Black Friday for Maxime Sorel

 

"I can't go on, I'm abandoning this my second Vendée Globe" grimaced an emotional French Vendée Globe skipper Maxime Sorel early this Friday afternoon from Madeira.

The 38 year old skipper of V and B - Monbana – Mayenne, who scored a brave, accomplished 10th on the 2020-2021 race, completing the racing circumnavigation with a previously unloved, unlucky boat which since 2008 had never finished the Vendée Globe, is unfortunately the first skipper to abandon the tenth edition of the race. He has been forced out by a combination of a bad ankle injury and damage to his mainsail hook system and his mainsail car. He will head ashore in Madeira forthwith to have his ankle X-Rayed.

 

Goodchild still out front

And so while the leaders of the race are getting into light winds between the Canaries and the Cape Verde islands, British skipper Sam Goodchild (VULNERABLE) making the pace in first, Sorel’s race is over too soon. 

 

It is a desperately sad outcome for Sorel who is well used to pushing his limits. A qualified civil engineer, after he sailed to tenth on the ‘Everest of the Seas’ he went on to climb the actual highest peak in the world in 2023. But the only skipper to have conquered the two Everests has struggled since the start of this race, “The first night I had a gennaker problem, the second a mainsail problem, the third where I spent the night resolving things. The hook is broken, the mainsail track is jammed". 

 

But it is an injury to his ankle which makes the situation untenable. He reported, “The pain is constant, especially when I put my foot on a curved surface, and so I have a great difficulty moving around on board. That makes it all impossible to change sections of this mainsail track three metres long, it is a job only for a proper boatyard. I have given everything I could. But I can only let you imagine the mental and physical pain I am in right now. But I remain positive, despite this great frustration, I know that it will boost me for the future".

 

Weöres will bypass Madeira and go to Canaries 

Hungarian skipper Szabolcs Weöres has managed to make some progress removing most of his damaged A7 high wind kite from his forestay but he will not now stop at Madeira as the winds are still forecast to be too strong. Instead he plans to make his way steadily to the Canary Islands which are 250 miles to his south. He is still upwind in winds of 30kts today but reported to be in fair spirits and determined to fight on.

 

The leaders are not well into the band of light winds which separate them from the Cape Verde islands. Speeds are down to four of five knots at times with the lateral spread between the two VULNERABLE IMOCAs – Thomas Ruyant in the west and leader Sam Goodchild to the east – at around 100 nautical miles. 

 

JuJu on a charge in the night

The Brit Goodchild is hanging in there with a lead of around 10 nautical miles ahead of Sébastien Simon (Groupe Dubreuil) in second while Switzerland’s Justine Mettraux (TeamWork- Team Snef) has been between third and fourth all day, profiting from a fast drag race in the night alongside German skipper Boris Herrmann (Malizia-Seaexplorer). 

 

“We were are at 30 knots on a calm sea side by side with Boris we kept a bit of wind, it wasn't really planned like that but it's good for morale", reported the Swiss racer, “Yes, we have caught up but there such a a long way to go". Everyone has their own way of tackling the huge windless zone ahead. And the fleet is ever more compact. This morning there were ten sailors within 60 miles of the lead. Late this afternoon there are 15. Boats in the east are measured to have an advantage right now as the leaders reposition to the west. Italy’s Giancarlo Pedote is up to fourth or fifth tonight on Prysmian. 

 

The pain is constant, especially when I put my foot on a curved surface, and so I have a great difficulty moving around on board. That makes it all impossible to change sections of this mainsail track three metres long,

Compression lifts the morale for many

Many skippers have caught up miles from behind. The young, rising star of this race Violette Dorange (Devenir) is one of them. The 23 year old was on the French call this morning: “

I’m happy to be back, it’s good for morale,” said the youngest sailor in the race whose older daggerboard boat is up in among a few foilers. 

 

Meanwhile the oldest sailor, at 65, Jean Le Cam, has chosen a slightly different option from the others by getting closer to the Canaries, "He is trying to insist on an Easterly route, which is interesting even if he will also be faced with light wind," specifies Christian Dumard. 

 

Le Cam meanwhile believes it the calm will affect the western group. “The situation is not easy but in life, you have to dare, doubt must be part of the performance!"

 

I’m happy to be back, it’s good for morale

Small moments of  pleasure 

The Chinese skipper Jingkun Xu is clearly finally living his dream and can’t hide his pleasure at being at sea. "I try to enjoy everything every day makes me happy!" Other skippers shared fun moments, Le Cam, in a laughing mood, talks about Jean, the stuffed animal from the new French film “La Vallée des fous” that he brought along. “She talks to me, she says ‘did you eat well?’ ‘Oh yes, I ate well,’” he confides, laughing. And then there is a a piece of clafoutis ( a cherry based dessert) “prepared by my mum” for Thomas Ruyant (VULNERABLE), a grapefruit for Tanguy Le Turquais (Lazare), a flying fish seen by Louis Burton (Bureau Vallée) or even a sunrise immortalized by Éric Bellion (STAND AS ONE). These are small moments of joy to find a smile again, which us hard when one of their own has had to give up his adventure so early in the race.

 

IImage: VandB - Monbana - Mayenne skipper Maxime Sorel (FRA) © Gautier Lebec