Monday, February 4, 2008

28 and 35 knots of boat speed...


"We had to reposition ourselves slightly a few times towards the South and last night we hit 20-25 knots of wind, which is now enabling us to make between 28 and 35 knots of boat speed. The nocturnal temperatures are a little colder: the boat has been accelerating well since Saturday evening and the seas are building progressively" explained helmsman Sébastien Audigane at today's radio session.
As a result, the sailing conditions are almost ideal this Sunday. For her eleventh day at sea, Groupama 3 still has a lead of over 600 miles on Orange II, a separation which is logically set to increase as they pass the longitude of the Cape of Good Hope. Indeed, this disturbance which is creeping up behind the giant trimaran, will continue its course eastwards very rapidly, generating W'ly winds in excess of 35 knots... "The seas are still manageable as we are at the edge of a zone of high pressure and the wind has been kicking in progressively since yesterday.

It's ideal for going quick! The next two days aren't going to be too bad, even though we may have to reposition ourselves towards the South like yesterday in order to track down the pressure. The situation looks likely to become more complicated shortly after the Cape of Good Hope however. We'll have to wait and see what happens... We're sailing under cloudy skies but there are still patches of blue.

The temperatures are still high during the day but you have to wear a fleece at night. It's still very pleasant, even though we're being shaken about a bit at thirty knots! For the time being, the wind is steady and the boat isn't bumping off the waves" analysed Franck Cammas this lunchtime. -http://www.cammas-groupama.com/