General Situation:
This Saturday, sustained west to northwest flow in the Channel between an anticyclone at 1027 hPa centered north of the Azores and a depression at 983 hPa centered between Iceland and Scotland.
Sunday, anticyclonic edge situation with a ridge stretching from the Azores to Germany. Weak to moderate southwesterly flow in the Channel.
Monday, weak to moderate southwesterly flow in the Channel, on the edge of an anticyclone centered in the Baltic Sea.
Weather conditions in Le Havre
Saturday August 24
Very cloudy skies with the passage of a very active rain front and sustained and stormy rains in the afternoon.
Wind: moderate southerly flow, 20 to 30 km/h (gusts to 50 km/h) in the morning, turning to moderate southwest in the afternoon (20 to 30 km/h and gusts to 60 km/h)
Temperatures: 18 to 20°C
Chance of precipitation: 100%
Weather conditions for departure from Le Havre this Sunday, August 25 at 3 p.m.
After having convoyed from Rouen to Le Havre this Friday, August 23, the skippers will set sail from the Bay of Seine this Sunday, August 25 at 3 p.m. The fleet will leave the bay under a moderate west-southwest flow of 12-15 knots with maximum possible gusts of up to 25 knots. The conditions are therefore expected to be more settled than initially forecast. These medium conditions promise a beautiful spectacle at the start of the race. However, the sky will be predominantly cloudy and a few light showers are not excluded (risk of 45%). The sea will be calm with waves of 0.8 to 1 meter on average.
Sea conditions this Sunday August 25 and following night
The sailors should head northwest to reach, in a rapidly strengthening southwest wind, as they return to the Channel. In the evening, the southwest wind will reach a good twenty knots on average with gusts of up to 28 knots. The sea will become rough with waves of nearly 1.5 meters. In the middle of the night, as they pass Cape Hague, the conditions will become more sporty and tricky. They will have to juggle between the tidal currents (spring tides) and the passage of a front that will give southwest gusts of more than 30 knots.
Sea conditions this Monday, August 26
In the morning, most sailors should round the TSD (traffic separation scheme) to the south by tacking into a southwesterly flow that is becoming less sustained. They will sail in a southwesterly flow of 15 to 18 knots (gusts of 25 knots). The aim will be to take the most direct course towards Wolf Rock southwest of British Cornwall. In the afternoon, the wind will shift from the left to settle to the south-southwest, which will allow them to recover a good angle to the wind to join a quasi-direct course. In the evening, they will progress along British Cornwall reaching under a well and more established southerly flow of 20-25 knots, ahead of a front in the Irish Sea.
Sea conditions this Tuesday, August 27
At the very end of the night from Monday to Tuesday, they will have passed the Wolf Rock mark in a southerly flow of 20-25 knots. As they progress towards the south, the sea will become rough to strong with a westerly swell of 2.5 metres. They will progress close-hauled under a easing southerly flow of 15-20 knots, forcing them to tack to keep their course, which will lengthen their route. Note that the sailors will have an interest in taking a fairly westerly route to keep enough air and progress more quickly. They will maintain these conditions until the evening. The following night, the southerly wind will ease significantly and they will have to try at all costs to avoid a zone of calm as they leave the Iroise Sea. This will certainly give the skippers some options before the descent of the Bay of Biscay.