Although the pace remains intense and life on board is hard, leader Yoann Richomme reported that the seas are a little longer and slightly smoother allowing him to push Paprec Arkéa quite hard. He continues to extend his lead on the second placed Charal (Jéremie Beyou) and Sam Goodchild (FOR THE PLANET). 

Sam is sailing a fast angle NNE this morning and is quickest of the leaders. Christian Dumard, the Retour à La Base weather guru, agrees this morning that things are looking increasingly good for the double winner of La Solitaire du Figaro and two times Route du Rhum winner Richomme who is on his first solo race on his new IMOCA.
Dumard evaluated this morning, “At the moment the leaders are in front of the front and Yoann is starting to get away and by tonight he is clear ahead of a zone of light winds which require the chasing pack to either go north or stay south to stay in a corridor of breeze, but by tomorrow Yoann is to the south of the Azores, but overall there are not really any big problems. There is not any really big winds. But the big depression is coming from the northeast. Yoann passes close in to Cape Finisterre in the end, and the seas are not too bad at 4.5 metres.”

Generally the gaps between the top five boats are opening slightly as they play the angles to get north into the stronger breeze. Ten of the top 13 boats this morning are climbing north to stay with the best of the system.

Meanwhile Tanguy Le Turquais (Lazare) has made contact with the back of the fleet, passing Jingkun ‘Jackie’ Xu and Jean Le Cam is expected to start from Martinique today.