us and we will have a new start altogether, 10 or 12 hours after we reach it.”
Bowman Jack Bouttell, meanwhile, offered a vivid description of heavy weather racing on these Volvo Ocean 65s which have been ridiculously wet on deck during the last few days. (Will the next generation of Volvo boats offer crews some rudimentary protection?)
“When you think of these conditions, this is the stuff you want,” said Jack while eating his freeze-dried food down below, but still in full foulies. “But they are really not nice. They are cool for the first watch, the first couple of hours, but then they get pretty tedious pretty quickly and you are completely soaking wet through and are crawling around the boat.
“The bunk is the only good spot but even in your bunk you are getting thrown in and out all the time,” he added. “On deck you are getting really properly thrown around and the driving is basically two hours of having your eyeballs assailed by salt water – so hard work!”
