The conditions they are meeting are terrible, with all the boats under over 30kt of wind (TTP has 44kt) but the worst is still to come: they have a big storm ahead that blocks the access to the Horn and they have no choice except to dive in.
The conditions near the Horn will be slightly better in two days. when they arrive there, but still they will get 40k sustained winds gusting to over 50k. With the water near 0 degrees and spray flying all around these are incredibly hard conditions to sail aggravated by the boat design that allows tons of water to wash over the cockpit when sailing fast on these conditions.
These boats are very seaworthy and have a great stability but something has to be done on the design of the next boat to prevent water coming in the boat the way it does now, when they sail fast in waves. It is freezing water and that is not acceptable, increasing risks and creating unnecessarily fatigue due to weather exposure.
I am quite sure the designer of the new VOR, Guillaume Verdier, will have that into account. He was a large experience designing top solo racers for the Vendee Globe and circum-navigation record attempts where that situation has been solved long ago.
The race has been incredible and on these conditions they keep pushing with Team Brunel leading at a short distance from all others, except Scallywag, that is a bit far away, but at only 13nm. The next days, crossing that big storm will be decisive and if someone can get some advance passing the Horn it will be very difficult for the others to recover later.
I am quite sure the designer of the new VOR, Guillaume Verdier, will have that into account. He was a large experience designing top solo racers for the Vendee Globe and circum-navigation record attempts where that situation has been solved long ago.
Don't miss the next days on the VOR, they will be very hot for us, watching, and very cold and exhausting for those racing down there:
https://www.volvooceanrace.com/en/tracker.html
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