Elies completes podium

An update from the Artemis Transat

Greeted by race winner Loick Peyron, second-placed Armel Le Cléac'h and Gitana Eighty's 'passenger' Vincent Riou, Yann Elies was radiant when his boat came to a stop alongside Rowes Wharf at the Boston Harbor Hotel. Happy, but also relieved, the Breton skipper could finally celebrate, after having spent the last 36 hours at sea wondering whether Generali's mast would make to the line.

"We told Yann to stick to two reefs in the main and the staysail," said Erwan Steff, Project Manager for the Generali Open 60 - painstakingly slow, but better than seeing the mast bid farewell to its verticality. Yesterday during a routine inspection, damage to one of the top spreaders was discovered and if this has deteriorated further might have resulted in the dismasting of the boat had Elies kept sailing at full speed.

Fortunately, Elies' third place was not at risk, but to add insult to injury, the wind completely died 15 miles short of the finish line. Doing less than 1 knot of boat speed at 22:00 local time (02:00 GMT), finally the wind returned only marginally - less than 5 knots - but right on the nose. Her skipper's relief was visible when Generali crossed the finish line finally at 04:00:22 GMT (0:00:22 local time).

"I really wanted that third place, I felt it was mine, a result like that on such a mythical event is something!" commented Elies on his arrival. "That's why I've been stressed since I discovered my spreader problem, I spent the last day and a half worrying about a possible loss of the mast. Moreover, the wind died completely tonight when I was approaching the line, and it took me ages to get here, it felt like a typical windless Figaro finish!

"The best moment in the race will remain that incredible battle between me and Vincent Riou under full main and big spinnaker in 30 knots of wind - I didn't think it was possible to carry that kind of sail in such a strong breeze, it was very exciting but at first quite scary, I have to admit that. I also loved reaching at full speed the first night things got rough, because that's what the boat has been designed for, and I'm particularly at ease in those conditions: you only have to hang in there, listen to the boat and be careful, and let the power speak out.

"Of course the worst part was discovering the spreader problem, I really thought I was going to dismast at first. My technical team told me I had to take two reefs in and use the staysail, which was quite frustrating in 10 knots of wind... I tried to convince them to let me use a bit more, but there was just no way! There was no real direct pressure behind me, but still when I got parked I couldn't refrain from wondering where my pursuer was. All in all, the great thing is that we see that the potential of the boat is very satisfactory, we can play on equal terms with the opposition in light airs and we're very fast when the breeze is stong. Tonight, I'm just happy, it's as simple as that"

With 10 Figaro seasons under his belt, twice crowned French Offshore Singlehanded champion, plus two Jules Verne Trophy records with Bruno Peyron on his Orange maxi-catamarans, Elies moved on to his own Open 60 campaign last year. Happy when the going gets tough, the young Breton sailor is a speed addict and proved it once more during the Artemis Transat when he sailed the largest 24-hour run, covering 376 miles.

Elies briefly took the lead on the morning of day 3, during a rough downwind night - Generali's certainly shows potential in wet, wild and windy conditions. Unfortunately his northern option two days later proved costly.

At present the remaining IMOCA fleet are struggling in light airs but stronger winds are forecast for the approach to Boston... Marc Guillemot on Safran commented: "the sea is like a lake with no mountains! I am getting low on fuel, so not using my heater and it is freezing. I hope to arrive in Boston tonight".

Dee Caffari on Aviva reported "I just had 24hrs of hell - in no wind and freezing fog, I feel like if I touch anything my hand will stick to it! I don't want to use my heater because if I get too warm and cosy I will fall asleep. No wind now but forecast for 30 knots SW on approach to Boston..." Reluctant to tempt fate and specify her ETA, Dee speculated that it won't be until Tuesday before she sees Boston.

On board Roxy, Sam Davies has a bit more boat speed and is desperately trying to hold onto her fifth place ahead of the chasing Yannick Bestaven on Cervin ENR: "We're doing 7 knots which is better than before, we will probably have a bit more wind today then another calm patch tonight, then I'm anticipating 30 knots upwind for the finish... I am not physically too tired, although I have only slept about four times and only for 10 minutes, but mentally this is exhausting."


IMOCA FLEET ARRIVAL TIME AND DATE / ELAPSED TIME
1- Gitana Eighty (Loick Peyron) 03:15:35 GMT 24.5.08 / 12d 11h 45m 35s
2- Brit Air (Armel Le Cleac'h) 08:28:40 GMT 24.5.08 / 12d 19h 28m 40s
3- Generali (Yann Elies) 04:00:22 GMT 25/05/08 / 13d 15h 00m 22s


Meanwhile in the Class 40's Saturday saw race leader, Giovanni Soldini on Telecom Italia sail into an area of light breeze, after his massive breakaway following his crossing of the ice gate. Soldini clawed west to fight through the windless zone, but his speeds were down to a 4.3 knot average as Thierry Bouchard with Mistral Loisirs - Pole Sante ELIOR in second and Boris Herrmann on Beluga Racer in third kept the breeze further south and ate into the Italian's lead.

By late afternoon, Telecom Italia had found some breeze and was back on the pace, although his margin over the chasing pair had shrunk to 94 miles as the position blackout descended last night. Three days ago, Soldini predicted that the racing after the ice gate would be very tough and this prophecy is becoming a stark reality for the 10 Class40 boats still racing.

During Saturday, Thierry Bouchard and Boris Herrmann ceased their shadow sailing and split. Herrmann took Beluga Racer north after the ice gate, up towards Soldini's territory, while Bouchard made a fast, shallow climb up the face of the North Atlantic overnight and into Sunday. At dawn, Herrmann and Beluga Racer were trailing Mistral Loisirs - Pole Sante ELIOR by 14 miles and the northern option was beginning to look bleak, although the German skipper disagreed when he spoke to the race office shortly before the 1000GMT position poll this morning: "I think it'll pay-off in a couple of hours, or maybe it has paid-off already," he said confidently. As the position poll downloaded, it became evident that Herrmann's gamble had put Beluga Racer into profit, leading Mistral Loisirs - Pole Sante ELIOR by 11 miles as Bouchard's speed average plummeted to 2.6 knots.

Contacted just after the poll had arrived, Thierry Bouchard had to face the music: "I chose the southern option to avoid the light wind zone in the north," he explained, "and it worked well last night." The French skipper does not exaggerate as he averaged 5.7 knots at dawn compared to Soldini's 4.2 knots and Herrmann's 2.5 knots in the north. "But now, things are against me."

While the competition for second place remains tight, both Mistral Loisirs - Pole Sante ELIOR and Beluga Racer are in peak condition after the heavy winds. Asked whether the damage sustained by Yvan Noblet on Appart' City had triggered concern for his own boat, Bouchard brushed the question aside: "The boat is great," he confirmed, "but I'm getting tired and the stress is building with this tight racing."

Beluga Racer has also escaped unscathed: "I'm feeling fresh and the boat is good," Herrmann confirmed, "although I haven't had time to dry and clean the interior." There is likely to quite a lot of housework for Herrmann: "One of the lee-cloths broke and all the gear stowed to windward inside the boat fell down from the high side and I still have a big mess..maybe I should do some stitching as well." At 1200GMT, Herrmann held a 16 mile lead over Bouchard.

Today, Miranda Merron on 40 Degrees also reported domestic issues: "I spent a couple of hours inspecting the boat for damage after its battering," she wrote this morning. "I didn't find anything major, and some semblance of order has been restored. One of the rubbish bags exploded in the heavy weather, but fortunately there isn't anything too revolting in it."

However, this afternoon, 40 Degrees is 10 miles ahead of Fujifilm and Merron's concerns are focussed on Bennett's green Class40: "Two weeks since the start, and 'Fuji' is only a handful of miles behind! Must sleep and eat more." To add to the fatigue and endurance factor, the immediate future will be tactically demanding: "The weather ahead is looking challenging," Merron predicts. "There is a new low forming right now in the path of the fleet, and so it will be light and fickle trying to get through to the other side, and probably a few nasty surprises under some clouds." The options for the tightly packed fleet also seem to be limited: "There appears to be no way round it," she continues. "So it will be interesting to see who comes out best."

Last night, Fujifilm was hitting 18 knots boat speed: "I've managed to carry the breeze all night, although it's down to around 9 knots now," said Bennett this morning. Before passing through the ice gate, the headsail furler on Fujifilm disintegrated and although he salvaged the genoa, Bennett is unable to use his main, upwind foresail. Sailing at a TWA of 80°, Fujifilm has flown a Code 0 sail since yesterday afternoon: "I've got to keep sailing fast without going into the genoa range," explains Bennett, although repairs are already scheduled on board Fujifilm: "It's lucky that the broken piece of furler stuck up at the top of the mast has worked it's way down to deck level on the halyard without any help from me, so I don't have to go up the rig," reports a highly relieved Bennett. "As soon as the breeze goes light, I'll get busy making the genoa work again."

Shortly before the fleet arrived at the ice gate, there were two distinct schools of thought concerning the remainder of the race. One line of thought, proposed by Boris Herrmann, suggested that whoever reached the gate first (i.e. Soldini) would disappear over the horizon. The reverse opinion, championed by Alex Bennett, proposed a tight fight all the way to the finish line.

This morning, Herrmann admitted, cautiously, that he may have made a mistake: "I thought about it afterwards and in the area of the ice gate it was 'rich-get-richer'," he said earlier. "We had to beat slowly to the ice gate and Soldini could veer off and go away. So, he gained many miles and I thought it would remain like this with him flying away and we would never see him again. But, maybe, Alex Bennett was right and we will all close-up and Miranda and the others will get closer too."