Franck Cammas’ strategic coup took a while to turn into something positive but, on this ninth day at sea, Groupama 4 has snatched back the controls. Her position to windward of the fleet should even enable her to open up her lead a bit further between now and the Doldrums, which they’re likely to hit in about forty hours’ time…
“The water is getting increasingly warm as we’re nearing the Tropic of Capricorn. The sailing conditions are excellent for speed but they’re also very uncomfortable! The outside temperature isn’t too high yet (20°C), but it’s very wet on deck… Right now, we’re sailing at between 19 and 22 knots, 80° to the wind. Basically, we haven’t let up the pressure since we left Cape Town: our focus is on gaining some miles over the coming days so as we have the edge when we enter the Doldrums…” indicated Franck Cammas at the noon videoconference this Tuesday.
Objective equator
The big hook round to the South to ease around the side of the front, at the heart of the Indian Ocean, has paid off, even though Groupama 4 suffered nearly six hours of very light airs near the centre of the high pressure. It was an unforeseen situation which delayed the team taking pole position until this Tuesday morning. Since all the fleet got through the front (with the exception of the Chinese boat which has diverted to Fort-Dauphin in Madagascar), the five VO-70s have been on virtually the same course (between 15° and 25°) as they aim for Rodrigues Island. The separation gained at the end of the passage of the front on Monday afternoon has stuck at around fifty miles between Puma furthest East, whilst the Telefonica-Camper duo is over 150 miles from Groupama 4, which is the furthest offshore of the large African island.
“We found ourselves out on our own again when we left the African coast, then we got back in contact again, before heading South to hunt for an opening by going around the front. Basically, we try to work on a long term strategy, Right now, the focus is on racking up the maximum number of miles so as we can consolidate our lead: we have about forty hours left in these stable conditions. After that though, we’ll hit the Doldrums with some very changeable conditions: as such we’re pushing as hard as we can without having to force the machine too much, as the seas aren’t overly rough.”
The furtive zone
If all goes to plan the French yacht is set to increase her lead since she’s sailing between three and five knots faster than her rivals to leeward. Indeed the ‘band of four’ are making headway closer to the remnants of the tropical depression which forced Sanya to divert to Madagascar to repair a shroud: the wind there is more unstable and the seas rougher. Furthermore, Groupama 4 is benefiting from a breeze orientated more to the ESE (21 knots at 97°) whilst her rivals are having to sail closer to the wind (22 knots at 80°). Able to bear away more, the French boat also has more room for manœuvre as she prepares to tackle the furtive zone to the North of the island of Madagascar. On paper, the trajectory adopted by Franck Cammas and his men promises to be pretty straight for traversing the Doldrums, with an added bonus for those furthest East…
“Our course is very conservative in relation to the piracy, but we will be closing on the zone in light airs. If all goes to plan, we will be quite a long way off the risky zone. We had some training on how to behave if were attacked. For the time being though, it’s not our primary focus!” concluded the skipper of Groupama 4.
Position of the competitors in the Volvo Ocean Race on the second leg from Cape Town – Abu Dhabi at 1600 UTC on 20/12/2011
1. Groupama 4
2. Telefonica – 37.4 miles astern of the leader
3. Puma – 47.9 miles astern of the leader
4. Camper – 53.7 miles astern of the leader
5. Abu Dhabi Ocean Racing – 152.5 miles astern of the leader