VULNERABLE, skippered by the British sailor Sam Goodchild, dis-masted while he was in fourth position in the New York – Vendée race.
After being dismasted yesterday afternoon Sam Goodchild is doing OK, under the circumstances, and has secured his IMOCA. He is 150 miles from the island of Santa Maria in the Azores.
“Sam is doing well and the boat is safe,” reports Greg Boyer Gibaud from Race Direction, “He is continuing to prepare a jury rig and tries to rest.”
In the lead Charlie Dalin (MACIF Santé Prévoyance) has seen his margin very slightly trimmed to under the 300 miles with just over 600 miles to the finish line. He is upwind in a moderate NE’ly wind.
To the north Boris Herrmann (Malizia Seaexplorer) is well into his downwind Super G, his estimate being that he should finish second, about a day ahead of the second group.
Herrmann is up to sixth this morning and making averages of over 20 knots, usually around 22 knots in conditions which are, and will continue to be good for Malizia Seaexplorer.
In ninth this (Friday) morning, just behind Sam Davies and Justine Mettraux, Pip Hare messages, “It is good but I made a silly mistake in the night and have fallen behind Sam which I am gutted about. I missed the shift and now I have gone from three miles ahead to 11 miles behind Sam. That is a pretty stupid mistake to make. I am upset at myself.”
James Harayda (Gentoo Sailing Team) has dropped to 17th.
Like a new start
Meanwhile more than half the fleet, 16 skippers are lined up north to south, trying to position themselves in relation to the anticyclone to their north.
“Visually, it looks like they’re going to make a new start,” says the member of the Race Direction team. “This part of the fleet extends over 350 miles in longitude and their challenge is not to be eaten up by the anticyclone”. Those to the south have more wind and are quicker.
