Charles Caudrelier, leader of the ARKEA ULTIM CHALLENGE-Brest, is passing the NE corner of the Kerguelen Islands exclusion zone, racing on a SE’ly course at around 35kts as he plunges towards the ice exclusion zone.
The skipper of Maxi Edmond de Rothschild is expected to pass Cape Leeuwin on Wednesday and Tasmania, gateway to the Pacific on Thursday or Friday.
In second is Thomas Coville. The Cape of Good Hope is well behind him now and his Sodebo Ultim 3 is already carving its way into the Indian Ocean, still pretty much pacing the leader Caudrelier – indeed in the 24hrs to 17:00hrs this evening Coville sailed 16 miles further.
Arriving off Cape Town very early Monday morning, Tom Laperche was met by a wall of winds gusting to 50 to 60 knots along the coast.
It was impossible to consider any kind of access the port. So SVR – Lazartigue had to stay on standby, hove too into the wind, waiting for better conditions.
The wind eventually died down, and four members of the team boarded the giant ULTIM later in the morning. Securing the boat and analyzing the damage are their two missions at the moment.
Laperche was sent ashore so that he could rest and recover with some good sleep.
With the wind still blowing heavily, the technical team has not yet been able to dock the giant multi in the port of Cape Town.
