Filling loosening ride for VDH

French battle upwind into Southern Ocean depression

Day 38. Position at 1 p.m.: 55°48’S / 99°53’W
Wind 37 knots from WSW. Very rough seas.
Temperatures: day 9°C / night 6°C / sea 6°C
Distance covered in the last 24H: 159 miles. To the antemeridian:2,922 miles.
Lead over Monnet 6 days and 20h.

Hello

It was a tough night for Adrien. Another low-pressure area, which was deeper than the previous one passed over me last night with some fairly violent winds (40-45 knots) and above all some very rough seas.

I’m now on the other side of the front, and I’m taking advantage of it to edge up to the 50s. Gradually, my confidence is building, and the memory of losing my mast last time is disappearing as the miles go by. Not even reducing the sails as much as possible can stop Adrien from slamming down when the seas are heavy, unless I turn back!

The Nordic mast, that I check regularly doesn’t appear to be under any strain and is behaving correctly. The BSI stays don’t seem to be stretching in spite of the huge strain each time Adrien hits the waves.

In short, for the moment, everything is going well, but I’m keeping an eye open and am acting extremely cautiously.

See you tomorrow,

JL VDH

A day with Eloan Leissen’s cuddly toy, which has just arrived in this world.