Globe40 fleet head to Tahiti

Auckland, New Zealand (October 29, 2022) – The fourth leg of the 8-stage GLOBE40 set sail today for the five doublehanded Class40 teams, stretching some 2,300 miles toward Tahiti.

With Bora Bora as the only course mark to the finish at Papeete, the fleet had a windy start across the Hauraki Gulf but will quickly have to make a series of tactical choices with a zone of light breeze to the east of the course.

“The five competitors will take the start in a sustained N’ly breeze, at the edge of a vast anticyclone, which will be virtually stationary over the coming days to the east of New Zealand,” explained weather consultant Christian Dumard.

“For the skippers, the name of the game will be to close on the center of this anticyclone so they can switch onto starboard tack and set a course for Bora Bora in a wind set to shift round to the south-east.

“The closer the competitors get to the center of the anticyclone, the quicker they’ll latch onto the fresh breeze as it shifts from north to south-east. Conversely, they’re at risk of stumbling into a zone of very light winds if they get too close to the center.

“As such, they’ll have to play a very tactful hand with an accurate analysis of the situation if they are to strike the right balance: namely latching onto the wind shift as soon as possible without falling into a zone with a limp breeze”.

Spanning 7,000 miles between Mauritius and New Zealand, the third leg proved to be a tough and particularly competitive one with a truly epic finish, just 34 minutes separating the top two after 34 days at sea. With the leg taking considerably longer than planned, the crews only had a maximum of two weeks to rest their tired bodies and overhaul their machines after a half-lap of the world.

Fortunately, the quality of Auckland’s marine professionals enabled them to complete their maintenance operations in record time, with some supreme logistical management making it possible to unstep masts, carry out rig checks, repair sails, haul the boats out and check the hulls.

With three separate winners in each of the three legs, taking the win in Tahiti is clearly anyone’s game. Currently top of the leader board on an old boat, the Dutch team on SEC HAYAI has sailed a masterful and very cohesive race so far, with a crew remaining unchanged since the start.

The Americans on AMHAS, second in the overall ranking, have two alternating teams and it is the victorious duo from the first major leg around the tip of South Africa that is rejoining the fray in Auckland. The Japanese team on MILAI Around The World remains a formidable competitor too and could be poised for the top spot if they can overcome the technical issues of previous legs.

The Canadian crew on WHISKEY JACK and the second American crew on GRYPHON SOLO 2 are never far off the pace either, with just three days separating the first and last boats in the last 7,000-mile leg.

The fourth leg should take the crews 12 to 14 days to make the waters of French Polynesia.

Race details – Entries – Tracker

Note: The scoring format gives extra value to the longer legs.

Leg Three Results:

Leg Two Results:

Leg One Results:

The inaugural Globe40 is an eight leg round the world race for doublehanded Class40 teams. As all legs count toward the cumulative score, the longer distances more heavily weighted. The first leg, which took seven to eight days to complete, had a coefficient 1 while the second leg is ranked as a coefficient 3 leg. The race is expected to finish March 2023. Seven teams were ready to compete, but a Leg 1 start line collision eliminated The Globe En Solidaire with Eric and Léo Grosclaude (FRA) while the Moroccan team of Simon and Omar Bensenddik on IBN BATTOUTA retired before the Leg 2 start.

Start:
Tangier, Morocco – June 26

Stopovers:
Leg 2 start: Sao Vincente, Cape Verde Islands – July 17
Leg 3 start: Port Louis, Mauritius – September 11
Leg 4 start: Auckland, New Zealand – October 29
Leg 5 start: Papeete, French Polynesia
Leg 6 start: Ushuaia, Argentina
Leg 7 start: Recife, Brazil
Leg 8 start: St Georges, Grenada

Finish:
Lorient, France