Trade winds still unstable...
With the competitors in the BPE Trophy having been at sea for just over 16 days now, a difficult end of race has begun for Thierry Duprey du Vorsent. The Gitana Team skipper should pass the 1,000 miles to the finish mark in a few hours or so. Firmly lodged in the leading quartet of the year's first transatlantic race for the past ten days, Thierry Duprey du Vorsent has, for the last 48 hours or so, been experiencing what all sailors dread most... the crucial lack of wind.

Having extended their route considerably by choosing a more southerly trajectory, many of his rivals are now zipping along at between 8 and 11 knots towards Marie Galante, whereas the skipper of Domaine du Mont d'Arbois will only pick up the established trade winds tomorrow evening or early on Thursday morning. Currently, his speed is fluctuating between 4 and 6 knots.

In this morning's radio chat, Thierry Duprey du Vorsent bemoaned this turn of events but remained highly lucid:The briskness with which the trade winds have become established in the south, and at a good angle to boot, is a bit hard to take, as us ‘northerners' just have to sit and watch. And to make matters worse, a huge windless zone is feared for the finish, preventing us in the northern part of the fleet from taking a more or less direct route. But I'm accepting my misfortune patiently while at the same time trying to gain a tenth of a knot wherever possible so I can join my comrades in the flow of the established trade winds”.

Over the days to come, if they are to figure in the top half of the ranking in the Antilles, Thierry Duprey du Vorsent and Domaine du Mont d'Arbois will have to fight tooth and nail to regain a maximum amount of the ground lost over the last 48 hours. The leaders are expected to reach Marie Galante on Sunday 15 April or thereabouts.

Ranking of the Trophée BPE, Tuesday 10 April, 15:00 :

Rank Boat / Skipper Latitude Longitude Speed Cap Dist. But Dist. 1st
1 Défi Mousquetaires Thomas Rouxel 14 49.74' N 45 55.02' W 8.5 243 896.6 0.0
2 Bostik Charles Caudrelier 14 50.76' N 45 52.98' W 8.4 239 898.6 2.0
3 Sojasun Liz Wardley 15 36.50' N 44 57.29' W 8.8 240 950.5 53.9
4 Financo Nicolas Troussel 12 31.82' N 45 18.83' W 8.4 231 956.6 60.0
5 A.ST Groupe Marc Emig 21 12.18' N 45 03.72' W 9.3 238 981.2 84.6
6 Gedimat Armel Tripon 22 15.61' N 45 21.78' W 7.1 229 988.3 91.7
7 Theolia Robert Nagy 23 04.02' N 45 31.86' W 5.5 240 995.6 99.1
8 Banque Populaire Jeanne Grégoire 16 02.46' N 44 03.84' W 7.9 266 998.4 101.8
9 Luisina Eric Drouglazet 21 11.42' N 44 29.34' W 9.2 240 1012.6 116.0
10 Groupe Céléos Ronan Treussart 20 35.61' N 44 18.10' W 8.4 236 1015.0 118.4
11 Aquarelle.com Yannick Bestaven 18 37.80' N 43 51.87' W 9.3 234 1018.3 121.7
12 Les Mousquetaires Bertrand de Broc 20 25.55' N 44 03.44' W 8.2 235 1024.7 128.1
13 Cercle Vert Gildas Morvan 19 47.84' N 43 42.90' W 8.5 243 1036.5 139.9
14 Lenze Franck Le Gal 14 33.80' N 43 20.80' W 8.0 237 1047.4 150.9
15 Le Comptoir Immobilier Gildas Mahé 20 27.16' N 42 50.61' W 8.4 246 1091.3 194.7
16 Domaine du Mont d'Arbois Thierry Duprey du Vorsent 24 34.51' N 44 21.29' W 6.8 230 1093.1 196.5

Source www.tropheebpe.com

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