The majority of the Vendée Globe skippers are now sailing in the Roaring Forties (except Alessandro Di Benedetto, and soon Tanguy de Lamotte). This is an area located between the 40th degrees latitude and the 50th degrees latitude in the southern hemisphere, where winds are often strong and the sea sometimes daunting. Jean Le Cam (SynerCiel) explains the roaring forties: “For me, this is the moment where you're really sailing around the world. You are really sailing east and you turn around the pole. What surprises me every time is the temperature which changes suddenly. In two days you can lose 20 °. The ocean is completely open on the Antarctic so obviously it’s awfully cold.”
Worse than the South Pacific
In the southern hemisphere, the contrasts of temperature and pressure at mid-latitudes are more pronounced than in the northern hemisphere. The absence of continental mass, allows the development of high depressions. At the Kerguelen’s level, this effect is enhanced by the proximity of the African continent, where the air "overheated" encounters the polar air. This is why the roaring forties and furious fifties are worse in this area than in the South Pacific for example. There are very violent winds and a big seas, especially in the south of the Indian Ocean.
