"It’s been a pretty horrible period going on the ‘wrong’ gybe [feeling like he is sailing away from the next mark] but in the end I have followed the routing option. That involves taking some pain but I can see that Dominique had gybed too and the files show he should have less wind and so I am hoping I will be OK against him.
Really with this high moving south, it is just about mitigating the slow down. The high will go forward too, ultimately, and might even catch Jean Le Cam. When we are behind it, we should be moving reasonably quickly and can maybe come in on the back of it a bit.
It has been quite busy with a couple of gybes and sail changes. To be honest the sail changes were hardly very glamorous. I had a couple of snarl ups. I don’t think that is down to tiredness in particular. These are things that I’ve maybe done 100 times and they go like clockwork but sometimes these things happen.
It has been quite a busy period. Physically I am OK, but you do feel the fatigue. You need to be in harmony with the boat, in the rhythm of the race and with the weather. But when you get out of phase a bit then it is easy to get into a virtuous circle. For sure I think that when you are ahead then things go well and feel easier, but I would bet that the guys who are chasing the leaders feel themselves to be working harder, doing more and finding it harder than the guys in front. When you are chasing it is hardest."
