9:25 AM Fri 16 Jan 2009 GMT
Since yesterday afternoon Brian Thompson's Vend?e Globe race has been stuck in a Cape Horn holding pattern, stalled for safety reasons as he awaits the passage of a violent storm. Sheltering under the 25 miles long Island del Los Estados, at times less than four miles from the south coast of the island, sixth place Thompson's plan appears to have produced the desired result. Meteo files suggest the centre of the low is passing just to the north of him, over the southern tip of Tierra del Fuego at around 0400hrs, but he could have many more hours to wait.
In the face of a forecast of gusts to 70-85 knots and swell to 7 to 9 m Thompson has been no further west than about 15 miles from the west tip of the island and the Le Maire Straits.
Arnaud Boissi?res (Akenas Veranda) passed the longitude of Cape Horn at 0025h GMT, 45 miles to the south of the rock making to the SE and around 0400hrs tacked slowy back towards the NE, his plan also keeping him away from the worst of the winds, reporting 25-30 knots of wind and relatively mild sea conditions.
And Dee Caffari's passage round Cape Horn is also on hold. At about 60 miles from the rock she maintained a SE'ly course too and slowed about 2230hrs last night, and since 0330hrs has been heading slowly NE back towards the Horn. She, too will have to wait for her time to round the mythical rock, at least until the wind to shifts to allow her to sail downwind past the famous headland. Even then, waiting around in the strong NW'ly wind and cross seas (northerly swell and SW'ly waves) will make this unpleasant for the next ten hours or so.
Making an average speed less than 10 knots Michel Desjoyeaux (Foncia), 250 miles off the Brazilian town of Porto Seguro, where the first Portuguese explorers stepped ashore in 1500, is continuing to sail due north towards the Equator, which is some 1000 miles ahead or the equivalent of four or five days sailing. He now has 270 miles in hand over his friend Roland Jourdain (Veolia Environnemnt) who in turn has 417 miles on third place Armel Le Cl?ac'h (Brit Air). Le Cl?ac'h has been struggling for speed in light, fluky conditions as he tries to escape from an extended ridge of high pressure which seems determined to move north with him for the immediate future.
In fourth place off the Argentine coast Sam Davies (Roxy) had been making steady upwind progress, in slightly bumpy unpleasant conditions but for the British skipper that has given way now to crawling along in light and very fickle breezes. Marc Guillemot (Safran) in fifth is 350 miles behind Davies.
Meantime Steve White, GBR, has seen only a positive benefit so far from the big low pressure system, running just to the south of it. He has been posting some of his quickest averages yet on Toe in the Water during yesterday evening and has made around 180 miles on the trio ahead of him.
Rich Wilson, USA, (Great American III) noted last night that he has now ticked off more than 17,000 miles of the course and is making good progress in 35-40 knots of wind and big waves, while behind him Raphael Dinelli (Fondation Oc?an Vital) yesterday observed the SW Pacific Ice Gate and is now 18 miles ahead of Norbert Sedlacek, AUT, (Nauticsport-Kapsch) with the pair less than 40 miles apart in terms of lateral separation.
Dee Caffari in her daily message,'I have had the most surreal night. It has felt so strange just sailing and not trying to go anywhere. The most amazing fact of the night was that I was sailing under South America upwind. Now twice before I have sailed upwind in this neck of the woods but I never expected it on this race. So three times round Cape Horn and every time upwind, can you believe it? Aviva, true to form as always became a land magnet during our tour of the Continental shelf and we visited the Islands of Diego Ramirez.
In that area and we were there for a while, I was surrounded with dolphins and countless birds. It was awesome. It was also at this time where I was struggling to stay away from the Islands that the centre of the low came over me and I had no wind and what little my instruments thought there was, was from all over the place. Here we go I thought the time has come. I was driving to try and stay away from the islands and get some boat speed. The clouds were building to my south and I knew rain and wind was coming. As I popped below to get my wet weather jacket I noticed we needed to charge. I turned the generator on and it started and stopped. Now was not a good time. Twice this happened and then I knew I had to become a mechanic. However, with rain and wind about to arrive, Islands close by and a storm to prepare for having a generator in pieces was far from ideal. The reality was I needed to charge. Time was now of the essence though and I think I even impressed myself that 40 minutes later I was back on deck sailing with the new breeze and the generator charging my batteries.
The next bizarre moment was not long after this as the wind built quickly as expected. I put my forth reef in my mainsail with 20 knots of breeze. Hardly racing trim, but we needed to go slow to allow the depression to move and I knew that shortly I would be faced with huge winds and I needed to protect what little there is of my sail. I spent some time trying to cover the exposed fibres with bits of good sail and tying it up so now my fingers are crossed that it survives. Next stop is changing my staysail for the storm staysail and then I am as ready as I am going to be to face the music of our parting gift from the Southern Ocean.'
0400 HRS GMT. Rankings, (FRA, unless stated)
1 . Michel Desjoyeaux (Foncia) at 4313 miles to finish
2 . Roland Jourdain (Veolia Environnement) at 270.1 miles from first place
3 . Armel Le Cl?ac'h (Brit Air) at 687miles from first place
4 . Sam Davies (Roxy) at 1614 miles from first place
5 . Marc Guillemot (Safran) at 1964.1 miles from first place
6 . Brian Thompson (Bahrain Team Pindar) at 2578.6 miles from first place
7 . Arnaud Boissi?res (Akena V?randas) at 2741 miles from first place
8 . Dee Caffari (Aviva) at 2762 miles from first place
9 . Steve White (Toe in the water) at 3660 miles from first place
10 . Rich Wilson (Great American III) at 5012 miles from first place
11 . Norbert Sedlacek (Nauticsport . Kapsch) at 6604 miles from first place
12 . Rapha?l Dinelli (Fondation Oc?an Vital) at 6602 miles from first place
RDG . Vincent Riou (PRB). 3?me
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