Sailing ahead of a weather depression, competitors in the Vendée Globe around the world sailboat race encountered rough seas in the Great South that took their toll on equipment. At approximately 1 p.m. French time on Dec. 4, competitor Louis Burton told race officials and his support team that he had taken on serious damage to the rigging on his 60-foot monohull, Bureau Vallée.
For 10 hours, the Burton tried in vain to make a repair. After carefully analyzing the situation, he abandoned the race and headed for Cape Town, South Africa. The rigging issue was the second significant breakdown that Burton experienced, after his boat’s hull cracked two weeks ago. Burton has participated in two around-the-world races, having placed third in the previous Vendée Globe and has competed for 15 years on the IMOCA circuit.
Also on the night of Dec. 4, solo sailor Clarisse Crémer was forced to slow down to resolve a foil cylinder problem. The next morning, she informed race officials that the problem wasn’t fixed, but was under control. She just couldn’t adjust the foil going forward.
When the Vendée Globe fleet entered the Indian Ocean, it encountered the aforementioned depression that was forecast to bring winds in excess of 50 knots. Captains Charlie Dalin aboard MACIF Health Insurance and Sébastien Simon at the helm of Dubreuil Group decided to continue their Easterly route to take on the conditions directly. Other skippers turned north to maintain more manageable conditions.
Christian Dumard, weather consultant for the race, said the depression was weakening but would still generate winds of more than 50 knots and waves up to 23 feet. By being on a tighter course, Dalin and Simon could come out of the storm with a 250-mile advantage.
Yoann Richomme, skipper of Paprec Arkéa, took the northern route and was concerned about the ground given to the leaders. “I have the impression that Charlie and Seb aren’t going to do too badly in the end,” Richomme said. “The scenario is starting to turn out rather well for them. The depression is filling in, it’s decreasing a lot and they can get a nice score.
Things don’t get easier for the fleet after the Indian Ocean. The solo sailors will be approaching the Cape of Good Hope where winds are expected to be in the 30 to 35-knot range with the seas transformed into bumps by the Agulhas Current.
