Global Solo leader approaches Cape Horn

(January 8, 2024) – Today marks exactly 100 days since Philippe Delamare (FRA) left A Coruna, on the 30th of September, in the 2023-24 Global Solo Challenge. As the only competitor in the event to have sailed the Roaring Forties and Screaming Fifities before, both crewed and solo, as well as having rounded Cape Horn before, he has been setting an impressive pace on his Actual 46 (above).

As the race leader, he is less than 200 nm from rounding Cape Horn in approximately 30-35 knots of wind, gusting around 45 knots and 5 meter waves. He is just in front of the cold front of the depression he is sailing in, which will bring about a windshift tomorrow from the northwesterlies to southwesterlies that will generate uncomfortable cross seas.

The cold front will also be associated with unstable airs and squalls with gusts which can significantly exceed, temporarily, the model-given figures. Winds gusting well into the mid to high 50s are probably to be expected. Cape Horn is certainly living up to its fame.

Delamare’s biggest strength to date has been to sail the least amount of miles for any given milestone of the circumnavigation compared to the other competitors.

On the event tracker, there reflects the theoretical route likely to be followed by the skippers accounting for seasonal weather, i.e. not simply the shortest geographical route, which would be utopic, but the shortest possible route under sail.

While skippers will always sail through the water more miles than this theoretical route indicates, the 25008 nm course from A Coruna to A Coruna in Spain is a reference to use.

Over the course of completing two thirds of the total route to reach Cape Horn, Delamare has sailed only 800 nm in excess of the theoretical route – a “wastage” of just 3.2%. For comparison, the second boat on the water, First Light sailed by Cole Brauer, whilst still being over 3000 nm behind the leader, has already sailed 1240 nm in excess of the theoretical course – an excess mileage of approximately 5%.

As a planing boat like her Class40 has more incentive to go and search the best wind angles, it is in fact normal that a non-displacement boat is capable of great accelerations may be faster whilst sailing a longer route, but it also goes to show that Delamare has made the absolute best of his displacement boat.

Of the 16 boats that started, 14 are still at sea including Ari Kansakoski who is clearly out of the competition after dismasting. This leaves 13 sailors still in the event – a testament to the determination, efforts, and skills of all those who took the start for this solo adventure.

Race details – Entry list – Start times – Tracking

Attrition List:
DNS: Peter Bourke – Class40, Imagine
DNS: Ivan Dimov – Endur37, Blue Ibis
DNS: Curt Morlock – IMOCA, 6 Lazy K
DNS: Volkan Kaan Yemlihaoğlu – Open 70, Black Betty

RTD: Juan Merediz – Class40, Sorolla
RTD: Dafydd Hughes – S&S 34, Bendigedig
RTD: Ari Känsäkoski – Class40, ZEROchallenge

The inaugural Global Solo Challenge 2023-24 seeks to be a budget-friendly solo, non-stop race around the world. Using a pursuit format for the 2023-24 race, 20 entrants from 34 to 70 feet have start times between August 26 to January 6 from A Coruña, Spain, with the first boat to return deemed the winner.

Source: GSC