Think I picked up that the start line remains open for 10 days. So Charal can hopefully get the repairs done and re-start. Sounds like there is also some damage to the deck and runner.
Seems interesting that there is still a mix of new generation foilers, previous gen foilers and daggerboard boats at the front of the pack.

As I understand it you can return to the start within 10 days and receive team assistance for repairs and restart, once on the course no outside help. Presumably he’s hoping to get fixed and restart.

Edit- Owen was just ahead of me!

Ah that makes sense – he can get more help from team at the start than returning to a random nearest port.

Some grumbling above about the virtual race chat polluting this thread

Behold!

Virtual Vendee Globe 2020 Thread

Some grumbling above about the virtual race chat polluting this thread

Behold!

cheers!

Boris’ boat is sending us all the data.

https://exocet.cloud/grafana/d/bsbc_5MGz/malizia-public-dasboard?orgId=15&from=now-24h&to=now&theme=dark&kiosk

why are they measuring Water CO2 concentration? Just for environmental surveying?

Just for environmental surveying?

Probably – just because they can. Water temperature can be a biggy though as it can indicate when the boat has moved into/out of various ocean currents – but it’s also good environmental data to have.

Water temperature can be a biggy though as it can indicate when the boat has moved into/out of various ocean currents

yeah I get that. Maybe water with more dissolved CO2 is less dense ..so faster…or slower cos less lift for the foils 🙂

When they return to dock I presume that doesn’t restart their race run? Also you’d think they’d test, test and test again before setting off. Must be incredibly frustrating your boat breaking 2 days in. When they are sleeping does the boat just do what it wants. South Pacific sounds particularly horrific with every other ocean not far off.

Return to start does not reset time. He is now a week behind.

These boats are on autopilot a lot of the time and they have collision radar. They don’t detect underwater issues – the damage to Charal is supposed to be hitting discarded nets at high speed. Boats have lost keels before hitting containers etc. The radar does pick up ice though in Southern Ocean.

Charal has probably done more testing than any of the new boats as one of if not the first to be launched. At the speeds they go hitting a container, nets or possibly even a whale will do serious damage. Last race the previous Hugo Boss did half the course with only one foil. Current Hugo Boss hit something during her first race and damaged the keel rams and they had to cut it away and sail downwind to the Azores I think.
People have returned to restart before and still finished high up. Someone (mike Golding ?) even lost a mast early on and restarted.

These boats are on autopilot a lot of the time

There was a thing on the other day about the 3 British females and one of them was saying she sleeps for 30mins at a time

So Jean leCam sneaks into a temporary lead. I think we will see Alex gybe and scream into a much bigger lead than yesterday.

one of them was saying she sleeps for 30mins at a time

They all do….. For 3 months!

I was watching a piece and the general consensus is that the latest generation of foilers are close to what the human body can endure for long races.

Just watched one of the weekly round ups – a few hours off the start and all the skippers were talking over their emotions. Those on the daggerboard boats looked like they were out for a sail, the new boats looked racy. All their skippers looked pensive.

Then alex turned up sat inside his Tupperware box which was shaking and screeching all the time and he looked over the moon! It was great.

And he was talking about only taking 67 days food – winners edge right there. Maybe!!

Enjoyed it so far.

And he was talking about only taking 67 days food – winners edge right there. Maybe!!

I recon the 6 is upside down….

Previous edition was won in 74 days.. AT trying to psych out the competition or planning to chuck a mackerel line off the stern if over the 67 days. There was an interview over the weekend that another team is hoping to setoff this week on an attempt on the Jules Verne trophy. Foiling trimaran aiming to beat 40 days.

See Corum has lost her mast 🙁

Indeed, bad news for Corum and Nicholas.

LinkedOut looking fast, but it’s a long way to go yet.

Just saw a video update from alex – he looked tired to say the least. I guess he knows what he’s doing and how hard he has pushed in the past

He seems a bit more chipper now!

Alex still leading the pack – the southern ocean will be interesting!

In other news – I know I’m out of touch with what folk spend on clothes… but FFS!

Just looked at the Hugo Boss branded stuff – it’s £89 for the polo shirt the Alex is wearing in the promo shots. And £249 for the rollneck!

Not surprising given the boat probably cost about £4m!!

Aye, someone has to pay for pink paint. 😂

Amazing that le Can on an old boat is still in 4th.

Anyone know why Alex has dropped back?

Not really. There’s been quite a lot of upwind work so far and the foilers are not optimised for this.
Once they get slightly more breeze and a reaching course they should pull away more.

Other than the changing conditions (he didn’t have as good a run through the folding as Le Cam) there’s a thought that Alex has been “taking it easy”* and getting sleep before hitting the southern Ocean when it will all kick off!

Also the inside course is now looking a bit better than the (longer, but better wind angle) outside course Alex kinda had to take.
(Actually the inside hasn’t got better, the outside had got a bit worse)

*All relative!

I get the feeling from his recent videos that he isn’t too fussed, just wants to be in leading pack as the pass into Southern Ocean. Apparently his boat is pretty optimised for the down wind conditions of the Southern Ocean.

Thomson in trouble of the coast of Brazil with possible structural problems.
Bit vague in the press release but the last sentence doesn’t bode to well….

Alex T has slowed right down, I hope the structural issue is fixable, but a bit of epoxy glue won’t be much use out there. He went round last time with a broken foil, but a structural issue sounds like hull, keel or rig and you’d be mad to go into the Southern Ocean with problems like that. Fingers crossed for good news.

What’s interesting is that he was actually in pretty mild conditions, do it may have been a UFO (unidentified floating object).
He will have kit on board for some repairs but it’s a question of what’s damaged.

The hub indicates that the bow is 1.3 m underwater and that he is listing at 23deg. It also says he is currently doing 8 knots. Something odd going on. Poor chap, must be so gutting. Hope it can be fixed.

Longitudinal beam damaged it seems.
He’s got all the kit and directions he needs so will hopefully get it fixed.
Says he’s put the boat in a position to minimise movement so it sounds like he’s going to be reinforcing with carbon/epoxy {he’ll want the hull flex to be zero while the repair cures}.

Probably a good time to discover it as at least it can be repaired now which it may not be possible once in the southern ocean.

This is the risk you take going for a toilet with the added potential for damage caused by higher speed.

Toilet???!

Foiler!
😁

The hub indicates that the bow is 1.3 m underwater and that he is listing at 23deg.

Those are maximums within the last hour.
Tbh I don’t really get how they can measure negative on the bow height using ultrasonics (presumably facing down) on the bowsprit – but I assume that is not working as it’s not changed!

he appears to be pointing the right direction now at least, but still very slow. Fingers crossed he can fix it and get going safely again.

Bugger.

Anyone hazard a guess on the effectiveness of such a repair? I know nothing about these boats but avidly following race. I saw that the hull make have broken due to the hull slamming down as it was foiling. In which case a repair on this area will have to be at least as good as it was previously to continue??? Is this possible with a bit a glue and carbon sheet??

They have released a video of the damage. https://www.alexthomsonracing.com/the-hub/latest-videos/

Looks like she has broken her back, but they appear to have it in hand to repair her and continue racing.

Is this possible with a bit a glue and carbon sheet??

Possibly as that’s all there would have been there in the first place!

Looks like she has broken her back, but they appear to have it in hand to repair her and continue racing.

Plenty of loading going through there then – more than they designed for!!
Certainly looks fixable given he seems to have a lot of kit on board. End result will be very ugly but hopefully over-engineered and strong enough to see them to the end.

Having carbon C-plate and girder (I beam presumably) will be a massive help. Plenty to do though.

I’m very impressed at his positive attitude.

What a shame – clearly been taking a beating though.

I am wondering why carry so much repair material rather than put it into the structure already?