Vendée Globe, mental poker in the Brasilian calm

Pain and poker in the South Atlantic

On the 50th day of the tenth edition of the Vendée Globe Yannick Bestaven, the winner of the 2020-2021 race is trying to get used to the harsh reality that his race is over. He was this morning heading into Ushuaia where he will meet his technical team to effect the various repairs required to his Maître CoQ V above and beyond the broken steering system which has ultimately caused him to abandon. He still plans to sail solo back to Les Sables d’Olonne to, at least, complete the course out of the race.

The pain is all the more acute because he had already known the disappointment of abandoning his first race in 2008. After 2004’s victor Vincent Riou was forced out 2012, Bestaven is the second past winner to have had to abandon a race. 

Mental poker in the Brasilian calm

With the equivalent of a little more than an ‘old school’ Transatlantic race – that is to say a course from the days when the best known double handed race used to race to Brazil – the leading pair on the Vendée Globe are starting to feel like the end of the race is on the horizon, albeit a slightly distant one.

But, stuck together only five or six miles apart in a zone of light winds at some 600 miles SE of Rio de Janeiro, Yoann Richomme (PAPREC ARKÉA) the finish line in Les Sables d’Olonne probably feels like a lifetime away, especially as their respective computerised weather modelling is struggling to give them the best options to get back on track. 

And the mental game between these two long-time adversaries, who were team mates for two years between 2015 and 2016 and know each other’s strengths and weaknesses inside out, is simmering in the warmth of the Brasilian sun.

The next move could be key. It is mental poker. 

“There is no such thing as strategy when you have no wind and are not going anywhere.” Said Richomme pointedly with a smile, “Honestly, we go where the wind takes us. There’s no way to anticipate anything in terms of strategy. We take what we have and move forward as much as possible on the course. It’s impossible to build a strategy. We’re into long hours of torturing our brains probably losing our minds. Maybe one of us will be luckier than the other. It’s hard to assess how we’ll get out of this. Today, the gap between us seems minimal but it could prove crucial to succeeding in getting out of this situation. This story really isn’t easy!” ", said Richomme who knows the importance of keeping calm and continuing on his way, while accepting that he doesn't really have control over things. "We don't have winds that last long enough to invest. It's a bit random, but we knew that the South Atlantic would be a real game of poker."
Know your enemy He explains, “At the moment, the energy level is quite low but Charlie and I are used to managing these moments, that is to say the times when you have to be both focused on the boat and manage to keep living while banking a little rest, even if it is never easy", explained the double winner of the Solitaire in 2016 and 2019. 

Weather files do seem to suggest they will be into favourable conditions by Wednesday but it is worth remembering that this is the area where Yannick Bestaven saw a lead of 400 miles evaporate to nothing on the 2020-2021 race, only to be overtaken by none other than Dalin. And all the time Seb Simon is making gains in third place on Groupe Dubreuil. Though he, too, has slowed now he is just 250 miles behind the leaders. 

La Solitaire in the South Atlantic

Behind them in the South Atlantic conditions at the moment are relatively mild too and the peloton is very tightly grouped. Having worked his way up to fifth Paul Meilhat comments from Biotherm,

 "Being in the Atlantic is already a gift but what really feels good is above all the change of pace. Last night, the atmosphere was reminiscent of the Solitaire du Figaro in the English Channel, with a profusion of weed, these big brown algae. It was quite exhausting, especially since the wind was quite unstable along the coast. However, the colours were splendid, changing from dark green to light green, with shades of turquoise,” said the skipper of Biotherm who says he regrets not having been able to take the Lemaire Strait route like Sam Goodchild (VULNERABLE) did. He concedes“I think it was a good move but it wasn’t feasible for me with the timing of the current.”
PaulMeilhatBiotherm

Goodchild has pulled right back into the pack and was alongside Boris Herrmann (Malizia Seaexplorer) this morning, the Brit profiting from his move to pass west of Staten Island. He explained his strategy : 

I think it was easier for me with my timing to go this way. I was aware I wanted to go this way but I was not sure with the light winds forecast. And I am not sure how it will play out I was not sure if it would be one hour and a windshift or six hours of flapping around and in the end I maybe had half an hour of light winds which was perfect to get the J Zero back up and furled and then the wind came in and I was able to go through on one tack and not do any manoeuvres. I had a bit of wind and have gained, if that is Boris I can see to windward or Paul, then I have gained some miles. I have not lost anything. It is just a shame I went through in the middle of the night. I did not see anything a few silhouettes of land and that was it. I think the risk was fairly minimal and the objective was to catch back up to the others, and so it’s a success I guess.

SamGoodchildVULNERABLE