With less than three weeks to go until the start of the Vendee Globe, the famous dock in Les Sables d’Olonne is already rammed. Mike Golding and Alex Thomson kindly gave us a tour of the boats – see part 1 here. Favourite for line honours is Banque Populaire skipper Armel le Cleac’h who tells us about his second campaign. Esimit Europa 2 took line honours in the Rolex Middle Sea Race. See the report from the latest round of the Garmin Hamble Winter Series and MDL Hamble Big Boat Series. In the Nord Stream Race for the Swan 60s around the Baltic, leg two into Sweden finished yesterday. Big winds are hampering racing at the Ronstan A-Class Worlds.