A not so manic Monday during which stamina and focus will be tested

None of the ARKÉA ULTIM CHALLENGE-Brest skippers are close to their highest speeds this Monday morning. Whilst Éric Péron in fifth has been the fastest over 24 hours, race leader Charles Caudrelier takes some satisfaction from seeing his miles to the finish dropping steadily. This will be his last week at sea and he has less than 2000 miles to sail to the finish line in Brest. He is taking things cautiously And Armel Le Cléac'h, two rudders replaced, is back in business.

For Charles Caudrelier the passage back home becomes clearer hour by hour, minute by minute. Even if he has reported some damage that is compromising his top speed potential of his Maxi Edmond de Rothschild and he knows that he will soon have to deal with the passage of a big  depression which he might slow down for to avoid any final disasters, the leader continues his march northwards up the Atlantic, still making a useful 600 miles over 24 hours.

Caudrelier is methodical and experienced, he is driven and knows both the costs of and the joy and satisfaction of winning. Now it is all about steely focus to get to the line and avoiding any potential pitfalls.

A small anticyclonic ridge is in front of him but this monster low pressure coming from Greenland will sweep over the Bay of Biscay and Finistère in about three days time. He and his routing team will be working hard to find the best, safest solution. Meantime this Monday morning, Edmond de Rothschild was making some 23 knots, due north, in a northeast wind of around fifteen knots.

Some 2,300 miles behind, in second place again Thomas Coville is heading along the Brazilian coast at around twenty knots in a moderate trade wind. His daily averages have dropped a little: at 7 a.m. this morning, he had covered "only" 378 miles in the last 24 hours after being in light, fitful trade winds close to the coast.

But now he is heading into stronger airs Coville aims to pass the latitude of Recife in the next few hours before crossing a very large doldrums to his east. This is probably why he remains so close to the land.

Armel Le Cléac'h has resumed his climb home, in the same modest sailing conditions that Sodebo will have  encountered earlier. Now some 400 miles behind his nearest rival, the skipper of the Maxi Banque Populaire is doing all he can to close that gap progressively.

Now there are less than 800 miles for Anthony Marchand to sail to Cape Horn. He is well positioned now for a quite direct course to the Cape. The skipper of Actual Ultim 3 has repositioned himself at the front of a small depression and so he should be able to accelerate today. He now has Éric Péron  a little less than 500 miles behind. And Péron has been pushing, in fact making the highest 24 hours averages of the fleet at 633 miles. The two could be less than 24 hours apart at Cape Horn which would ensure the former Figaro class rivals might yet enjoy a spirited fight back in the Atlantic.