Mirabaud is currently only 100nm from the finish line. The wind is light and tricky, the Burton brothers are only 20nm ahead of them and behind them the Golding / Dubois duo is nipping at their heels. The race is very much still on despite the first few boats finishing 24 hours ago.
“The conditions are light,” Dominique told us via satellite phone. “I don’t like it much, it reminds me of those light spots that we get on Lake Geneva… but having said that we are having a great race against our two main rivals. It’s good fun and is keeping us on our toes. We are constantly trimming the boat, we are helming a lot and we are trying to claw back the miles on the competition.”
Their ETA in Puerto Limon is difficult to predict at this stage. “According to the models, we are due to arrive either in the middle of the night tonight or on Sunday morning at around 10:00. It is impossible to say. There are a lot of clouds and rain about with very little wind and then there are patches with good steady breeze. Unfortunately, as we are not moving very quickly, we can’t aim for the breezy patches, so there is a certain amount of randomness involved.”
Dominique Wavre and Michele Paret sound so happy over the radio and look in such high spirits on the video and photos that they send off the boat that one has to wonder whether they are excited about finishing the race or whether they will mourn the end of the adventure.
“It’s very true that we are at our happiest at sea. Ashore all the old “earthly” concerns return,” said Dom. “Having said that though, this last bit of the race has dragged a bit and we are really looking forward to seeing our friends ashore.”
