After suffering damage to his daggerboard and daggerboard well four days ago, Tom Laperche (SVR Lazartigue) has arrived in Cape Town, South Africa, and this morning was in a holding pattern waiting for the strong breeze to diminish to allow him to dock. His technical team are in attendance.
Ultim Challenge Leader Charles Caudrelier is going well and gybed north east to clear the Kerguelens, Thomas Coville is in a transition zone between two weather systems, Armel Le Cléac'h and Anthony Marchand are hooking into their first Southern Ocean depression and Éric Péron is making excellent progress on the direct, rhumb line course towards the tip of South Africa.
After a good night of sailing in a strong wind sometimes peaking at boat speeds of nearly 20 knots, SVR – Lazartigue has reached South Africa and the sanctity of Cape Town. Laperche had furled away his headsails and was under mainsail alone and was waiting for the wind to calm down to get into the harbour at Cape Town.
Thomas Coville, in second place, is in the east of an anticyclone, just behind a front which will make for a complex transition period for the skipper of Sodebo Ultim 3. 1400 miles ahead, Charles Caudrelier is still fast, averaging more than thirty knots all the time, Edmond de Rothschild is devouring the Indian Ocean, constantly profiting from very favourable conditions which, according to routings made by the race organization, could take him to Cape Leeuwin by Wednesday afternoon and to Tasmania on Thursday/Friday.
Tussling over third and fourth Armel Le Cléac'h (Banque Populaire XI) and Anthony Marchand (Actual) are sailing close together in the southwest of the Saint Helena high. The two rivals are trying to finally escape the clutches of the anticyclone and get on to a small depression coming in from the west which would finally allow them to find some speed. Éric Péron continues to sail SE and take advantage of the more favourable positioning of the anticyclone, he is romping down the great circle course, theoretically the shortest route towards the Southern Oceans.
