Conrad Colman closes in on Martinique after eventful trans-Atlantic crossing, in the Transat Cafe LOR race

Kiwi sailor Conrad Colman is about to complete one of his grittiest passages yet. After 19 days, 8 and a quarter hours at sea, he is now within 50 nautical miles of Martinique, his IMOCA 60 footer at just over 11 knots and closing fast on the finish of the Transat Café L’Or.

Colman has raced this edition two handed with an unlikely co-skipper: French ultramarathon runner Mathieu Blanchard, who had never set foot on a sailboat until a few weeks before the start. The pairing has become one of the stories of the race, mixing raw seamanship with sheer endurance grit.

Their run across the Atlantic has been anything but smooth. They suffered two major technical failures, including an autopilot breakdown and the complete loss of their radar, ripped off the mast by a rogue sheet. The radar failure forced a return to shore for repairs before they could reset and charge back into the fleet.

Conrad and Mathieu are nearly done on the Transat Cafe LOR

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Conditions across the IMOCA course have been just as wild, swinging between gale-strength blasts and glassy patches calm enough to sunbathe. Through all of it, the Kiwi–French duo have kept the boat moving, kept their humour, and kept pushing.

Now, with land almost in sight, Colman and Blanchard are set to wrap up a long, hard transatlantic slog worthy of real respect.

A big congratulations to Conrad and Mathieu from all of us following from New Zealand.

We are standing by for the finish line – the photos and, all going well, the video (early-mid afternoon here in New Zealand, albeit most likely nearly 9pm local time at their arrival time)!