Please consult The Around Alone Report Users Guide for an explanation of this report.
For the 3rd leg in a row Cray Valley tops Class II. Although, typically slow starting, J.P. Mouligne are always on top by legs end. And at 1117 Punta Del Este time, (0917 eastern time & 1417 GMT) he crossed the finish line 1st in class II for the 3rd time running.
Fleet Round Up:
Cray Valley now has 3 firsts in 3 legs. J.P. describes the condtions before the finish: "Going upwind in a blow is not only slow, it is very hard on the boat. The banging is terrible. In the dark and under autopilot Cray Valley gets to the top of the wave and falls heavily on the other side. It is a wonder how the mast is still there with some of the crashes we took last night."
Magellan Alpha is now 2nd135 from
finishing. Despite not catching Cray Valley as desired, Garside works
on: "All day today I've been tacking, reefing and unreefing. I am trying to take
advantage of every small windshift and so I'm up and down like a yo-yo. No real sleep last
night and I suspect there will be even less tonight."
Balance Bar is179 miles from Punta Del Este. Brad Van Liew says, "I feel frustrated at the thought of being pounded yet again but it looks like the leg is far from over!"
Next is the first of the 40 foot Class II entries, Wind of Change. Wind of Change is 571 from the finish line.
Next is Shuten Dojhi II. Shuten lies 2086 from the finish.
Next is www.no-barriers.com. Neal Petersen is 2244 miles from leg's end.
Paladin 2 comes next 2948 from the
finish. Neil Hunter says, "All OK and no dramas. Apart from being extremely
frustrated." The frustration is due to a lack of wind.
Somewhere has reached the Falklands. Somewhere plans to be back racing by tomorrow.
What does it all mean ?
Although recent attention has turned to Giovanni Soldini, J.P. Moulgine may well be the man of the Around Alone. So far, he has been as consisten as he can with 3 wins in a row. Although Cray Valley was one of the favorites in Class II, Mouligne has exceded expectations, and now has a chance to become the 3rd man to win his class on all 4 legs of Around Alone.