The leading pack in The Ocean Race Atlantic has hit serious pace, the top boat touching close to 30 knots as the fleet counts down the final 500 nautical miles into Lorient.
Kojiro Shiraishi's DMG MORI Global One held the lead this morning, riding flat water to the north of a high pressure system sliding south-east. It's a position the Japanese entry has held for days, after making an early call to sit furthest south in the leading group. That call is paying off now, giving them the optimum wind angle for rapid progress straight towards Lorient.
At 1200 UTC / 1400 CEST, DMG MORI Global One was 10 nm clear of Francesca Clapcich's 11th Hour Racing. Paul Meilhat's United by the Ocean sat third, a further 13 nm back. Boris Herrmann's Team Malizia was fourth and furthest north of the group, 35 nm off the pace.
Despite leading an inaugural transatlantic race, nobody on the front boat looked particularly stressed.
"All is good on board," said a smiling Samantha Davies. "We have less than 500 miles to go and we are sending it fast with the J0. We have been doing that all night and it's fun. It's fun and it's fast and what is good is that we are still in the lead. But it is really really close, so we are going to have to push really hard, and that is what we are doing right now."
Aboard United by the Ocean the mood was similarly upbeat. The crew of four had been taking turns to steer through the day, finally getting some fresh air on deck after several days pinned below by the sea state.
"Now it's windier and no more waves, so champagne conditions," said Portuguese co-skipper Mariana Lobato. "Everyone has been helming and it was nice to be able to see all the modes. In these conditions I think we can do better than the pilot because we can find the balance, anticipate and make sure we don't lose our apparent wind. As a sailor I am enjoying the day, the moment, the life. It's beautiful, the sky, the horizon, I feel free, liberty, and it is amazing to be on the ocean enjoying this privilege to be here."
The top four remain tightly grouped, but for now the crews are chasing speed rather than plotting moves against each other.
"It is not a control race, right now," said United by the Ocean skipper Paul Meilhat. "It's about taking the best angle to the finish line."
His teammate Benjamin Ferré put it plainly too.
"Four boats can still win this race, with four different strategies," he said.
Lighter winds are forecast closer to the French coast, which should slow the leaders and could bunch the top four together again before the finish. Latest predictions have the first boats arriving somewhere between 1200 UTC / 1400 CEST and 1800 UTC / 2000 CEST tomorrow, Thursday September 10, with the race for Lorient still very much open.
