Day 3 Recap

KEY TAKEAWAYS

• All teams passed Cape Finisterre last night within less than three hours.

• The fleet, previously split into two groups (East and West), regrouped as they approached the Portuguese coast.

• After crossing a zone of light, unstable winds, all crews tried to catch the incoming northerly flow.

• The first to do so accelerated: Laure Galley - Kévin Bloch (DMG MORI Academy, in 1st place) and Maël Garnier - Catherine Hunt (Selencia - Cerfrance) were the fastest.

• A leading pack of eight skippers has formed, pulling slightly ahead of their pursuers by around ten nautical miles.

• The first finishers of this OC Sport Pen Duick-organized race are expected to arrive in Saint Barthélemy around May 7.

LITTLE UPDATES FROM ONBOARD

Everyone had been waiting for the moment they could hoist their spinnakers again—and when it came, they made the most of it. Corentin Horeau (Région Bretagne - CMB Océane) filmed it, and Quentin Vlamynck (Les Étoiles Filantes) even launched a drone to capture the moment.

“Spinnaker up and we’re flat out!” said Martin Le Pape.He caught the sunrise on video, as did Hugo Cardon (Humains en action) and Adrien Simon (FAUN), while Tiphaine Rideau (Banques Alimentaires) filmed the moonrise.

A bit later, Tiphaine and Pier-Paolo resumed repairs on their torn jib from the first night—a section had partially come unglued. On the food front, Maël Garnier and Catherine Hunt (Selencia - Cerfrance) savored a “little piece of Comté cheese” while filming nearby competitors.

The match remains tight, and the skippers’ words reflect it. Thomas de Dinechin (Almond for Pure Ocean) summed it up perfectly:

“I’ve already lost track of how many days we’ve been racing!”