Recap of the 4th day !

RACE UPDATE

• Since Thursday morning, Martin Le Pape and Mathilde Géron (Demain) have taken the lead.

• After taking a more easterly route, Charlotte Yven and Hugo Dhallenne gybed back toward the leading pack in the west.

• The fleet is progressing westward toward Madeira with winds of 15 to 17 knots.

• Wind speeds are expected to increase later in the day (22 to 25 knots forecast).

• Lola Billy and Corentin Horeau (Région Bretagne - CMB Océane), who suffered rudder damage yesterday, stopped in Cascais for repairs and resumed racing around 4:00 p.m.

• Romain Bouillard and Irina Gracheva (Décrochons la lune), as well as Davy Beaudart and Julie Courtois (Hellowork), encountered a submarine yesterday afternoon.

ONBOARD UPDATES

Tiphaine Rideau and Pier-Paolo Dean (Banques Alimentaires) summed up the current mood well. Despite their smiles, they described a “terrible night” due to the waves and a “soaked boat.” “We’re at Gibraltar and the weather’s like Brittany,” exclaimed Pier-Paolo. “It’s still very damp,” added Maël Garnier (Selencia - Cerfrance).

“It’s not quite the trade winds we were expecting – it’s pretty grey,” said Arno Biston (Article.1). Even the sunrise was “stormy,” noted Romain Bouillard (Décrochons la lune). “We’re not in swimsuits just yet,” joked Mathilde Géron (Demain). A bit later, she explained that a whale “passed right in front of our bow.” Charlotte Yven (Skipper Macif) reported seeing turtles, as did Jules Ducelier and Sophie Faguet (Région Normandie), who also spotted “two pretty massive sunfish.”

Meanwhile, Quentin Vlamynck (Les Étoiles Filantes) sang “Sous les sunlights des tropiques”, while Aglaé Ribon aboard Almond for Pure Ocean enjoyed a proper English breakfast. But the discovery of the day goes to Romain Bouillard and Irina Gracheva, who encountered a submarine last night. “At first, we were really surprised,” said Irina, who was the first to spot it. “We thought, ‘What is that shape in the water?’ It looked like a whale but was much bigger!” Davy Beaudart and Julie Simon (Hellowork) later had the same encounter. Enough to spark curiosity not only among those at sea but also those following the race from land!