For the moment, with 185 miles to the finish, Ambrogio Beccaria on Alla Grande Pirelli, is looking a bit more secure in the lead of Class40. As they have emerged into more settled winds he has been able to inch further ahead of Ian lipinksi who is desperately looking to give his trusted, successful Max 40 Crédit Mutuel a worthy send off on their last race together,
Italian Beccaria is just over20 miles ahead now as the leaders get into headwinds which are created by a little low pressure centre which is going to be a difficult transition with lots of unsettled wind and squalls. The Italian will have to work hard to cover Lipinksi and balance the risks of looking at little opportunities and staying with his rival. There is not a lot of wind, just 15-18kts max, and so it is about focus and energy levels.
Assistant race director Yann Chateau “There are about 24 hours of racing left for them since they are expected Friday morning (around 5 a.m. UTC, 7 a.m. French time). The light area had the effect of an elastic band, Fabien Delahaye (LE GALLAIS) remained a little stuck there. He has lost ground and it will be difficult to catch up. Fabien will have to work hard to secure his 3rd place because behind, Nicolas d'Estais (Café Joyeux) is showing himself to be very opportunistic.”
Ollie Heer is trying to keep his spirits higher as he struggles to get out of a large zone of light winds - that high pressure ridge - but expects breeze this afternoon evening which will hopefully allow him to be moving west on his birthday tomorrow......
And things are looking good for Clarisse Crémer (L'Occitane en Provence, IMOCA) in the Azores where her strat team are making good progress with repairs and she aims to leave soon and be in before the line closes on 20th May
Comments