Arkea Ultim Challenge: where is leader Charles Caudrelier compared to the passage times of Gabart's record from 2017?

The Arkéa Ultim Challenge, which left Brest on January 7, is a race around the world whose aim is to complete a tour of the planet from west to east in the lead, not a solo record attempt that only four sailors have achieved. since 2004, following the same route as the six competitors on their giant trimarans. François Gabart established a reference time in 2017 which still stands, in 42 days 16:40:35 after having lowered by almost a week the time of Thomas Coville (Sodebo) signed a few weeks earlier. And for the moment, the passage times of the one we nicknamed the “Little Prince of the Oceans” six years ago with a boat designed in 2013 and put to sea in 2015 are still resisting the assaults of the latest flying machines. generation.

At the helm of Maxi Edmond de Rothschild launched in 2017, Charles Caudrelier is currently behind the Charentais who had crossed the Equator in 05 d 20 h 45 min (behind Thomas Coville in 5 d 17 h 11 mins). Tom Laperche, then leader of the race, was already a few hours behind when he crossed into the South Atlantic in 6 days 6 hours and 13 minutes, followed by Charles Caudrelier (Edmond de Rothschild), 1 hour 28 minutes later.

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Tom Laperche having collided with an Ofni last Thursday while engaged in a magnificent standoff with Charles Caudrelier, Edmond de Rothschild took control of the ranking and passed the Cape of Good Hope in the lead in 12 days 1 hour 14 minutes. Here again, the winner of the 2022 Route du rhum had to lose to François Gabart, who reached the tip of the African continent in 11 days 20 hours 10 minutes, the new absolute solo reference time.

Charles Caudrelier is therefore (slightly) behind on the basis of a record which, let us remember, is not aimed at, even if it could be a nice cherry on the cake in the event of victory in Brest at the end of February. Leader with a comfortable lead over Thomas Coville (1,425 miles Monday afternoon), the Parisian by birth admitted that he had eased off a little in recent days after the mishap that occurred at SVR Lazartigue last week.

“With such a lead, we will be able to choose not to take the optimal routes, but those which preserve the boat. We can try to avoid areas of heavy seas. It's a bit strange, I've spent my life trying to go faster by boat, counting each mile and now I'm limiting my speed and looking for less sea. It's a luxury incredible and this is the particularity of this challenge which is almost an elimination race. My advance is of no use to me if I break the boat,” he explained to AFP on Monday.

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At the helm of a giant of the seas that he is taking a little care of and even if he still has a little under his feet, Charles Caudrelier still came very close to a prestige record on the night of Wednesday at last Thursday, in the hands of François Gabart: that of the number of miles traveled in twenty-four hours: 842 miles against 851 for Gabart. Dust for these boats traveling at more than 40 knots. Maybe it's just a postponement.

Another piece of data does not argue in favor of a new record: in 2017, François Gabart himself chose the day of his departure to benefit from an optimal weather window and ideally launch his world tour in the North Atlantic. A luxury because the sailors of the Arkéa Ultim Challenge did not choose their departure date from Brest, January 7. “The North Atlantic was not very fast,” admitted Charles Caudrelier, launched like a bullet into the South Sea tunnel to Cape Horn. Edmond de Rothschild is sailing at an average speed of more than 30 knots to reach Cape Leeuwin in a few days, in the southwest of the Australian continent, where an update will be made. The time to beat to stay on pace with François Gabart: 19 days 14 hours 10 minutes.

The reference times of François Gabart's record in 2017

Departure date: Saturday, November 4 at 10:05 a.m. (French time) Ushant / Ecuador crossing time: 05 d 20 h 45 min Ushant / Good Hope crossing time: 11 d 20 h 10 min (new absolute reference time) Time passage time Ouessant / Cap des Aiguilles: 11 d 22h 20 min (new absolute reference time) Passage time Ouessant / Cap Leeuwin: 19 d 14 h 10 min (new reference time) Passage time Ouessant / Cape Horn: 29 d 03 h 15 min (new reference time) Ushant / Equator return crossing time: 36 d 01 h and 30 min (new absolute reference time) Ecuador / Ecuador crossing time: 30 d 04 h and 45 min (new record in solo) Cape Horn / Ecuador passage time: 06 days 22 hours and 15 minutes (new absolute reference time) Record for miles traveled over 24 hours: 851 miles (14/11/2017)