In the clutches of the high...

Hope and uncertainty are the order of the day for the Istanbul Europa Race fleet as each boat follows its strategy. Every day brings fresh upheaval to the rankings and the distances between boats. Given the conditions, it is hard to imagine that a hierarchy will be established at the halfway stage of this first leg. For now, Kito de Pavant (Groupe Bel) and his crew have regained the lead, planning on being the first to escape from the bubble of high pressure which has been holding them captive. But how long will they stay in front? Veolia Environnement and DCNS have been slowly clawing back the miles, and would like to provide the answer…

The heat is on for the IMOCA fleet, and not just because of the classic end-of-summer conditions. The strategists are feverishly at work.

The trap that is the bubble of high pressure on the long route from Istanbul to Nice was on everyone's lips during the radio interviews. There are diverging strategies on how best to escape from it, and each boat was keen to defend their decisions. The new leader, Kito de Pavant, opted for the ‘straight line' approach. With a 16 mile lead over the competition, Kito was reaping the rewards for being slightly north of his closest rivals. They too seemed pleased with their choices.

Guillermo Altadill (1876) and Michel Desjoyeaux (Foncia) have been match-racing, finding the close racing motivating.  They have joined Jean-Pierre Dick in his southerly option. Crew member Damian Foxall explained that they were pleased with their African ‘inspiration' in search of wind, and that they were starting to feel the benefits. 

And there was good news too at the back of the fleet, where Roland Jourdain and Marc Thiercelin  had reduced their deficit to 50 and 58 miles to the leader, from 130 and 134 miles a day ago, giving them fresh hope.

Eat, drink, sleep...

The results will become clear in the next few hours. The positions reports should tell us more about the conditions and the ranking at the west of Sicily will show who was successful. 

But beware of drawing conclusions too hastily – the Mediterranean is full of surprises. As all the competitors pointed out today, we will have to wait until the finish line in the Bay of Angels to find out who the victor is.   

In the meantime, stronger wind is expected for the Istanbul Europa Race fleet, which should make matters clearer. After four days, both men and boats are starting to feel the effects of the race, which, while not being physically demanding, is exhausting nonetheless. Crews are resting as they can with this heat, and focussing on keeping hydrated and nourished. 

On this subject, the crew of Groupe Bel admitted to having been worried when their watermaker broke down. After a night of taking it apart, they have got the watermaker working again this morning. 

While water is not the issue on Veolia Environnement, the same cannot be said for food. Supplies are running low and rationing is in place. If this first leg lasts longer, Bilou and his team could arrive rather hungry in Nice. The wind gods are being beseeched, both for the race and hunger... 

What they said :  

Damian Foxall –Paprec Virbac 2 :

" We are still following a completely different route from the others, and we are closest to the African coast. We opted for this southerly route with the aim of getting to steadier breeze as fast as possible.  No doubt we have paid quite dearly in terms of extra miles. But the wind has been filling in a little over the last few hours and we have better conditions. If we are lucky, we will get the breeze before the others. We shall see... in any case, the fleet will regroup at Sicily, and there will be numerous opportunities all the way to Nice: this leg is far from over. No matter what, even in the Mediterranean, the best boat will win...  to be revealed at the finish line.”

Kito de Pavant – Groupe Bel :

" We were on our toes all night. The wind was still very unstable and there wasn't much of it. In these conditions, it's always quite tense on board, and you have to constantly trim the sails and concentrate on the helm. Yesterday however, we made good progress, reaching, and even put the autopilot on so that we could rest. We are on a slightly more northerly track. In fact, when we left Greek waters, the weather files said to go south, but the next lot of files showed that the bubble of high pressure we needed to get round was becoming a big barrier from Sicily to Libya. I decided that it was better to go straight. I might have a slight advantage being from the Mediterranean: I know a few tricks and a lot of what we did in the Aegean Sea were things that I have seen before. But I know how capricious the Mediterranean can be, and I have learnt to be extremely wary. It is both my favourite and my most hated playground!”

 Guillermo Altadill – 1876

" We are still in very light airs. We spent all night match-racing Foncia. Being side by side is motivating us to push the boat 100% and find the right trim for maximum speed. The racing is exciting and it's great to get to know the boat, formerly Loïck Peyron's Gitana, in close racing conditions. On board, between the Spaniards, Gitana team's Antoine Mermot, and our Dutch crew member, we have developed a new language: a combination of Spanish, French and English. It works very well! I am keeping an eye on Groupe Bel, who are further north and may have found the best way out of the bubble of high pressure. To the south, Paprec-Virbac 2 is climbing up the rankings. They must have found some wind, but I'm not sure it will be enough to make up for the extra miles.... "

Michel Desjoyeaux – Foncia :

" It's very hot, but we're putting up with it. We're not going to complain, but today the water temperature is higher than the air temperature!, We still don't have much wind: we are getting close to the high, and we should escape from it some time today as we progress west. We have a fine pacemaker next to us in the form of 1876. It's good for motivation and we are having a decent battle. The lead keeps changing. The others? I don't think anyone can foresee the outcome from this high. Whatever happens, the ranking at Sicily will be provisional. This leg is full of snakes and ladders, and it will continue like that all the way to Nice. Let the party carry on!”  

 Roland Jourdain – Veolia Environnement

" Even if we have reduced our deficit to 50 miles in the past few hours, we still have to cross the same windless zone as the others, stretching from Sicily to Libya. We have to put up with the same light airs, and I don't think we are out of the woods yet. And we are still suffering from our fairly disastrous progress over the last two days. After a reasonably peaceful night, we are back to chasing zephyrs. There isn't much we can do about it, but letting up is out of the question: we fully aim to get out of this, whatever the cost. It could take two days to get to Sicily and some wind. DCNS has caught up a bit. We can see them with the binoculars. Perhaps they have had a little less bad luck than us. Since the start, we have noticed that the boats are all fairly similar in terms of speed. Therefore making the least errors is what counts. I have already made an impressive one at the Peloponnese, and the key aim on board is to wipe the slate clean...”

Source : www.istanbuleuroparace.com