Vendée Globe 2016-2017

Alex didn't really lose much boat speed, he just moved further North over the past 12 hours to get better wind and lost some VMG.

His boat speed has picked up again now he's turned back to the east and he's now matching Armel's VMG.
 
Stotty said:
Alex didn't really lose much boat speed, he just moved further North over the past 12 hours to get better wind and lost some VMG.

His boat speed has picked up again now he's turned back to the east and he's now matching Armel's VMG.
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They are both now in the same conditions albeit with AT slightly North so the next day or so should give an interesting and informative insight to their relative competitiveness.
 
Did Alex slow down last night to make repairs (or fit a spare foil :cool:) ? The secrecy from Alex and Armel is unbearable at the moment.
 
He didn't slow down. He changed course and lost c.4knts of VMG. HIs boat speed was ok. Plus he would still have been on port tack.
 
To be honest, structural failure and hitting stuff in the open ocean both seem quite unlikely to me… After all, the engineers know what they are doing right? And in that vast ocean, what is the chance to hit a teeny tiny floating object?

If you ask me, I think the most likely thing that has happened is that aliens visited AT and try to abduct him and perform scientific experiments on him. In his blind panic, AT ripped off his own foil with his bare hands and used it as a blade to fight off the extraterrestrial intruders. Stunned by this display of will power and strength, the aliens didn’t know what to do and decided that there would probably be easier test subjects to be found elsewhere on this weird planet. What they didn’t know was that during their stay on the big black boat, one of the landing lines of the UFO got wrapped around the rudder. So when they tried to fly away, the rudder got pulled up and the UFO got destabilised mid flight, causing it to crash into the ocean and sink into the depths.

So I think we should all be grateful for Alex’s heroic actions, saving humanity from the alien invasion. Quite possibly, humanity would have been wiped off the planet if AT hadn’t sacrificed his own foil to save us all!
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Andrew E said:
Strange theres no footage of the broken foil in that video? Some serious mind games going on here. :D I can see the French flying out a spotter plane to check on AT.
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The starboard foil tip is certainly missing. It would be visible if it was still there.
 
Andrew E said:
Strange theres no footage of the broken foil in that video? Some serious mind games going on here. :D I can see the French flying out a spotter plane to check on AT.
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Why strange? Ok, it's of some interest to see a jagged stub, I guess, but not important. What mind games? Are you suggesting he didn't break a foil, but pretended to for some reason? Why would he do that?
 
petehb said:
Looks like BP is almost within sight of HB 18.6 NM
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BP should overtake Alex by midnight...

I always thought that Alex went too down south, and that the distance was not very representative as he'd have to change his route. Still a shame that Alex has got an issue with his foil... He's a very good sailor, and I don't think that he pushed his boat too hard this time... Just bad luck. I am happy for Armel but feels like we've been cheated... that being said, it's not over yet.
 
petehb said:
Looks like BP is almost within sight of HB 18.6 NM
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he's caught up an incredible amount when sailing in the same weather system. HB track seems all over the place and he's supposed to be on his good side now. I'm getting a bit suspicious there might be a problem on HB. Next update should be interesting.
 
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I think Alex had no option but to get away from the ice limit as the wind was running out, and Armel was able to ride out the last of the low system to play catch up. Now that they are close, and both on foils, Alex is back up to 1-2 knots faster.

I have a feeling this is going to turn into a 2 month long match race!
 
I thought that the Southern Ocean of all places would be completely clear of debris, but now a second boat had collided with a UFO and is out. There is a long way to go down there so it is going to be interesting to see how many other boats have appendages damaged. It is not looking good. Personally I hope the foils get banned to me it is a bit like thew old days of F1 where the monied tems had turbos and the Tyrrells of this world did not.
 
Except now half the world drives a car with a turbo.

You cannot put you head in the sand - it might not be the way to go, but this is one way of finding out, and some of these guys (I assume knowing the risks) are willing to try it.

Jonathan
 
StormNorm said:
Why strange? Ok, it's of some interest to see a jagged stub, I guess, but not important. What mind games? Are you suggesting he didn't break a foil, but pretended to for some reason? Why would he do that?
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Not sure. I think I am reading too many of the rumours/conspiracies posted on other forums.
 
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