Twenty four-hours into the inaugural edition of The Ocean Race Atlantic, the six IMOCA crews remain closely packed after a tense and tactical first night at sea.
At 17:00 BST / 19:00 CEST Thursday, as the fleet headed eastward in around 15 knots of south-easterly breeze, just 87 miles separated the race leader Team Malizia (GER) from the non-foiling MSIG Europe in sixth place.
After powering off the start line yesterday to leeward of their competitors, Team Malizia showed impressive speed in the lumpy sea state to lead the pack to south-east and into the hours of darkness.
Skipper Boris Herrmann said the crew was pleased with the performance of their brand-new boat so far.
For now, the crews are locked in a drag race to be the first to reach stronger southerly winds on the outer edges of a newly-forming low pressure system to the east of the fleet. The effects of this new breeze are already being felt by the top five foilers, who have accelerated to speeds up 20 knots at times this afternoon.
For those who manage their boats best, there is the tantalising prospect of hitching a ride on the low pressure system as it pushes east – potentially all the way across the North Atlantic.