Day five: Atlantic storm deals race fleet a cruel hand

Low wreaks havoc

Open 60 monohulls face three dismastings overnight as swift moving storm cell packs a real punch

Everything is clear in this animated image of weather off the west coast of Ireland. The leading multihulls escaped this storm's wrath by sailing around the top before things intensified, but leading monohull sailors were caught by surprise - especially fleet front-runner Yves Parlier. Note the puffy little clouds filling in from the west of the storm's frontal cloud band. They are squalls and you can bet you're bottom dollar there is a helluva lot of wind accompanying them.

June 8, day 5.

Leaders have sailed 900 miles with less than 1800 miles to go.

Whew! What a night .Yves Parlier (Aquitaine Innovations), Thomas Coville (Sodebo) and Eric Dumont (Univers de Services - EUROKA) each lost a mast after a seriously violent sea state proved too much for their light-weight rigs. Both Parlier and Coville sported wing masts, while Dumont had a classic rig. Behind the violence was a fast-moving low, with winds rotating anti-clockwise and backing - in the case of Parlier - from south-east to north-east to north then north-west.

Sure, the boats in the north got more wind than those in the south. Funny thing, though: It was all too much! Now those in the south appear to have an upper hand, as they ease sheets and reach off to the south west. In fact, the multihull fleet is already heading south-west, presumably to avoid the next frontal system, which at this stage appears big and powerful.

Yves Parlier, who yesterday was furthest north in the monohull fleet, described winds of 45 knots after building from 15 knots earlier in the day. The wind speed was not outrageous - don't forget, these guys are sailing to qualify for the up-coming Vendee Globe in November as much to win the Europe 1 New Man STAR.

However, last night's low pressure cell moved swiftly through the fleet, developing and intensifying. As a result, shifting winds created a bizarre and dangerous sea. While these Open 60 monohulls are built tough, their flat, skiff-like bottoms are designed primarily for down-wind sledding, not upwind slogging.

In the case of the multihulls, their position further east meant they were through the low before it had a chance to intensify. Yesterday Alain Gautier (aboard Foncia), contacted race headquarters at around 9 o’clock in the morning to say ' I am on the other side of the depression in a 15 knot North Westerly breeze reaching off. It’s just great…'

In fact, Gautier did a marvelous job of navigating around the top of the low, catching favourable winds and streaking away to the south, leaving Yvan Bourgnon (Bayer En France) - who sailed too far north - way back in sixth position. Interestingly, Marc Guillemot (Biscuits La Trinitaine), who yesterday was furthest south, sailed directly through the emerging low pressure cell, sacrificing distance slightly to Gautier, but not enough to lose sight of the leading position.

The next big challenge for the TRANSAT fleet is to navigate quickly through the ridge of high pressure to the west of last night's low and be prepared to meet a cold blast of arctic air which will accompany the next front. The storm creating this front was off Newport yesterday and is already east of Newfoundland today and is expected to hit fleet front-runners sometime tomorrow. Things are moving quickly across the Atlantic at the moment ...

This composite image, courtesy of Intellicast, shows the two storm systems in the north Atlantic right now. With the easterly blow behind them, the TRANSAT fleet can expect a cold blast from the north west with the next frontal system sometime tomorrow.

Race headquarters comments:

"By 2200 GMT on 7th June, the leaders of all Class One multihulls and monohulls were out of the area of strongest wind. The leaders in both fleets can look forward to a bit of break as far as wind strength goes, all though there is no let up in pressure for the Europe 1 New Man STAR. Although the race leaders are out of trouble, the other 5 classes, consisting of over 40 boats are still having to deal with this low pressure system, and can expect gale to storm force winds. Boats taking a northerly route are especially vulnerable, as the low drifts Northeast."

Ellen MacArthur aboard Kingfisher comments:

"WEDNESDAY NIGHT: POSITION 49 12 N; 17 59 W; 2250 MILES TO GO CONDITIONS : PRESSURE DROPPING FAST 17MB IN 12 HOURS, NEW DEPRESSION ARRIVING, 35 KNOTS OF WIND AND DIFFICULT SEA. NOT COMFORTABLE!

"I'm sailing with 3rd reef in the main and the small staysail, its been a
really wet and bumpy night. The pressure has been dropping really fast as we
near the next depression. But I'm really struggling to understand where the
centre is, and so have been heading just south of the direct route - that
looks like it was a mistake as the others have headed further to the north
and I've lost a few miles. Really annoyed with myself. Difficult to judge
where to be in two days time."

PRB and AQUITAINE have really pushed back to the north, with AQUITAINE 120 miles further north than KINGFISHER. It would seem that Ellen made a mistake by holding to the south instead of cracking off a touch for more speed to the north, but its complex as the position of the secondary low is not sure Certainly AQUITAINE seems to be heading far north to get above the next depression.

(editor's note: As we now know, north was a big boo-boo. Aquitaine is now heading for France and repairs while the other front-runners are sailing for Newport. The Atlantic takes its toll yet again!)

Ellen is now well in to the catnap rhythm, and you can see her sleep
patterns on the website of the first two days of hard racing. These have
been transmitted back to Dr Claudio Stampi who has done an analysis for us
to view."

More updates at www.kingfisherchallenges.com

UK met service forecast:

SHANNON: WESTERLY 6 (22-27knts) TO GALE 8 (34-40knts) DECREASING 4. (11-16knts). SHOWERS. GOOD.

Jean-Yves Bernot talks us through the next 24 hours:

"There’s not much in it – far North, and the boats there are hitting a calm patch above 50 degrees North; right in the centre, the fleet have been experiencing shifting winds for quite some time now ; further South, and the wind is right on the nose.
Tonight, the wind will increase to 30 knots from the NW and the sea will get choppy – the skippers will need to stay alert in this. The leaders in the multihull fleet will reach the Anticyclone in the North of the Azores, and have to negotiate the best path through those light winds.
The leaders will then encounter their second cold front, worse than the first, this Thursday, which is moving in from the North of New Foundland. They are already beginning to feel the West Atlantic climate off the American coastline."

Read our interview with Jean-Yves as he talks Atlantic tactics.

Race history:

We have a full archive of daily weather notes for the Europe 1 New Man single-handed trans-Atlantic race, beginning June 4, 2000, from Plymouth, England.


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