Vendee Globe - Go Tommo!

[Huntsman]

Anybody else following the Vendee Globe?

Alex Thomson, only UK sailor in it, having an epic battle with the Frenchman in the lead.

http://gis.ee/vg/

https://www.facebook.com/permalink.php?id=12495689...

[Simpo Two]

Bow chasers, that's what you need...

[ecsrobin]

Having briefly seen him whilst working on a yacht down in Gosport at the beginning of the year he'll get no support from me, a view it appears that all the yachtsmen and women that I know share. He also has a great track record for breaking things.

That aside I've just seen some great helicopter footage of him from a French helicopter and I'm currently doing the race on virtual regatta although an early crash into land and not knowing how the game works resulted in a day lost.

[Chris Stott]

The footage from the French naval helicopter was fantastic - 6*c air temp, 5*c sea temp, 25-30knts of breeze, 20-25knts of boat speed, and the keel half out of the water at times... a proper sleigh ride.

For anyone who's not seen it, here's the footage of Alex and Armel blasting along in the Southern Ocean..

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kw-e2k5Ddpo

AT regained the lead on the last report, but holding on to it will very much depend on how long he can stay on STBD and how big the seas are. With no STBD foil he's at a big disadvantage on port, but his boat is better in heavy seas.

[Huntsman]

Paddy_N_Murphy said:

and for the record - fk that ! that is some ploughing though the waves ! )

Quite! fk that!

He's got a 11 mile lead. Incredibly close racing after thousands of miles.

[madala]

.....some great footage there ....... jasus these guys have big gonads .......

[Steve_D]

Paddy_N_Murphy said:

Imagine what it must be like in the middle of the night, pitch black ? ?!!!

And each time it ploughs into a wave wondering if it is going to come up again.

Steve

[Steve_D]

How did he manage that. He was falling back hundreds of miles.

Steve

[ecsrobin]

Did anyone see the footage of the yacht with the cracked hull? Hit a submerged object at 20kts!!

Is anyone participating in the virtual regatta? I'm currently rounding Cape Horn and you can still participate if you're not playing.

[Huntsman]

150 miles behind. Its a remarkable race.

[Gandahar]

Huntsman said:

150 miles behind. Its a remarkable race.

Has to be the best fusion of a long term chess match v physical effort each day.

The highs and lows are meteorological and mental.

[ou sont les biscuits]

ecsrobin said:

Having briefly seen him whilst working on a yacht down in Gosport at the beginning of the year he'll get no support from me, a view it appears that all the yachtsmen and women that I know share. He also has a great track record for breaking things.

I've just come across this thread.

I first met Alex at the beginning of the noughties. I was doing JOG/RORC races at the time, and he was a good mate of the skipper on our boat - they had shared a house together when they were both younger and living in Gosport - anyway I knew him well enough to say hello at whichever bar I bumped into him at in and around the Solent. I also did a couple of delivery trips with him as skipper on the Farr 65's that he was operating out of Gosport at the time.

I always found him to be a good laugh, and there isn't anybody I'd rather be out at sea with in stty conditions.

Just my tuppence worth.

[mondeoman]

I got grounded on the Falklands after getting pissed on NYE, cost me 6 hours, and stuck in ice previously. In the top 100,000 though

[ecsrobin]

mondeoman said:

I got grounded on the Falklands after getting pissed on NYE, cost me 6 hours, and stuck in ice previously. In the top 100,000 though

I'm around 100,000 after sticking it on rocks on day one and not realising you had to do a 180 to get off them that cost a day. I was tempted to sail up falkland sound just because I could but decided against it.

I've been as high as 85,000 but their forecasting seems to be a bit hit and miss so can't sustain it.

[Ayahuasca]

Yep, been following on FB.

Epic.

Shame there isn't more coverage.

[Huntsman]

98 miles behind the leader...Go Tommo

[Flying Phil]

ecsrobin said:

mondeoman said:

I got grounded on the Falklands after getting pissed on NYE, cost me 6 hours, and stuck in ice previously. In the top 100,000 though

I'm around 100,000 after sticking it on rocks on day one and not realising you had to do a 180 to get off them that cost a day. I was tempted to sail up falkland sound just because I could but decided against it.

I've been as high as 85,000 but their forecasting seems to be a bit hit and miss so can't sustain it.

Not being an avid sail fan am I the only person who does not know what this means???
But well done Tommo!

[ou sont les biscuits]

Paddy_N_Murphy said:

Is there any 'mainstream' way to have this viewed on the Box ?
The coverage or media seems minimal don't we think ?

ETA - BBC 'sailing' page on the website seems a shower of ste and nothing news since the Sydney Hobart race...:

Edited by Paddy_N_Murphy on Sunday 8th January 22:53

There 's a column about the race in The Times today. The executive summary is that AT thinks he can still win although he's about a hundred miles behind, because it looks like the rest of the race will be on the starboard tack, and his boat is faster on that tack.

Good luck to him!

Edited by ou sont les biscuits on Monday 9th January 11:24

[ecsrobin]

Flying Phil said:

Not being an avid sail fan am I the only person who does not know what this means???
But well done Tommo!

It's online yacht racing. http://www.virtualregatta.com/en You follow real events and it shows the real yachts. I'm currently lying at 107,000th place which puts me in the vicinity of the 5th placed real world yacht.

[Flying Phil]

Thanks ecsrobin - I continue to live and learn