"At 05h35 UTC, I passed the longitude of the Cape of Good Hope. At the same time, I took out  my cold weather gear.  Since yesterday, it has been fine, but i has been very cold. Under shelter outside, it is 6°C, and 9°C down below.  It was a sign that it was time to get some warm clothes on, as it's only going to get colder.  I'm still sailing ESE – Gate 3, then the Kerguelen Islands.  Now I'm busy at the nav desk writing, doing some photos and listening to music, while looking forward to my Sunday lunch. Fish and rice!"
Norbert Sedlacek (Foncia)

 

Bernard Stamm (Cheminées Poujoulat) has just announced that he will be making a stopover in the Kerguelens.  He is in contact with his compatriot Dominique Wavre (Temenos II), who arrived yesterday, so that he can be guided  into the bay, when he arrives at around 14h or 15h this afternoon.

"The winds were forecast for 30/35/40 knots the highest in a few places. So in the previous night, when I got to the 3rd reef, and the boat was going really nicely downwind, I rolled the staysail, but didn't put up the storm jib. So when the wind went to 45/50/55 knots, downwind, with the mainsail out, and after trying every angle of sail to slow the boat from wild surges to 22 knots, to reach, to broad reach, nothing would slow the boat, and I didn't think that in 50 knots of wind the mainsail would come down going downwind, and without the storm jib, we didn't have an option to go upwind and then drop the main. So we tore along at breakneck speed, highest gust seen at 62 knots, with few options.  Anyway, finally, near the end of the huge blow, having been up and desperately worried for 24 hours, with 18 hours of this blow, I remembered the picture of Bernard Stamm going upwind with 3rd reef, trimmed in, I tried that, and the boat finally slowed, and started to beat the daylights out of itself a little less. A difficult day for the boat and me. When the wind started to diminish, we were still left with 20' seas from multiple directions. I decided to take a look a the weather map, and saw to my horror, since all concentration had been on that big low, that there was another one right behind it. The barograph has just started to descend now for the next one. During the night I sailed northeast, to make as sure as possible that I would be on the correct side of that low to have at least downwind or reaching conditions, thus the jog to the NE."
Rich Wilson (Great American III)in his daily message

 

"Hi, During the night, we had some wind, but it wasn't a surprise as forecast;40 knots.  Reached 45 knots as the front went over with the wind backing northerly.  So on my veranda I adapted the sail surface;3 reefs and staysail regularly surfing along at more than 23 knots.  At night manoeuvres out on deck are complicated; with gloves on you can't feel enough, but without them, you can't feel your fingers.  Will have some great memories.  That one is over and behind it there are strong winds and heavy seas. I'm leaving the Kerguelens to starboard with a  steady westerly flow, which will strengthen as a new low moves in on Sunday. Now time for a piece of hake and mushrooms and wheat with some soda water.  Shaving, cleaning and tidying up.  It's party time on Veranda."
Arnaud Boissières (Akena Vérandas)

 

Several of the skippers towards the rear of the fleet appeared to have encountered stronger winds than initially forecast yesterday.  Derek Hatfield (Algimouss - Spirit of Canada) wrote yesterday afternoon to say the worst was over, but that he still had nasty seas to contend with.  As for Rich Wilson (Great American III), the succinct nature of the message would appear to reveal just how stormy it was.

"The weather files said 30/35 knots, 40 in some place, we had 45-55 knots gusting 62, for 16 hours. Came through. Now we have another low lining up behind us. That's all for today."

 

Today, Roland Jourdain (Veolia Environnement) with his crickets covered the greatest distance towards the finish.  Currently in second place 43.6 miles from the leader, between 19h UTC  yesterday evening and this evening, he covered 439.1 miles.