Nicolas Lunven sets new 24-hour distance record in the IMOCA Class as he storms back into contention
by Ed Gorman / IMOCA Globe Series 14 Nov 06:06 NZDT
13 November 2024
Nicolas Lunven breaks the record on 13th November 2024 during the 10th Vendée Globe © Julien Champolion - polaRYSE / Holcim-PRB
Nico Lunven, the skipper of Holcim-PRB, has come storming back into the top-5 on the third day of the Vendée Globe after taking a lone option west of Finisterre.
The 41-year-old Frenchman headed 230 nautical miles west-northwest of Finisterre in search of lighter breeze and a safer passage while his rivals headed down the Spanish coast.
It was a radical option that dropped him to 39th place out of 40. But despite a serious issue with his steering that saw him stop the boat for several hours, he is now back up to fifth position and travelling at record-breaking pace.
In the last 24 hours Holcim-PRB has covered an incredible 546.6 nautical miles, or 1,012.3 km, to smash the existing IMOCA 24-hour distance record of 540 miles set by Thomas Ruyant during the Retour à la Base race in December last year.
This morning Lunven overtook Ruyant on Vulnerable and Louis Burton on Bureau Vallée and was just four miles behind Jérémie Beyou on Charal in fourth place, but was travelling more than seven knots faster.
The leader was Yoann Richomme (Paprec Arkéa), who was 13 miles ahead of Charlie Dalin (Macif Santé Prévoyance) in second place, with Sam Goodchild (Vulnerable) - who had earlier led down the Portuguese coast - in third place, another 10 miles back.
The top-10 now also includes the German skipper Boris Herrmann on Malizia Seaexplorer (+76), who has come back from an indifferent start and after dealing with an auto-pilot issue in the very first few hours of the race.
Earlier, Lunven gave the IMOCA Class a detailed account of the potentially serious steering issue he had on board on the second night of the race. He revealed that he had to stop his boat for "two to three hours" with the sails furled while he fixed the problem. This required him to climb onto the stern at night in rough sea conditions.
"A line got caught under the starboard rudder tiller, which dislodged it from its housing, almost tearing it off," Lunven told the Class. "I noticed it pretty quickly because the boat became almost impossible to steer. This even caused a bit of a broach.
This is Justine Mettraux's first Vendée Globe and she is enjoying herself so far. "The first two days have been pretty good," she said. "After the start I tried to find a good balance between safety and placing well at Finisterre because we knew it was going to be windy there. But I'm really happy with where I am at the moment."
Mettraux said she had coped well with the sudden and complete contrast between the noise and crowds of Les Sables d'Olonne and saying goodbye to her loved ones, and the solitude of her boat with a round-the-world voyage ahead of her.
"There was no big shock about being alone. It's what we have been aiming for in a way for a long time," she explained. "For me, I try to think about the start of this Vendée Globe as just like another race and not to get too emotional. And I think it helped me just to focus and enjoy the moment on the way out of Les Sables harbour and then get into the race."
The skipper who grew up sailing on Lake Geneva, said she admired Lunven for taking his own option at Finisterre and she has been watching his progress closely to see how it pays off. "It's good to see people not afraid to take big options at the start of the Vendée Globe and be confident to do that - I respect Nico for that," she said.
It is interesting that Lunven seemed mainly concerned about safety when he decided to split with the fleet, though undoubtedly he saw more breeze offshore as well. "I really didn't want to take any risks and I found that the internal passage of the TSS was a bit too risky at night with all the manoeuvres, wind, coastal traffic and cargo ships. I opted for a safer, albeit slightly losing route," he said.
Among the other boats, Britain's Sam Davies on Initiatives-Coeur, who has not had the best start to her fourth Vendée Globe and is now in 19th position, reported having something on her keel which slowed her boat. Clarisse Crémer, meanwhile on L'Occitane En Provence, the former Apivia, has lost her big gennekar which could be a major setback in such a long race. She is currently in 31st place.
The New Zealand/American skipper Conrad Colman, who is leading the daggerboard fleet in 14th position on MS Amlin, has dealt with an electronics blackout, and Maxime Sorel on V And B-Monbana Mayenne - in 18th position - has suffered a twisted ankle and has had to patch a tear in his gennaker.
Weatherwise, the name of the game is getting south and west at the moment, as the leaders look to avoid light winds and headwinds off the coast of Africa.
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