This Vendée Globe is certainly full of surprises. Just when the race seemed to be taking a more serene turn, Alexia Barrier decided to play a stuntwoman in the middle of the night aboard her IMOCA. A small fall that could have had serious consequences.
“Making good progress off Cape Verde, it’s choppy when sailing upwind,” describes the woman from the Côte d’Azur aboard TSE-4MyPlanète, sailing at 10.7 nautical miles in winds around 20 knots. The rather mild conditions didn’t prevent our local skipper from playing the stuntwoman: “Last night I pulled off a stunt inside the boat while I was trying to change my underwear, I fell on my back onto this part (a sort of PVC pipe). I was taking care of myself, putting a bit of talcum powder and changing my underwear at 1 a.m. UTC. Now I can’t really move much. Fortunately, I was able to consult with the race doctor Jean-Yves Chauve, who diagnosed me remotely as is done in offshore races and prescribed medication. Priority number 1, was to be able to go to the bathroom, check. Thank you meds! Priority number 2, to get my hydrogenerator back in the water so I can produce energy. That’s done too! So, I’m in turtle mode for the next few days. Fortunately, the weather is quite stable, and I won’t have any maneuvers to perform. It’s part of life sometimes to fall, you just have to get back up, keep smiling, and move forward,” she says positively. A beautiful philosophy that reflects the state of mind that has been driving Alexia Barrier since the beginning of the race.
In 99 days, she has experienced all sorts of adventures with her “penguin.” She has gone through all the emotions, from the excitement of the start to the fear of her dismasting, and then the emotion of passing Cape Horn under the eyes of her loved ones. The adventure will continue, not without some pains that will fade over the last 2,500 nautical miles remaining before she finds her family and her entire team who will make her forget all her woes on the docks of Les Sables d’Olonne.
