The National Yacht Club's Tom Dolan has gambled on a southerly route being the fasted as he attempts to climb up the leaderboard in the Transat AG2R La Mondiale.
The 30-year-old from Kells, Meath, is currently in 12th position with co-skipper Tanguy Bouroullec on their yacht Smurfit Kappa-Cerfrance as the 4,000-mile sprint across the Atlantic enters its tenth day.
The iconic race, in which 20 of the world’s best sailors do battle in identical 32ft Figaro Beneteau boats between Concarneau in France and St Barts in the Caribbean, is only Dolan’s second outing since joining forces with eco-packaging giant Smurfit Kappa earlier this year.
"Dolan and Bouroullec are among a group of eleven teams that have pursued a route south towards the Cape Verde archipelago"
Having crossed the Tropic of Cancer two days ago, Dolan and Bouroullec are among a group of eleven teams that have pursued a route south towards the Cape Verde archipelago off the west African coast in the hope of locking into better breeze.
Meanwhile, some 200 miles north-west, the leading pack are closer in distance to the finish line but are in less wind.
With around 2,200 miles still remaining of the leg, Dolan said it would be some time before they knew if their gamble had paid off.
“The cards are down, all bets are in,” Dolan wrote in his latest dispatch from Smurfit Kappa-Cerfrance.
“Two days ago we came screaming through the Canaries and since then have invested our max to the south. In ten days’ time we'll see if it has paid off.
“All of this south that we have laid on the table will mean one thing for sure: that we have and will travel a greater distance. The key will be that we will do it faster!
“The forecasts say that we should have 10 days’ worth of stronger wind and current ahead of us. Now it’s up to us to make the most of it.”
Despite both Dolan and Bouroullec being newcomers to the Figaro Beneteau class, they are already proving themselves a force to be reckoned with in a fleet that contains Vendee Globe and Volvo Ocean Race sailors.
The pair have been buoyed by their performance in the race so far – and remain cautiously optimistic about their chances.
“On board things are good, morale is up and stable and the boat is in good condition,” Dolan added.
“For the last 48 hours we have had a sparring partner in Credit Mutuel – they are about half a mile to our right and it's good to have them to be able to compare speed, with which we are happy.
“We are still discovering the boat and to be able to match them for speed is encouraging.
“There is one hell of a big high pressure floating around up north, and if we manage to scrape past it would mean we have a good chance of a top ten finish, but time will tell.”