It has been a difficult Friday for several skippers in the Route du Rhum – Destination Guadeloupe, with Italian skipper Ambrogio Beccaria forced to abandon after a fall aboard his IMOCA, while Francesca Clapcich has lost her bowsprit in punishing conditions. Meanwhile, Ireland's Pam Lee is approaching the Azores for a planned repair stop in Class40.
IMOCA: injuries, damage and a shifting contest
Beccaria (Allagrande Mapei) suffered a bad fall and sustained an injury which has required him to abandon the race and head to the Azores for medical treatment. Clapcich (11th Hour Racing) lost the bowsprit off her boat after a hellish spell overnight. She has dropped to fourth but was still making more than 20 knots, 70 miles behind Franco-British skipper Sam Goodchild (MACIF Santé Prévoyance), who has been fast in slightly smoother sea conditions.
Goodchild remains more than 250 miles behind Corentin Horeau (MACSF).
“I’m happy with how the second part of my race has gone so far. We’re moving very fast toward Guadeloupe—the miles are really racking up! Yesterday was intense, with seas over 4 metres; now, it’s more like 2.5 to 3 metres. You have to strike the right balance, especially since this gybe lasts two and a half days. You also have to remember to rest and prepare for the next manoeuvre,” Goodchild said. “I want to keep pace with the others while ensuring MACIF Santé Prévoyance stays in good shape.”
A new low-pressure system has formed north of Guadeloupe, almost directly on the route, making the coming hours crucial for strategy.
“I’m heading into another full-on day, with a gybe planned for tonight. We’re aiming south, but there’s one final low-pressure system to deal with. We don’t yet know whether we’ll go around it or sail through it. It’s not moving much and is positioned right in the middle of the path. I saw that Tom (Laperche) decided to sail through it. I’ll keep an eye on the others and see how that plays out.”
Goodchild knows that nothing is decided: “I have no idea who I’ll be arriving in Guadeloupe alongside. A lot is happening, and there’s great intensity while sailing downwind. There could also be calm patches near the finish. Anything is still possible. I’m focused on my own race and my goal of reaching Guadeloupe.”
He is also making notes on practical additions for his next IMOCA, now in build: “My thoughts tend to focus on practical, day-to-day aspects of life on board—things like a grab rail or a way to secure the sails. These are the kinds of details I’m considering for my next boat.”
Class40: new leader and an Azores stop for Pam Lee
In Class40, Achille Nebout (Amaryllis) has emerged best from the fierce Azores low-pressure system to take a slender lead of just over a mile ahead of Guillaume Pirouelle (Sogestran Seafrigo).
Best of the internationals is still Spain’s Pep Costa (VSF Sport) in tenth, Czech Republic’s Milan Kolacek (Inland Roots Ocean Soul) in 17th and Luca Rosetti (Macaferri Futura) in 18th, the latter two around 185 miles behind the leader.
Ireland’s Pam Lee (Empowher) has fewer than 100 miles to sail to the Azores, where she plans a pit stop to repair a lost padeye and attend to her electrical charging system.
Alexia Barrier: learning to trust the boat
In the Ultim fleet, Thomas Coville (Sodebo Ultim 3) is asserting his claim to second place, fighting off a spirited charge by debutant Louis Burton (Ultim Armand Thiery), now about 100 miles behind.
Alexia Barrier, aiming to become the first woman to finish the course on a giant Ultim, was in good form today, more than halfway along the route. Her boat has a remarkable history on this course, having won in 2010 with Franck Cammas, 2014 with Loïck Peyron and 2018 with Francis Joyon. After sailing around the world last winter to set an all-women record with The Famous Project, Barrier places great faith in the boat.
“It’s been tough,” Barrier confirmed. “There's been a lot of transitions with the weather. This is not like you can imagine a transatlantic being, seven days and boom! you're arriving in Guadeloupe. It's changing all the time but it's really interesting. I think there is no better way to learn, I would say, than on your own on this kind of transatlantic.”
Asked whether it was worse or better than expected, she responded: “I didn't expect anything, to tell you the truth, because I didn't want to be disappointed and I knew that it would be tough but this was a bit crazy. It is a really new challenge for me after going around the world with a team of amazing women now going alone, it's very different. And you know what, the first day I was hearing the voices of all the girls on board, it was crazy. I was so tired, I didn't sleep and I started to have hallucinations and I was listening to Dee and Molly's voices and that was a bit strange, but also funny. I think the hardest thing is just stressing myself. I decided not to look at the others, just to make sure that I'm not making any mistakes but sometimes it's scary because we're both fast. But I know also that it's a super nice boat. Yes it's a big boat, really heavy and a physical boat but it's a nice boat. So the test is trusting myself and trusting the boat is my challenge but the boat looks after me.”
Eat, sleep, repeat … and press ‘play’
Barrier continued: “But when I'm not doing my job, I just eat and sleep and repeat, eat and sleep. I'm trying not to lose my time doing anything else because I really need my sleep and I really need to take some rest. I spoke to Pierre (Quiroga, Ocean Fifty skipper) this morning, that was so cool. You know, we are from the south of France, we were originally training together in La Grande Motte, in Figaro. It is cool to talk to other competitors, it was nice. I always have music on. I put music on as much because it gives me a timing of how long it takes to hoist a sail or to unfurl a sail. And I have a special playlist called Route du Rhum with Spotify and Beyoncé and the Red Hot Chili Peppers. Music helps me to keep it relaxed in a way because I love what I'm doing and I shouldn't forget that even if sometimes it's difficult and it's painful and sometimes you cry, but at the end it's really, really, really cool and we are so lucky to do this.”
Laperche closing on Guadeloupe
At the front of the Ultim fleet, Tom Laperche (SVR Lazartigue) has a little over 500 nautical miles remaining to the finish off Pointe-à-Pitre and a lead of nearly 400 miles over Coville. Victory in the 13th edition of the 3,542-nautical-mile solo race appears increasingly likely, although changeable upwind conditions still await.
The 29-year-old has led since overtaking Armel Le Cléac’h (Banque Populaire XI) at the Cap Fréhel buoy, just 16 miles after last Sunday's start off Saint-Malo. He is expected on Saturday, with the option to take a cautious approach to the final stretch.
“I reckon I will be in Saturday in the evening, UTC,” Laperche reported this morning. “We’ll likely finish with a south-westerly wind—meaning we’ll be sailing upwind—in unstable conditions, which will probably require me tacking. I believe Franck Cammas had similar conditions in 2010 when he won on Groupama 3. It’s not common, but it happens! There’s also a risk that our progress toward Guadeloupe will be quite slow. For now, I’m a bit on edge because I don’t want to lose too much ground during this transition.”
He continued: “Obviously, the numbers look good. I would have jumped at the chance to have a lead like this at this stage! It means we could go half as fast as the others and still arrive at the same time—but that’s not the goal! The idea is to do the best we can with what we have, without taking unnecessary risks. Besides, I’d rather arrive with a good, emphatic lead—it’s always nicer that way! There are still plenty of manoeuvres and things to manage before reaching Pointe-à-Pitre. I’m not sure how much time we’ll lose in this depression, but it’s definitely something I’m keeping in mind. You have to remain constantly vigilant, so you can’t afford to sleep too much—but you still need to get some rest to keep a clear head. I try to take naps whenever I can. It’s toughest in the middle of the night, when you start to nod off. During the day, things are generally better.”
