Rich is smiling from his cockpit and able to see the first boat come alongside.  Currently under staysail with double reefed main.  He is currently sailing at about ten knots towards the finish.  3.5 miles from the line.  Approaching directly from the west he can see the whole of Les Sables ahead of him.  The first 3 or 4 boats are approaching him and the first stars and stripes are being raised. 

Conditions are pretty grim out on the water.  The media boats are just heading out to meet Rich Wilson.  The conditions are in fact similar to those experienced at the start, although the temperature is a few degrees higher. 

The weather is dull and overcast with light rain.  The wind is 18-20 knots and the seas are short and rather unpleasant this morning off Les Sables. Rich is currently 8 or 9 miles from the finish

"I just passed a container ship just 300 metres away. The AIS showed it was there and the alarm was triggered, but the distances are not being calculated. All of the plugs are rusty, so I think there's a loose contact. But the main thing is the alarm is working. At 7h30 this morning I was just 5 nautical miles from Corvo, the northwestern island in the Azores. I was able to see the sun rise over this final waypoint in the Vendée Globe. A great feeling because of the decent weather. I'm gliding along at high speed towards the finish and the only problem I have is the low-charge alarm which keeps ringing as my batteries don't seem to be able to charge properly. Apart from that I'm in finishing mode."

Norbert Sedlacek (Nauticsport-Kapsch) in his daily message yesterday evening

We have now fixed the computer problem about rankings. There is still a problem about the map that our technicians are trying to fix. Rich Wilson was at 65 milles of finish at 4h GMT this morning.

- Raphaël Dinelli / Fondation Océan Vital: the 14th of March
- Nauticsport-Kapsch: the 15th or 16th of March