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2010/02/04-07h51
Triple gybe
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| Jules Verne Trophy 2009 - 2010 |
| Groupama 3 got through the ridge of high pressure overnight, but she did have to put in three gybes to finally hit the Cape
Verdean tradewinds and switch onto a direct course towards the equator. With a lead of 140 miles over the reference time,
Franck Cammas and his men will be able to drop down towards Brazil on a single tack.
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After having traversed the low off the Canaries on Wednesday evening, the giant trimaran had another tricky section to
negotiate in the form of a transition zone prior to the tradewinds: indeed the NW'ly breeze clocked round to the N before
progressively veering round to the NE as it eased. The crew put in an initial gybe as night fell (1700 hours UTC), but it
wasn't sufficiently conclusive as the breeze dropped to around a dozen knots. A further manoeuvre was necessary at 1900 UTC
to hunt down 25° W and at midnight the tradewind system suddenly kicked in and began pumping out around fifteen knots of breeze:
Groupama 3 was finally able to pick her way southwards, whilst gaining sufficient ground to the West so as not to have to
get too close to the Cape Verde archipelago.
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Mini DoldrumsAs such Franck Cammas and his nine crew have had quite a lot on their plate overnight in order to extract themselves from
this tricky zone. However, this fourth day at sea should be quieter in a steady twenty knots or so of breeze on smoother seas.
Having lost a little time in relation to Orange 2's course, Groupama 3 will be able to stretch out her lead again today as
her predecessor didn't benefit from ideal conditions back in 2005. Bruno Peyron and his men had to battle through a series
of gybes to finally traverse the Cape Verde archipelago, which is something that the giant trimaran won't have to do...
Therefore
the crew will be able to recharge their batteries after this hectic night, as there won't be any changes in trajectory until
Brazil! The Doldrums is situated at around 4° North and Groupama 3 is on target to begin tackling it from Friday evening.
This tricky zone isn't forecast to be very active or very extensive, which would suggest an entry into the Southern hemisphere
at the end of six days at sea.
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