The connection with the tradewinds of the Saint Helena High were timed to perfection this Thursday lunchtime, and after a reduction in the pace due to the Doldrums and the passage of the equator, Groupama 3 has kicked up her heels again and is making nearly thirty knots.
Their lead over Orange II has shot up to over 500 miles... Given that the weather conditions are forecast to be stable for at least two days, we can expect a lot of headway to be marked out on the map as we approach the second weekend of sailing.
"In two days, we shall be quite far South to track down a front, which is shifting to the West and will enable us to "take the corner" and close on the Cape of Good Hope. It's almost an ideal scenario even though we'll have to go quite far South, and therefore a little outside Orange II's course. We are lucky to have a front, which will traverse the Saint Helena High level with Tristan da Cunha.... We still have some leeway today to aim for the most favourable point to hook onto the low, slipping along nicely for most of the time. The moment where we hoist the gennaker to adjust the place where we will encounter the Argentinean front will be important. We're handling Groupama 3 with kid gloves by lifting the foil a little and raising the daggerboard. Since the passage of the equator, there haven't been too many manoeuvres and the crew has been able to rest, do a bit of washing, clean up the gear and tidy up a bit." recounted Franck Cammas ! at the noon radio session.
Sylvain Mondon (Meteo France), onshore weather expert for Groupama 3: "What we imagined would happen at the start off Ushant has become a reality: high pressure conditions up to Cape Finisterre, then a more complicated disturbed passage around the Canaries and Cape Verde. The expected scenario has been confirmed with the Saint Helena High being pushed eastwards by a fairly active low, which is shifting across the South Atlantic: the tradewinds are orientated more to the East as they fill in. The situation will carry Groupama 3 to the roaring 40's fairly rapidly... There is also a corridor of air which gives us some cause to hope for an entry into the Indian Ocean at the start of next week!
We have been pretty surprised in the light airs as regards the trimaran's performance: it is capable of going twice as fast as the strength of the wind." -- translation by Kate Jennings, Scuttlebutt Europe
Detailed cartography at:
cammas-groupama.geovoile.com/julesverne