Charlotte Yven – Hugo Dhallenne (Skipper Macif): "Now, it’s all in the mind too!"

He checked in mid-morning, and you could hear the joy in his voice — Hugo Dhallenne is doing what he loves most: racing at sea. He's at the front of the fleet in the Transat Paprec and fully enjoying this adventure alongside Charlotte Yven. "I'm really lucky to be sailing with her," he says, highlighting the "teamwork on board." That chemistry is paying off, as shown on the race tracker: Skipper Macif is in the top three alongside Wings of the Ocean (Alexis Thomas and Pauline Courtois) and Cap St Barth (Cindy Brin and Thomas André). And they have no intention of backing down!

The pace has been intense for a while now... 

"Yes, it started well before La Palma. There was Cape Finisterre, Madeira, La Palma, then a front. Now we’re among the top three boats (with Wings of the Ocean and Cap St Barth), and it’s a real match race! From the inside, it's intense, no hiding it. There are shifts, weather routing, rest phases, teamwork... We’re going all in!"

With Wings of the Ocean and Cap St Barth, you’ve pulled slightly ahead of the fleet. Do you feel like you've gained an advantage?

 "Looking at the rankings, yes, we’ve taken a small lead that could get us on the podium. But nothing's guaranteed. There’s a light wind bubble ahead near the Caribbean. We’ll all hit it, and it’ll be a matter of finding the best way through. That’s what will determine the winner. South could mean light following winds, North is upwind, West could give beam reach... We have to pick our route carefully."

"We have an idea of the option we want to take"

It seems like everyone's trying to delay making that decision... 

"What makes it hard is that this bubble could change everything. If it moves north, the northern option becomes harder; if it stays put, the southern option doesn’t get any easier... Everyone’s waiting to see how it develops. We have an idea of the choice we want to make, but every time we receive a new weather file (every six hours), we run the whole scenario again to check if it still works."

Do you feel like the leading trio has a psychological edge now? 

"Having a 30-nautical mile lead (55 km) in Figaro is a big deal. But just one shift north or south and that gap can disappear in a few hours. So we keep our feet on the ground — nothing is decided yet. We’re sticking to our strategy, and we’re lucky that our boat is still at 100%. Since the start, we haven’t torn a single sail or needed the toolbox. Right now, we’re neck and neck with the other two — pedal to the metal. Now, it’s all in the mind too!"

"The better your teammate is, the better the race goes!"

Are you still having fun despite the intensity? "

Absolutely — we love this! We trained for it, we fought to be here, and I’m really happy to be doing it with Charlotte. I know that when I’m resting, the boat’s going full speed — and when I wake up, it still is. She gives everything, and she’s always smiling, upbeat. I’m really lucky to be racing with her."

You both seem so positive in your videos. How do you maintain that mindset? 

"When you’re sailing as a duo, you do your best to take care of the other person. Let them sleep a little longer if needed, make coffee, cook something... Helping each other out really lifts the team. The better your teammate is, the better the race goes!"

Charlotte prepared a playlist for you that you discovered at sea. What’s on it?

 "Oh, so much! (he laughs). There’s a lot of Johnny Hallyday — we’re heading to Saint-Barth after all! And then so many different tracks, it’s impossible to sum up!"