Conflicting weather forecasts are keeping the fleet on alert around Cape Verde, while Damien Guillou and Pat Lawless could benefit from an unusually narrow crossing of the Doldrums. Several skippers are moving southwest ahead of a developing low, Mara has deployed a scientific weather buoy, and Guy deBoer faces strict survey requirements before he can return to the race.
THE LEADERS
🇫🇷 Damien Guillou – SOLAREM
Damien has made a clear move southwest, maintaining around 5.9 knots as he positions himself for the Doldrums. His reported 117-mile daily progress reflects his angle away from the tracker’s reference course, rather than a sudden loss of speed. A narrow corridor of wind could offer him a valuable passage through an area usually associated with prolonged calms.
🇮🇪 Pat Lawless – SILVERMINES HYDRO
Pat continues farther south at 5.7 knots, recording 138 miles of progress over the previous 24 hours. He could also benefit from the favourable Doldrums outlook, keeping him firmly in contention as the leaders approach their next major weather challenge.
THE CHASING PACK
🇨🇭 Étienne Messikommer – BERNARD
Étienne has recorded 111 miles of progress, but was still heading east of south despite the race team’s advice to move southwest. A message relayed during the broadcast reported lightning, thunder and rain, with three reefs in the mainsail, a reduced genoa and staysail set.
🇬🇧 Ertan Beskardes – MISS BEAGLE
Ertan is maintaining around 4.9 knots, with 117 miles of daily progress. The tracker’s weather overlay suggested much stronger conditions around his position, but these had not been confirmed, underlining the uncertainty surrounding the forecasts.
🇮🇹 Guido Cantini – HANNAH OF COWES
Guido is making 3.5 knots, with 112 miles of progress over 24 hours. After contacting the race team to clarify the weather safety situation, he is maintaining a southwesterly heading to improve his position ahead of the developing system.
🇮🇹 Andrea Lodolo – BIBI
Andrea’s displayed figures showed 5 knots and 137 miles of daily progress, although a delay in his tracker updates was being investigated. He has also lost his Starlink antenna, apparently swept away by a wave, and is having difficulty activating the spare. Support is underway to restore his GGR Window connection.
🇮🇱 Daniel Pinsky – EXODUS
Daniel is taking a middle route through the Cape Verde islands, making 5.1 knots with 124 miles of daily progress. His position offers a useful balance between the routes being taken by the boats farther east and those moving out to the west.
THROUGH THE FLEET
🇫🇷 Louis Kerdelhué – IE CHARGE
Louis is struggling in light winds, making just 1.5 knots after 65 miles of daily progress. He had previously angled southwest, but his latest track showed him drifting northwest, with little speed available to establish a clear course.
🇨🇦 Isa Rosli – OLLEANNA
Isa is moving across with Henry and Mara, making 5.4 knots after 95 miles of progress. Their move west could help them find more favourable winds as the developing low changes conditions across the fleet.
🇬🇧 Henry Wootton – PRIVATEER
Henry is making a steady 6.2 knots on a southwesterly course, with 115 miles of daily progress. That westing could prove useful if the forecast develops as expected, reducing his exposure to the headwinds predicted farther east.
🇳🇴 Mara – SHOWGIRL
Mara is heading southwest at 5.3 knots, recording 110 miles of progress, and has been sharing weather information with fellow skippers over the radio. She has also successfully deployed a scientific weather buoy, following instructions from the coordinating team ashore, to contribute observations used in weather forecasting.
🇬🇧 Gunnar Christensen – POMPOEN
Gunnar is moving through lighter conditions at around 3.2 knots, with 106 miles of daily progress. He is among the skippers advised to make southwest as the race team monitors the low developing farther south.
🇺🇸 Matt Woodside – TIPI HAERE
Matt has made 133 miles of progress and is sailing at around 5 knots. He had not yet made a decisive move southwest at the time of the update, leaving his positioning over the next day particularly relevant to the approaching weather.
🇸🇪 Pär Nyman – LAZY OTTER
Pär is enjoying a productive spell at 6.2 knots, with 120 miles of daily progress. Still north of the main weather concern, he may benefit from arriving after the developing system has moved through.
IN PORT
🇺🇸 Guy deBoer – SPIRIT
Guy’s return depends on a formal survey and approved repairs. Alongside the chainplate concerns, the race team has identified indications of potentially serious problems involving an existing hull repair. A surveyor must assess the boat before work begins, oversee and approve the repairs, and sign off the hull and rig before Guy can be cleared to continue, including in Chichester Class.
🇹🇷 Selim Yalçın – HELP DISABLED CHILDREN
There is no fresh update from Selim in Cádiz. Don estimated that he could still be three to four days away from departure, which would leave him facing a substantial gap to the fleet when he resumes.
WEATHER OUTLOOK
The main concern is a developing low southeast of Cape Verde, but the forecast models disagree sharply over its strength and movement. The alarming winds initially displayed on the tracker were not confirmed across the fleet, and the later ECMWF assessment suggested a less severe system, with peak gusts around 40–42 knots, below earlier projections.
The race team is continuing to review its weather alerts. Sudden wind shifts and confused seas remain a concern, while moving southwest could also help skippers avoid an extended spell of headwinds farther east.
For Damien and Pat, the outlook offers a potential opportunity: the Doldrums appear unusually narrow, with a possible corridor of wind through them. Reaching the southeast trade winds will still require careful sailing, but the leaders may have a chance to keep moving through one of the Atlantic’s most unpredictable stretches.
Daily Report Archive Skipper tweets from 24/09/2026
