Golding takes lead

Powering south, a tight battle is going on in both monohull and multihull fleets reports James Boyd

Mike Golding and Marcus Hutchinson (right) have moved into the lead of the Transat Jacques Vabre's Open 60 fleet. Ecover has been taking a more westerly route than the rest of the monohull fleet and this morning Golding reported that they were sailing flat out at 22 knots and had broached twice. Previous leader Roland Jourdain's Sill Plein Fruit is in the middle of the course while Nick Moloney and Mark Turner are locked in a battle with Bernard Gallay on voila.fr to the east.

After failing to deliver the goods in the Vendee Globe this year former rugby star turned yacht broker Bernard Gallay is putting in a fine performace. The boat was formerly Christophe Auguin's formidable Sceta Calberson winner of the BOC Challenge, which Auguin also raced to victory in the Vendee Globe before last as Geodis. She is a Groupe Finot design of the generation before Mike Golding's Ecover, but was heavily modified and updated prior to the Vendee Globe. Gallay was originally Robin Knox-Johnston's crew on the 60ft catamaran British Airways and later raced with Marc Pajot in the America's Cup.

Early monohull leader Bernard Stamm's Bobst Group-Armor Lux suffered a major broach under spinnaker yesterday which the Swiss skipper reported took them one hour to sort out. Fellow countryman Dominique Wavre also suffered problems with his kite on board Temenos, when the sail dropped unexpectedly, fell in the water and became entangled around the keel. It took them two hours to sort out, but that sail was trashed and Wavre has requested the race committee if he can stop in Madeira to pick up a replacement. Such is life in an event where outside assistance is permitted.

Despite starting from Le Havre on Sunday lunchtime the trimarans are this morning already passing Cape Finisterre, the northwestern-most corner of Spain, forging south towards the equator in the Transat Jacques Vabre. There is some separation among the fleet with the tightly grouped leading trio of Loick Peyron's Fujifilm, Ellen and Alain on Foncia and Jean-Luc Nelias' new Belgacom out to the west and Jean le Cam on Bonduelle out to the east and early leader, Franck Cammas' Groupama (below) in between. Currently Bonduelle is leading. Today the nimble tris will overhaul the Open 60s.

The boat have been making good progress thanks to a high pressure ridge lying west-east across the course that has been moving south with the fleet. The front runners to the south have been experiencing good north easterly breeze of 15-20 knots, while those at the back of the fleet have north westerlies.