How do you race 3,000 miles across the Atlantic? Inside The Ocean Race's extreme demands

The objective in The Ocean Race Atlantic sounds remarkably simple: get to France before everybody else.

Working out how to do it is considerably more complicated.

The six teams racing across the North Atlantic are not simply pointing their 60-foot IMOCA yachts towards Lorient and sailing as quickly as possible. Every hour brings decisions over weather, ocean currents, boat speed, reliability and the physical condition of the sailors themselves.

The shortest route is not necessarily the fastest. Pushing the boat to its limit is not necessarily the quickest way to reach the finish. Even choosing which part of the Atlantic to sail through can ultimately decide who wins.

So how do you actually race a yacht across 3,000 nautical miles of open ocean?

Watch The Ocean Race Atlantic live and free on DAZN.

Finding the fastest route across the Atlantic

The Ocean Race

Draw a line between New York and Lorient on a map and the temptation is obvious: follow it.

Ocean racing does not work like that.

The crews are effectively racing the weather as much as they are racing each other. Wind direction and strength can transform one part of the Atlantic into a high-speed motorway while leaving another boat struggling through comparatively light conditions.

That makes weather routing one of the most important strategic elements of the race.

Teams study forecasts and developing weather systems to calculate where the strongest conditions are likely to be and, crucially, where they will be several hours or days into the future.

A boat can therefore sail considerably farther than a rival and still arrive first if the longer route allows it to maintain substantially higher speeds.

That calculation is particularly significant in the 2026 race. After leaving New York, the fleet is attempting to connect with a low-pressure system moving east across the North Atlantic. If the leading crews can position themselves correctly, the system could provide strong winds capable of carrying them at remarkable speeds towards Europe.

It creates one of offshore racing's great strategic dilemmas: how far are you prepared to sail away from the obvious route in pursuit of something faster?

Why the Gulf Stream matters in The Ocean Race

Then there is the ocean itself.

The Gulf Stream is one of the most powerful ocean currents on Earth, carrying warm water from the Gulf of Mexico northwards along the eastern coast of the United States before continuing across the North Atlantic.

For The Ocean Race Atlantic fleet, it is not simply something to cross. Used correctly, it can become part of the route.

The current offers a fast passage towards the north-east and can help the boats make rapid progress towards Europe. It also interacts with the atmosphere above it, helping create the weather systems and strong winds that can produce exceptionally fast Atlantic crossings.

But taking advantage of it requires precision.

Currents change, weather systems move and the fastest route when a navigator examines the forecast can look very different hours later.

That means the crews are constantly reassessing the picture around them rather than committing to one route from New York and simply following it to France.

The Gulf Stream will also serve another purpose during this race. The boats are carrying scientific equipment to collect ocean data as they cross the Atlantic, turning some of the world's fastest offshore racing yachts into moving research platforms while they compete.

How do sailors sleep during The Ocean Race?

There is another problem with racing continuously across an ocean: the sailors cannot.

The boats do not stop at night. There are no scheduled breaks and no opportunity for an entire crew to sleep while the yacht waits for morning.

Instead, sailors operate through watch systems, rotating responsibilities so that part of the crew can rest while others continue racing the boat.

That makes sleep a performance issue rather than simply a matter of comfort.

Too little rest and mistakes become more likely. Take too much and the crew may not have enough people available when conditions demand a sail change, manoeuvre or particularly intense period of racing.

And rest aboard an IMOCA bears little resemblance to a normal night's sleep.

The sailors are attempting to recover inside a 60-foot racing yacht travelling at high speed through the North Atlantic, surrounded by the noise and movement of a boat designed primarily for performance rather than comfort.

Managing fatigue over several days can therefore become just as important as finding another fraction of a knot of boat speed.

Why The Ocean Race boats cannot simply sail flat-out

The fastest way across the Atlantic might appear to be pushing the boat as hard as possible for every one of the 3,000 nautical miles.

There is one fairly significant problem with that strategy: you need the boat to reach France.

Modern IMOCA yachts are extraordinary machines. The foil-assisted boats can sustain enormous speeds offshore, and favourable conditions during this race could even put the 24-hour distance record of 641.13 nautical miles within reach.

But speed creates load.

The harder a yacht is pushed through powerful winds and rough seas, the greater the strain placed on its sails, foils, rigging and other components.

A small advantage gained by sailing aggressively can become meaningless if something breaks and the crew is forced to slow down to make repairs.

That makes reliability part of the race strategy.

Crews must judge when conditions justify attacking and when preserving the boat could ultimately prove quicker. The calculation is particularly intriguing for teams racing brand-new yachts, including Team Malizia and DMG MORI Sailing Team, which are discovering how their latest boats behave in competition while simultaneously trying to win the race.

Boat speed versus strategy: What decides The Ocean Race?

Eventually, all of those calculations meet.

A fast boat can lose by choosing the wrong weather system. A perfectly positioned yacht can surrender its advantage through damage. A tired crew can make the mistake that costs hours. And a team apparently sailing in the wrong direction can suddenly emerge ahead because it found stronger wind hundreds of miles away.

That uncertainty is fundamental to offshore racing.

The Ocean Race Atlantic began with the six boats separated by seconds. Over thousands of miles of ocean, tiny differences in speed and decision-making can grow into enormous gaps.

For the crews, the challenge is therefore not simply to sail fastest.

It is to know where to sail fast, when to push, when to protect the boat and how to keep four sailors performing while the Atlantic changes around them.

Only then does the final part become simple again: reach Lorient before everybody else.

How to watch The Ocean Race Atlantic on DAZN

The Ocean Race Atlantic is available to watch live and for free on DAZN worldwide.

Fans can follow the action across the Atlantic through daily OnBoard Live programmes featuring coverage directly from the fleet.

The 30-minute daily shows will be available from September 2-8 at 4pm BST / 5pm CEST / 11am EDT / 3pm UTC.

To watch The Ocean Race Atlantic on DAZN:

• Sign in or register for a free DAZN account
• From the DAZN homepage, select 'Sports'
• Choose 'Sailing' from the list of sports
• Click The Ocean Race Atlantic to watch live

Watch The Ocean Race Atlantic live and for free on DAZN.