Nearly half the Vendee Globe fleet have crossed into the Southern Hemisphere as leader Loïck Peyron (Gitana Eighty) stretched another two miles ahead of the pack. Jérémie Beyou is heading towards Brazil in a desperate bid to fix spreaders.
The stubborn leader of the Vendée Globe race Loïck Peyron passed the equator Friday on his Gitana-Eighty boat. The ranking in the rest of the pack remained unchanged as all skippers eagerly awaited fresher South Atlantic winds.
Maintaining the lead he earned six days ago, Loick Peyron (Gitana Eighty) took charge of the Vendee Globe pack this morning in front of Sebastien Josse (BT). Jean Le Cam, in front for a few hours, slipped to 10th when his automatic pilot broke down.
Loick Peyron (Gitana-Eighty) slipped behind fellow Frenchmen Jean Le Cam (VM-Matériaux) for less than 24 hours before reclaiming the leadership of the race.
Leader of the Vendée Globe race since Thursday, Loick Peyron (Gitana Eighty) has slipped behind fellow Frenchmen Jean Le Cam (VM Matériaux) and Sébastien Josse (BT), who both opted for eastern routes off the Cape Verde.
France's Loïck Peyron (Gitana-Eighty) who ran the first Vendée Globe in 1989, leads the gruelling race on Sunday in front of Jean Le Cam (VM-Matériaux) and Sébastien Josse (BT) ahead of the Cape Verde and the doldrums.
France's Loïck Peyron (Gitana-Eighty) leads the Vendée Globe race on Saturday in front of Jean Le Cam (VM-Materiaux). The leading pack sailed off the Canary Islands shores under mild winds.
English skipper Alex Thomson was forced to U-turn towards the race's starting line after he found a transverse crack running five metres through his yacht's outer and inner skin. The boat won't be repaired in time for the restart deadline.
