Our Mate Alex Thomson’s Races
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Astounding. What a feat. It sounds like they're in a cement mixer.
Yep.
Looks like 2 more have bitten the dust….
https://www.vendeeglobe.org/en/news/20755/sebastien-simon-has-his-race-on-hold-as-he-heads-north
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The Vendée Globe is a war of attrition. I can't remember the statistics, but I think that you can expect at least a third of the fleet to retire.
I'm sorry to hear that Sam Davies looks to be out of the race. She seems to have been unlucky getting projects off the ground, despite having a decent record in competition.
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I was reading her story this afternoon, and she was making 20+knots when she struck something underwater. She said she went from 20 to 0. She inspected her boat and it seems that the keel is intact, but where it attaches to the boat is severely compromised.
She also mentioned that she had just set down for dinner when this happened. Now the inside of her boat is decorated with it.
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Yep, the team flew out a few days ago.
I guess the damage will be assessed and a decision made as to whether to fix and sail, or pop it on a boat transporter and ship home that way.
I guess that time is not of the essence, as there should not be any IMOCA 60 races in the diary for a while, as most of the "competitive" boats are supposed to be tied up in the Vendee for another few weeks.
I would think Alex will come home for Christmas.
I'm really interested to learn what his plans will be. This was going to be his last big one (well the 2016 race was too), but will he want his Vendee legacy to be this? I would think he has probably had a few days of pretty miserable soul searching…
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Thanks G.
After reading the comments of support and admiration on his Facebook page, you understand how many people respect and cheer for him, as do I.
I really think that a victory is in his cards and would love to see him make another run, but completely understand if he doesn’t.
