As we have now realised we did not just get stuck in a wind hole. We also got dragged into an adverse current which carried us southeast. This pushed us further into the no-wind-zone and we lost distance made towards the finish. This is how we lost more than 400 nautical miles to the next boat within days. 

On the other hand this allowed the boats behind us to make good some ground. And as the wind started to fill in they were flying past us. It was so easy that it almost seemed like we had deployed our anchor. All trials of improving our sail trim were fruitless and our speed remained below that of the other boats. We thus fell back further and at one point had more than 50 nautical miles to the second to last place. And all this while we knew that the other boats we had been battling with head to head less than a week ago had already crossed the finish line. That is no fun and accordingly bad is the mood on board.

In the meantime we have picked up some speed again and based on the last position reports made up a few miles. Nevertheless, it currently could be considered a wonder, if we didn’t come last. That does not mean we sailed poorly though. We covered roughly the same distance in the same time as other boats. Only we have another couple hundred miles to go while they reached the finish line. To summarise I can only say that in addition to us not being lucky, we encountered some bad luck. Our strategy has not paid off and then we got stuck in the wind hole and the current. We need to put this behind us and focus on the positive aspects. Firstly there are the sail changes which happen smoother and faster every time. Secondly, we have more people who are confident and competent to take the helm in tougher conditions. And lastly, we don’t have any breakages, losses or major repairs to do. It’s not always easy but this is what we need to focus on.