In the anticyclone before the cyclone!

Atu, what a strange name for a cyclone! In any case, this is the birthday present that the weather has decided to offer Kito de Pavant, who celebrated his birthday two days running after passing the antimeridian (International Date Line)! Groupe Bel and Estrella Damm are still shoulder to shoulder this Thursday, and this time in the grip of a small anticyclone, before having to negotiate the Atu cyclone which is heading straight for them and will hit them on Friday. According to Marcel Van Triest, race meteorologist, the cyclone looks as though it will turn into a tropical storm in the next few hours with the winds weakening slightly. However, east of New Zealand with Estrella Damm less than 47 miles in their wake, the crew is staying completely focused to make headway as quickly as possible.

The weather uncertainties are part of their daily lives, but this time, the De Pavant/Audigane duo will have to deal with an exceptional phenomenon: a cyclone or tropical storm heading directly for Groupe Bel, which it should encounter in roughly 24 hours. More than the wind, which could reach up to 60 knots locally, it is the huge waves of over 10 meters that are worrying the crew. For the moment, it is a question of anticipating as always. The two boats have speak together this morning and are prepared for any eventuality.

Kito de Pavant contacted by his team this Thursday midday:

“We are slowly getting used to our watch rhythm again after this second start from Wellington. We don't have much wind. It's a southwesterly between 10 and 15 knots. The major problem is the Atu cyclone, which will cross our paths tomorrow and last for roughly 24 hours. We are expecting winds of over 60 knots and a very heavy sea with waves in all directions. We are trying to sail as fast as possible to escape the worst of the phenomenon. If necessary, we will turn back for our own safety. We are slightly reassured by the latest weather data, which is better than the 80 knot wind forecast yesterday! We are running on a reach with the southerly wind which will then swing to North-Northwest. This will enable us to accelerate towards the gates and Cape Horn.

We called Estrella Damm this morning. We talked about how we would tackle this cyclone together. We first decided to head south to Chatham Islands, but since things look like they're moving a little, for the moment, we are continuing to following each other and we will make our decision tomorrow morning (UT+1) depending on the latest weather data."

RANKING ON THURSDAY 24 FEBRUARY AT 15:00 (UT+1):
1 - Virbac-Paprec 3 / Jean-Pierre Dick & Loick Peyron, 9635 miles distance from finish
2 - Mapfre / Iker Martinez & Xabi Fernandez, 12 miles from the leader
3 - Renault / Pachi Rivero & Antonio Piris, 999 miles
4 - Neutrogena / Boris Herrmann & Ryan Breymaier, 1124 miles
5 - Mirabaud / Dominique Wavre & Michèle Parret, 1228 miles
6 - Groupe Bel / Kito de Pavant & Seb Audigane, 1497 miles
7 - Estrella Damm / Alex Pella & Pepe Ribes, 1544 miles
See the rest of the ranking on the race website.

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