Vendée Globe 2016-2017

LePacha said:
So that's this bit sorted then - impossible to change the foil. I hope we'll see pictures when he arrives.

Was listening to the "vacations" of this morning. Alex seems completely exhausted. Issues with his automated pilots in wind mode. Hasn't slept apparently much (if at all) over the past three days and he said he was out of options.
Just hope he will be careful. Very impressed by his performance.
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Amazing, he's consistently getting a bit more VMG the AL, whether there's enough distance to go though...
 
tudorsailor said:
Why did they go so very far north before turning to head to the finish? Was it simply lack of wind

TudorSailor
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These boats are designed to sail fast at quite specific wind angles. They've sailed north so as to maintain reaching conditions and high speeds. They're not nearly so fast beating, and their computers would have told them the course they've taken is optimum.
 
According to the website there is 34.75 nm between first and second at 14.00 UTC and about 300 nm to go.

A dead heat really.
 
During the vacation, Banque Populaire VIII team said that the distances were wrong and that it was closer to 60NM. Not sure if true as I cannot believe that the VG website would be so far off.
 
During the interview today Alex sounded completely exhausted. Once he gets his anemometer working he plans to get some sleep. Lets hope that it isn't so deep a sleep that he runs up a beach on St. Marys!
 
LePacha said:
During the vacation, Banque Populaire VIII team said that the distances were wrong and that it was closer to 60NM. Not sure if true as I cannot believe that the VG website would be so far off.
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If Armel were to tack now, and Alex continue until their tracks cross, the distance between them would be about 55-60nm. You may want to consider that Armel has overstood the line to give himself a better, and faster, angle to the finish. The fact is that either of them could tack now and lay the finish, and the difference in distance to finish is around 35nm, but the better angle results in higher speeds. Armel still has the advantage, and will most likely only lose this if he hits something, snags a lobster pot, or breaks something.
 
LePacha said:
During the vacation, Banque Populaire VIII team said that the distances were wrong and that it was closer to 60NM. Not sure if true as I cannot believe that the VG website would be so far off.
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It's 34 miles if both boats were to point straight at the finish. I.e BP is about 34 miles closer to the finish by the shortest route. However, neither boat is expected to do that, and in fact Alex is expected to pretty much follow Armel's line. If you go to the tracker and measure the distance between the boats I have it at 56 miles. So in reality Alex is 56 miles back.

Alex has sailed extremely well to be so close with a damaged boat, but sadly I don't see him getting past now.
 
flaming said:
It's 34 miles if both boats were to point straight at the finish. I.e BP is about 34 miles closer to the finish by the shortest route. However, neither boat is expected to do that, and in fact Alex is expected to pretty much follow Armel's line. If you go to the tracker and measure the distance between the boats I have it at 56 miles. So in reality Alex is 56 miles back.
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What an odd way of measuring the distance between the boats. A more logical way would be find the boat nearest the finish point then measure from that.

Their rules, their race.

Given the number of miles sailed still a dead heat.
 
flaming said:
It's 34 miles if both boats were to point straight at the finish. I.e BP is about 34 miles closer to the finish by the shortest route. However, neither boat is expected to do that, and in fact Alex is expected to pretty much follow Armel's line. If you go to the tracker and measure the distance between the boats I have it at 56 miles. So in reality Alex is 56 miles back.


Alex has sailed extremely well to be so close with a damaged boat, but sadly I don't see him getting past now.
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looking at that gis.ee site why dont they turn now? Wind now and in two hours looks favourable?
 
skipper_stu said:
looking at that gis.ee site why dont they turn now? Wind now and in two hours looks favourable?
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I think there is a good chance both of them tacked 5 minutes after the 1400 tracker update. Looking at it, I think I would if I was Alex as just following now is not going to win him the race, and at this point he is not a risk from 3rd.
He'd still have to hope for some strange winds to slow Armel though.
 
Sandy said:
What an odd way of measuring the distance between the boats. A more logical way would be find the boat nearest the finish point then measure from that.

Their rules, their race.

Given the number of miles sailed still a dead heat.
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Only in this circumstance. Imagine if they had split and Armel was coming in from the north and Alex coming up from the South. Only DTF would make any sense.
 
Armel has just turned onto 160 and Alex continues heading NE at out 4.5 knots, he gained about a mile in the last report and is now 33.3 miles behind. He did sound absolutely bolloxed in the phone interview with Vendee TV.
 
Would do if my boat wasn't ashore in Southampton with a mast in a rack in Hamble :(

Really hope when they bring HB back to UK it is not mid-week so that I can at least drive down to Gosport
 
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