Slow boat to Cuba

Trophee BPE boats are wallowing off the coast of France

Positions at 0900GMT

Pos	Boat	DTF	DTL	VMG	Lat	Long	Spd	Crs	Spd	Crs	Spd	Dist
							Instant		4hr av		24 hr
1	BOSTIK	4183.3	0.0	4.4	47 05.04' N	3 54.54' W	4.5	259	2.5	259.0	3.0	72.3
2	CREDIT MARITIME-ZEROTWO	4185.0	1.7	4.4	47 09.54' N	3 53.40' W	4.4	253	2.4	278.0	2.9	70.7
3	BANQUE POPULAIRE	4187.3	4.0	2.3	47 09.06' N	3 48.00' W	5.3	259	2.2	268.0	2.8	67.2
4	AQUARELLE.COM	4189.7	6.4	3.0	47 09.84' N	3 46.44' W	3.1	271	2.2	267.0	2.7	66.0
5	LITTLE BLACK SHARK	4189.8	6.4	1.7	47 00.36' N	3 43.56' W	1.9	288	3.3	261.0	2.5	59.7
6	ENTREPRENDRE AU PAYS DE LORIENT	4189.9	6.5	1.4	47 02.64' N	3 44.10' W	3.3	317	3.3	265.0	2.7	65.8
7	SKANDIA	4190.0	6.7	2.8	47 09.54' N	3 45.84' W	2.9	273	2.0	271.0	2.6	63.0
8	CERCLE VERT	4190.7	7.4	1.2	47 08.94' N	3 41.82' W	1.2	270	1.9	269.0	2.5	60.6
9	TOTAL	4191.4	8.1	1.9	47 09.42' N	3 42.30' W	3.4	274	2.0	267.0	2.6	61.9
10	GEDIMAT	4194.2	10.8	3.0	47 13.80' N	3 38.64' W	4.4	254	2.0	276.0	2.5	60.0
11	ATAO AUDIO SYSTEM	4196.2	12.9	0.9	47 10.56' N	3 35.46' W	1.2	270	1.7	268.0	2.4	58.5
12	COUTOT ROEHRIG	4199.1	15.7	5.2	47 04.14' N	3 30.72' W	5.4	241	2.6	254.0	2.3	54.4

The singlehanded Figaro sailors are having a tough time in the first 24 hours of their singlehanded Trophee BPE transatlantic race from St Nazaire to Ceinfuegos, Cuba. As the wind satellite image below shows - there is precious little wind and as a result even race leader Charles Caudrelier, last year's Solitaire du Figaro winner, on Bostik has only made 72 miles since yesterday's start.

This morning Dominique Vittet on board ATAO Audio System reported seeing a maximum of four knots of wind overnight.

A high pressure system has formed some 550 miles to their west and at present the boats are waiting to pull through into the light northwesterlies associated with this system. The question is - what to do next? Although there is a promising band of northeasterlies on the southeast side of the high, the system is forecast to shift south over the next 24 hours, closing this particular door. The movement of the high will also allowing the reach of the low pressure currently to the north of Scotland to just extend over the fleet providing them with light headwinds in 36 hours time. Generally it is not the most favourable forecast the skippers would be hoping for... At present it is unclear which side of the course will pay. While the leader is likely to be first to find the new breeze - they are also likely to be the first to run out of breeze as the centre of the high rolls over the top of the fleet.

"In the middle of the night I got stuck in nothing," admits Sam Davies this morning. "I was with Cercle Verte and he just sailed off. It is spinnaker, genoa, tack, tack gybe and tacking everything on board, but it is the opposite way round - so everything is to leeward, every few minutes as the wind shifts around.

"I can see some horrible looking clouds in front of me which hopefully will signify the beginning of the shift and the change. At the moment it is easterly which wasn’t forecast at all. We are in some part of the old front and during the day it will shift round as we get into the cloud."