Français
As the seventh day of racing draws to a close, Cap Saint-Barth continues to build on the momentum of the past two days. On board, a reinvigorated Cindy Brin and a cheerfully determined Thomas André now seem firmly ensconced in fifth place. Just nine miles behind the Figaro which has been leading the race since passing the La Palma checkpoint, Wings of the Ocean, sailed by Alexis Thomas and Pauline Courtois. After "a crazy night", says Cindy Brin, who explains: "I don't know if that's the right word, but I'll remember it for the rest of my life. In terms of fright, on a scale of 1 to 10, I must have been at 100! I think I've never been so scared in my life. We arrived at Way Point in La Palma under full spinnaker, and it was a bit tight but okay. We were expecting the wind to increase to 27 knots according to the files. In the end, we hit the heap three or four times, which I found extremely violent. Although Thomas didn't think it was so violent! We had to heave to about ten times before lowering the big spinnaker, and we nearly blew the whole thing!" In the madness of the moment, the two sailors managed to master all the technical stages. "We didn't sleep all night, it was very intense," sums up Cindy, who assures us: "Personally, there were times when I felt like the boat was going to disintegrate! At around 6 a.m., things calmed down a bit, and we hoisted back the big spinnaker." And since it wasn't written that their nocturnal adventures would end there, Cindy and Thomas discovered that the onboard computer mouse no longer worked. It was therefore impossible to validate the crossing at La Palma! Fortunately, a few hours later, everything was back to normal. Miraculously, the mouse decided to work again," says Cindy. On board, it was a moment of unimaginable celebration!"
Since passing La Palma and beginning the Atlantic crossing to Saint-Barth, the seven leading boats have been within 15 miles of each other. It's almost like a peloton! And at the helm of the boats, excitement reigned throughout Sunday.
However, while eighteen of the nineteen crews are now heading for the open sea, one was unfortunately forced to turn back after La Palma. This is Article 1, sailed by Arno Biston and Vittoria Ripa di Meana. Their second spinnaker ripped during the night. The two sailors therefore decided to head for the island of Tenerife (Spain) for a technical stopover. While their comrades and rivals are sailing at full speed towards Saint-Barth, they are making slow progress in the opposite direction, more than 235 miles behind at the 6 p.m. (Saint-Barth time) position report.
Other crews have had a few problems, but nothing as serious. On Demain, in the lead before La Palma and now seventh, Mathilde Géron and Martin le Pape had a snag on their spinnaker (of course). As for the young duo formed by Pier-Paolo Dean (20) and Tiphaine Rideau (19) on Les Banques alimentaires, they "hit something underwater which had an impact on the keel". Nothing to stop them from continuing their crossing.
Next update tomorrow, Monday, early morning. In particular, we'll find out where Cindy Brin and Thomas André stand on Cap Saint-Barth, which this weekend turned into an animal sanctuary! After a bird landed on the onboard computer keyboard, the two sailors discovered a small crab in the ship. We're awaiting the return of the dolphins, and the presence of the sargassum.
