French 1-2-3 as British trio back in port

The Vendee Globe rankings board now shows six finishers as Sam Davies, Marc Guillemot, Brian Thompson and Dee Caffari all came in to Les Sables d'Olonne in the past three days.

Davies was first among the group but had to relinquish third place to Guillemot, who pipped her by less than two hours with the time in hand he was granted for helping out Yann Elies earlier in the race. It was a great finish by both sailors but Guillemot deserved his place after pushing his boat without a keel during the run in.

Thompson was relieved to nurse Bahrain Team Pindar over the line after struggling with keel problems for the last part of the race. He looked, from photographs, as if he would be ready to sleep for a week.

Andrew Pindar, the Scarborough businessman who sponsors the team, had invited me to join him at the finish. But I had just gone for a couple of days to the River Tweed in the hope of a spring salmon. It was a shame as it would have been good to see the boats in.

It's easy to forget that this west to east solo circumnavigation was a first for all four finishers. For Dee Caffari, it means that she has the unique distinction of being the first woman to solo the world in both directions.

If that first solo circumnavigation brought Caffari recognition as an adventurer, her Vendee performance must establish her as a genuine racer, capable of handling and looking after a state-of-the-art racing yacht in the most extreme conditions. It's easy to forget that, in spite of her excellent sponsorship package with Aviva, she is relatively new to full-on ocean racing with less experience than Davies who learned her skills with the elite French squad.

Thompson too will have learned much, not least about the future potential of Bahrain Team Pindar for future solo round-the-world voyages. Is this powerful yacht too much of a beast for a single skipper? Certainly Davies was able to show it the way home on her much older, if well proven, yacht, Roxy (formerly two-times Vendee winner PRB).

When the last boats have finished the British sailors should get together and discuss their future prospects. For all the British achievements, it is French skippers who occupy the first three places and that will be no surprise to anyone in ocean racing.

If other nations, including the UK, are to groom sailors good enough to challenge the best French skippers in the Vendee, they will need to emulate the French squad system and engage in the Figaro series. While talented individuals such as Mike Golding and Ellen MacArthur have come close in the past, no other nation has succeeded yet in breaking the French strangle-hold on this event. It's no coincidence that Britain's highest placed skipper in this race, Sam Davies, came through the French system.

Vendee fight to the finish

While first and second places are settled in the Vendee Globe after Armel Le Cleac'h finished at the weekend, yet another dramatic change of fortune means that Sam Davies, the highest British entrant has a chance of snatching third place.

Her nearest rival Marc Guillemot on Safran has lost his keel, a similar failure to that suffered a week earlier by Roland Jourdain. With less than 1,000 miles to the finish, Guillemot is sailing on under three reefs. Although he is now in fourth place on the water he has a cushion of more than two days in redress after standing by while the injured Yann Elies was rescued in December.

That may be just enough to stay ahead of Davies on Roxy, but he cannot afford to take too many risks while Davies may be emboldened by the chance to effectively leapfrog two places as third place is to be shared jointly with Vincent Riou, already granted his position through redress. She and her shore crew will have been doing their sums. At present she is expected to finish later this week. Now she has everything to sail for.

Fifth place would be a marvellous result for Davies in a boat that is much older than the newer designs of those sailed by Brian Thompson and Dee Caffari in her wake. Third place would be remarkable. Meanwhile Caffari knows she has a fighting chance of overtaking Thompson's Bahrain Team Pindar which is unable to sail under full power due to problems with the hydraulic rams that operate its canting keel.

There is every chance now the only two women to have entered the race will be the highest placed British competitors - another shot in the arm for women's sailing in the UK.

Jonah talk

Surely nothing can stop Michel Desjoyeaux now from claiming victory in the Vendee Globe? Well one or two things could - a collision with a whale or some other debris could take off his keel and capsize the boat although no heavy winds are forecast for his final few miles. Certainly it would need something of such catastrophic proportions to stop him now, and that looks unlikely.

Sadly it is second placed Roland Jourdain, now more than a thousand miles behind him, who is sailing gingerly just now after losing the bulb of his keel due, he thinks, to damage caused near the tip of South America when he collided with a sea mammal, most probably a whale.

If the weather forecasts look kind enough for Cape Finisterre and Biscay I think he will probably try to complete his circumnavigation. By the time he reaches the Azores he will have had time to assess the handling qualities of the boat in order to make a judgement about its seaworthiness.

As Desjoyeaux sails in to a rapturous French welcome on Sunday, spare a thought for Raphael Dinelli and Norbert Sedlacek who will be setting their boats to round Cape Horn. One of Dinelli's biggest worries just now is whether his supplies will last another three weeks. By the time they sale in to port, the crowds will have thinned somewhat but I'm sure the people of Les Sables d'Olonne will be there to greet them. The French respect their sailors.

Between first and last, however, we might see some jostling for position around fifth and sixth place. Jourdain will almost certainly lose his second place to Armel Le Cleac'h, so that would put him joint third with the already placed Vincent Rou (as a result of redress given earlier in the race).

More than a thousand miles behind Le Cleac'h is Sam Davies. She is about 300 miles ahead of Marc Guillemot but needs a much bigger margin (about 600 miles) since he was given redress for going to the aid of Yann Elies.

About 350 miles behind Davies is Brian Thompson on the powerful Bahrain Team Pindar. And only 90 miles behind Thompson is Dee Caffari. The question is whether Thompson will pull all the stops out to try and overhaul Davies.

He would dearly love to be the first Briton back but the challenge may be beyond him. There were some high expectations placed on his Juan Kouyoumdjian-designed boat before the race. It's the most powerful boat in the fleet with the biggest righting moment. But it is by no means nimble to manouevre for a loan yachtsman.

I was speaking with Juan K yesterday and he pointed out that the boat had been designed for crewed sailing. Many of Brian's posts have outlined difficulties he has experienced with various parts of the boat, such as the longitudinals, the alternator and the the big D3 sail that was damaged beyond repair at sea.

"All these repairs mean that I cannot be quite as on top of the sailing as I would like and I consequently end up reacting to events rather than anticipating them and taking best advantage of them," he said in one of his posts.

On the other hand, as Juan K pointed out, all the skippers have faced technical problems. Dee Caffari looked to be losing her deteriorating mainsail at one stage until drastic repairs contained the problem for a while (although the damage has revealed itself once more).

I've written a feature on the race for Saturday's Financial Times - a bit of a round up plus some discussion about boat design, given the high rates of equipment failure during the race.

For now, though, the race is still on. Thompson's big boat could be set up well for his 3,000 mile run to the finish. Could it be time to make a charge?

Podium result for Riou

To anyone who is not a sailor and to some who are, the news that a podium position in the Vendee Globe is already decided with 5,000 miles still to go for the leaders may come as a surprise, but such are the workings of competition juries.

The award of joint third place to Vincent Riou and PRB is some small consolation for the damage his boat received when rescuing Jean le Cam not far from Cape Horn. The award is the outcome of the jury's decision to grant Riou redress as a result of the incident.

It is important that redress is accepted in such circumstances since Riou put himself and his boat at considerable risk in going to the aid of his fellow yachtsman. Le Cam and every other competitor would have done the same.

I wonder what the organisers would have done had the incident involved the two leading boats? The same? Quite possibly but it would have produced an unsatisfactory outcome for a race to be decided so far from the finish.

The remaining competitors, however, seem determined that the finish will be decided on the water. With a lead of nearly 300 miles over his nearest rival, Michel Desjoyeaux appears to be sailing well within himself. It is not impossible that he could be caught by either Roland Jourdain or Armel le Cleac'h but the best hopes of the following boats must rest with the leader suffering some kind of damage.

As we have seen with so many retirements and breakages in this race, that remains a possibility. I cannot think of a boat that has had a glitch free race although Sam Davies on Roxy seems to have protected her boat well. Brian Thompson and Roland Jourdain have both been undertaking running structural repairs while Dee Caffari has been struggling to patch a delaminating mainsail. Marc Guillemot too, must find an opportunity to free a sticking mainsail.

The redress for Riou puts Sam Davies effectively in sixth place just now as the redress awarded to Guillemot for going to the aid of Yann Elies would put him ahead of her, although not by a substantial distance. Davies is a thousand miles behind le Cleac'h so he would take some catching at this stage of the race.

Of course, with such a distance to go, it is still very possible that the positions could change yet. It would only take a fierce Biscay storm at the wrong time to put the kibosh on all those hard earned miles. But all the boats left in the race now are looking for a finish.

Stop press: sailors racing

The British newspaper coverage of the Vendee Globe race has been scant. Apart from a few news stories of the "British heroine goes to the aid of stricken sailor" type when Sam Davies - who happens to be young, pretty and female - diverted her course to help Yann Elies, there have been very few reports.

I was surprised, therefore, to find a report on page 11 of today's Daily Telegraph, focusing on Jonny Malbon in 13th place just 4,000 miles behind the leader. Then I noticed it said "special report" with "in association with Artemis, The Profit Hunter" at the end of the report. I don't like this kind of advertorial as it is dressed up to look like a piece of journalism when in fact the journalist is simply pandering to the wishes of an advertiser.

Then again, I would question the news values of British sports editors who have studiously ignored one of the most dramatic of sporting events. Why does this happen? I would list several reasons:

Xenophobia: there is a parochialism about sports coverage that, in this case, is magnified since the best round-the-world sailors are almost all French.

Obsession with football: this really does not need any other explanation.

Perceived elitism: it's not easy to be a round-the-world sailor and most of them rely on corporate sponsors. That most have not enjoyed privileged backgrounds but have worked for years to get the chance to enter this event does not seem to influence such judgements.

Technical terms: sailing is a highly technical sport and sailing writers must try to balance a desire for specialist information and terminology with non-specialist interest among a wider audience.

A world apart: This kind of sailing is so different, so extreme, that it's difficult to make comparisons. Even accomplished dinghy sailors cannot imagine the conditions in which this race is undertaken unless they have experienced them at first hand.

Sport versus adventure: Some editors and, indeed, some sailors, still equate round-the-world sailing with the "big adventure," that getting around the world is an achievement in itself - as it is. But the Vendee is a full on race. Mike Golding has sailed round the world many times. But his ambition is to win the Vendee and for that he must sail at speeds that will test any weakness in a boat. Some top "round-the-cans" sailors sometimes disparage endurance sailors, possibly out of envy. It is a different sport with different demands and they should understand this.

It's not just editors who must reflect on their prejudices. Sponsors must examine their expectations too. I am sure that none of them issue orders to the sailors to simply get around the course, although I am sure that many are dispirited when a boat fails early in a race.

Having said that, I have no doubt that Aviva, the sponsors of Dee Caffari, and Caffari herself, are looking for a finish in the Vendee. Caffari is a fine, gutsy and likeable endurance sailor, but she is not among the fastest female sailors in the world. Her status relies on having done something first. She was the first woman to sail around the world single-handedly against the winds and currents. If she finishes this race she will be the first to have done so in both directions.

Other sailors shouldn't begrudge her sponsorship but learn from the way she has positioned herself. Caffari delivers value to her sponsors, not by winning, but by sticking to her game. She is still learning and two round-the-world events must command the respect of her fellow sailors.

Sam Davies demands even more respect. Caffari has the advantage of one of the new generation of faster boats but Davies is 800 miles ahead of her in an older boat. In turn, Caffari is 1,600 miles ahead of Jonny Malbon, also skippering a well-sponsored modern boat.

None of this is to disparage the achievements of Malbon and Caffari, but simply to put their performance in context with that of superior sailing at the head of the fleet. It seems unfair to write this from the comfort of an armchair when all these sailors are giving their all in the world's most inhospitable seas. But those who sail understand these differences and so should a wider audience.

It is more difficult to pass judgement on Brian Thompson who has been struggling with a high performing new boat, spending more time below deck than above in the past two weeks, making repairs. But unless he can improve on the speeds he set earlier in the race, he too will know that he must work harder to get in to the French-dominated big league.

Thompson does not strike me as a "crash and burn" competitor but as a dogged performer intent on going the whole way. He is one of the fleet's nice guys and I want him to do well. But I'd like to see him going a bit faster. How can I say this of a family man when sailing is so dangerous? The danger is a given. Thompson and the rest of them are there because they choose to be there. They put themselves on the line and know that their times and performances will be scrutinised in the data logs. They look at the same data and they know, in their hearts, that Michel Desjoyeaux is a sailor apart. Even Golding said that and Golding can match the Frenchman for speed.

The British might look at the elite French squad system that prepares its sailors for these events but you can't say that of Steve White, the British skipper of Toe in the Water, who got to the start line in an underfunded yacht through the generosity of a handful of supporters. Yet today he is 800 miles ahead of Artemis.

For this reason the Telegraph should have refused the Artemis shilling and told the story as it should be told. Its readers deserve better and so does sailing.

Elies safe

Yann Elies, the Vendee competitor, has been rescued today by the Australian navy. His boat Generali, has been abandoned, under a light sail. Like a toy yacht on a park lake it should sail on until a motor launch with Generali team members can meet it. The boat has a tracker so its position can be monitored.

So that's another one gone as Michel Desjoyeaux at the front of the fleet maintains his lead with Roland Jourdain staying close. The best that the rest can hope for now is that a mechanical failure or damage (by no means unlikely) hampers Desjoyeaux's progress. I don't think another sailor in the fleet has the ability to catch him and that is not to underestimate the others. It is simply that Desjoyeaux is so exceptional.

This means that 12 of the original fleet of 30 are now out of the race. With more than half of the race still to run it would not be surprising to be looking at a final retirement list of two thirds of the starters.

Another thing about Desjoyeaux is that he very rarely admits to any problems. All of these skippers have had mishaps of some kind and we hear of them regularly in their reports. But if anything is worrying the Frenchman, you wouldn't know it. He said today he been playing Sudoku to keep himself occupied!

Of the two women starters I think that Sam Davies is in with a shout of a top five spot. For Dee Caffari there is a strong incentive to finish as it would make her the first woman to have rounded the world in opposite directions.

Vendee rescue underway

I was meeting up with old sailing friends yesterday at our 3Com starboard watch annual reunion, so missed the news that Yann Elies had broken his femur.

Marc Guillemot, who diverted course, has taken up station not far from Elies's yacht. Elies, meanwhile has managed to get some drink, a little food and some pain killers inside him and has been able to fashion makeshift bed and get some sleep. This is important because he must wait now for the arrival of the Australian frigate, HMAS Arunta, the rescue ship, which is due to reach them on Saturday afternoon.

Sam Davies on Roxy is also heading towards the scene. The yachts are there for moral support as much as anything. They will not try to rescue Elies. It's too dangerous for yachts to run alongside each other in pitching seas as their masts would most likely lock together.

The injury brings back memories of sailing in the southern ocean on 3Com when we had to rendezvous with another yacht, to pass over morphine for a badly injured crewman on Time and Tide. We passed the medication over on a line. In that case, both the yachts were fully crewed. In single-handed sailing there are fewer options.

But the good news for Elies is that a rescue is on its way and he is tucked up and reasonably warm. No-one should be in any doubt, however, of the seriousness of a bad injury in such an isolated place. Sam Davies herself blacked out briefly yesterday when she injured her arm. Fortunately she suffered no more than bad bruising.

Had Elies been left exposed or unconscious on the deck of his yacht he would have been in much bigger trouble. As it is, the rescue, so far, is going smoothly. It just takes time because of the distances involved.

Meanwhile Michel Desjoyeaux has been extending his lead with Roland Jourdain not far behind him, but these two have moved more than 100 miles ahead of third-placed Sebastien Josse. Jean-Pierre Dick has completed a rudder repair to Paprec-Virbac II and is heading south east to rejoin the fleet, having lost more than 600 miles since the breakage.

Guillemot says he will stay with Elies "as long as it takes." He says:
"The race was yesterday. Now we've moved on to something else. I had a similar experience a few years ago. I'm just trying to talk to him, to reassure him. The subject doesn't matter. He knows he can rely on me. It's more of a psychological help than a physical one, but that's important, because in general it's the head that looks after the rest of the body. That will help him, while he awaits the arrival of the rescue team."

Desjoyeaux "in the zone"

Knowing what it's like to spend time at sea, attempting to maintain racing speeds,I feel a little bit guilty consulting the Vendee Globe tracker software from the comfort of my living room.

You see the positions and the average speeds and you find yourself wondering why so-and-so has lost time. Then you have to punch yourself to recall the conditions out there, except you can't recall them because your system has blotted out all the bad memories.

Some of the speeds I can only imagine. Michael Desjoyeaux has clocked 30 knots on Foncia. The fastest I have travelled on a yacht was 26 knots on ABN Amro One during an in port race in the last Volvo Ocean race and that was in a relatively benign sea.

Desjoyeaux's performance in the last two weeks has stood out for me in this race. The Vendee holder is not letting go of his title without a fight and if he continues to maintain his pace he will win again.

But there are a lot of "ifs" in this race. The consistency of the leaders, where the lead has changed hands several times, underlines the competitiveness of the event. Yann Elies on Generali has his nose in front just now but there is still less than a 100 miles separating the top nine boats.

And who continues to make ground on that pack, now only 120 miles from the lead and 30 or so miles from Mike Golding? It's that man Desjoyeaux.

We don't see this racing as it really is. We see pictures taken by on-board cameras of skippers enjoying a quiet moment away from the helm that is on auto pilot. We don't see them up the mast and rarely on the helm. Yet Desjoyeaux helmed for 21 hours at a stretch a day or two back. I guess he must have had the odd pee break and food break in that time. But the point is that he wanted to be driving his boat on in an effort to make up miles on the leaders.

The auto helms work well but, as Brian Thompson pointed out in one of his reports, self-helming maintains better average speeds.

Vendee racing is the sternest test of such abilities. If I was Josse or Peyron or Elies just now I would be worrying less about my immediate rivals and more about Desjoyeaux. He's not going to slow down and he's not going to worry about any of them. He's sailing his own race and he's in the zone.

Again, what is difficult to know without being there, is just how much these skippers have in reserve. The next two weeks will test that reserve to the limit.

Reading Pete Goss's blogg, it seems he did spot one of the Vendee boats the other night.