Golden Globe Race week 32

The failure of Ian Herbert-Jones after breaking the mast of puffin in a violent storm, the other participants in the Golden Globe Race in week 32 were also affected. While the organization had its hands full coordinating the rescue, the rest of the fleet held its breath. For Abhilash Tomy, the events brought back vivid memories of his own misfortune. So the relief was great when Herbert-Jones was safe and sound aboard a Taiwanese fishing vessel en route to Cape Town. Calm returned among the participants and everyone can focus on his or her own course again.

Head slides further into each other

Although Kirsten Neuschäfer and Abhilash Tomy each sail their own course and their positions are quite far apart, Neuschäfer’s lead shrank day by day. Where she started with a gap of 110 miles at the beginning of week 32 in the Golden Globe Race, at the end of the week there was only 53 miles left. In the coming week, Tomy seems to be able to take advantage of a low pressure area that brings wind from a westerly direction. Ideal if you have to go east. Neuschäfer, on the other hand, is heading towards an area with weaker winds at the current course it has set. Her course, on the other hand, seems more direct, but if Tomy can pick up some serious speed, we could just have another leader in the Golden Globe Race by the end of week 32.

Meanwhile, Chichester Class leader Simon Curwen continues to build his lead. He is now 120 miles ahead of Neuschäfer and has just under two weeks to sail before reaching Les Sables d’Olonne (April 28, it seems now). The arrival of Neuschäfer and Tomy is expected two days later, on April 30. Nice detail: between the current numbers one and two finish is only twelve hours as it looks now.

Weak wind for gate closers

The runners-up in both classes, Michael Guggenberger and Jeremy Bagshaw, can sail a fairly direct course to the finish, but both have to deal with adverse winds. This is a major downer, especially for Guggenberger, because his second passage of the doldrums was particularly difficult for the Austrian. In the second half of the week he finally seemed to be through that, but less than a day later the wind dropped again. Very frustrating. In the meantime the wind has returned and Guggenberger can start chasing the front runners again.

For Chichester Class sailor Bagshaw things looked a lot brighter in terms of wind. After a few weeks of heavy weather conditions, the South African sailor was finally able to enjoy sailing in the South Atlantic and the week ahead also looks favorable. So hopefully Bagshaw can make some good progress north.

Cover photo: Nora Havel / GGR

You can read all about the Golden Globe Race and a weekly report on our special race page or listen to our podcast for an extra race review. Would you rather track the sailors every day? Then check the live tracker of the organization.

Tags: Golden Globe Race 2022, solo sailing, competitive sailing Last modified: April 16, 2023