7th day recap

RACE UPDATE

• The fleet passed the La Palma waypoint last night, sailing northwest of the island.

• Demain (Martin Le Pape and Mathilde Géron) led the way at 1:55 a.m., followed by Skipper Macif (Charlotte Yven and Hugo Dhallenne) and Wings of the Ocean (Alexis Thomas and Pauline Courtois).

• Now, all boats have begun their long westward Atlantic crossing, staying close to the direct route. On Sunday afternoon, conditions were very mild, with winds between 14 and 15 knots.

• As of the 5:00 p.m. ranking, Wings of the Ocean (Alexis Thomas and Pauline Courtois) was leading, with just 16 nautical miles separating the top nine boats.

• Arno Biston and Vittoria Ripa Di Meana (Article1) decided to make a technical stopover on the island of Tenerife after their second spinnaker tore during the night.

NEWS FROM THE FLEET

"We really struggled at La Palma," said Martin Le Pape (Demain). Together with Mathilde Géron, they experienced a "small tear on the spinnaker," and they’re not the only ones facing technical issues.Arno Biston and Vittoria Ripa Di Meana (Article1) had their spinnaker rip, forcing them to stop in Tenerife. Pier-Paolo Dean and Tiphaine Rideau (Banques Alimentaires) "hit something underwater that impacted the keel."Now, all boats are charging westward. "Goodbye La Palma, next land in sight: Saint Barth!" say Thomas de Dinechin and Aglaé Ribon (Almond for Pure Ocean).

On Wings of the Ocean, Alexis Thomas celebrated Pauline Courtois' birthday. One of her gifts was "soap sheets.""For the first time, we're going to smell good," joked Alexis, laughing.Anaëlle Pattusch (Humains en Action) enjoyed her first shower: "We’re taking the opportunity to dry our clothes, the boat, and ourselves," the Swiss sailor said playfully.Aboard FAUN, Adrien Simon and Chloé Le Bars spotted their first patches of sargassum during the race."We already have sargassum everywhere," also noted Estelle Greck (Région Bretagne CMB Espoir).

Elsewhere, Charlotte Yven (Skipper Macif) posed with a flying fish, while another landed on the deck of Région Normandie.Lola Billy (Région Bretagne CMB-Océane) found a small squid.Finally, Romain Bouillard (Décrochons la Lune) took the time to film dolphins playing around his boat.