Vendee Globe updates

[Guest]

Alex Thomson, Hugo Boss, third place in the 2012-2013 Vendée Globe

 

Alex Thomson crossed the Vendée Globe finish line at 07 hours 25 minutes 43 seconds (GMT) after 80 days 19 hours 23 minutes 43 seconds at sea. He finishes 2 days 18 hours and 7 minutes behind François Gabart.

 

His final race time is 80 days 19 hours 25 minutes 43 seconds. His average speed around the course was 12.6 knots and he actually covered 28, 022 miles at the average speed of 14.4 knots. Note: the race’s theoretical distance was 24,393.41 miles.

After Ellen MacArthur's second place in 2000 and Mike Golding's third in 2005, Alex Thomson becomes the third British skipper ever to finish on the podium of the Vendee Globe. But his time surpasses that of the Golding's previous British solo race record from 2005 by 7 days 19 hours 52 minutes. After winner Francois Gabart and second placed Armel Le Cleac'h, Thomson has also smashed the previous race record of 84 days 03 hours 09 minutes set by Michel Desjoyeaux in 2009.

 

Third Time Lucky Thomson’s Third

 

The mantra pre start which Alex Thomson never stopped repeating was that his main goal was just to finish this Vendée Globe. By finally completing his first ever non stop circumnavigation in third position, the Hugo Boss skipper broke the run of bad luck that had plagued his two previous Vendée Globe attempts. His podium finish also shows the British skipper is as combative and quick as ever.

 

Regatta time

Despite the fast rhythm the leaders imposed on the race, Alex Thomson showed he could handle speed and transitions. Never far away from the front runners, he definitely led the race of the “older generation” yachts, sailing his Hugo Boss at a sustained high speed.

One of the signs showing Alex was immediately in full regatta race mode is the claim he filed against some other skippers for not following the official rules of the race regarding the Finisterre Traffic Separation Scheme. Even though the same claim was perfectly justified and filed jointly with the Race Direction, it was met with some misunderstanding. Alex would have to wait to bury his punchy reputation as something of a renegade, but with this result he has been warmly applauded for his great result with a boat, which is not of the latest generation.

 

Express repairs

Alex Thomson’s race has been nothing short of exemplary. Despite technical problems on his Farr-designed yacht, he managed to hang on to the leaders. Right after the Doldrums, the mounting bracket of one of his hydrogenerators came undone and broke the tie bar that keeps the two rudders connected. It was a key moment for the British skipper - who is not exactly renowned for his boat building skills. But he had to fix it fast or run the risk of letting the fleet leaders break away. He turned his autopilot on and, while the boat was progressing at an average speed of 18 knots, he not only set up a composite material workshop on board and proceeded to repair the bracket, but also made a short, informative video report of the repair. And despite this he therefore stayed in contact with the leaders, entering the Indian Ocean 150 miles – less than half a day – behind them.

 

A light foot in a lead shoe

The Indian Ocean turned out to be a rite of passage for Alex, whose reputation had always been the one of a sailor who pushes his boats hard, sometimes too hard and beyond their limits. He showed he had learned to curb his impulsiveness. His smart approach and choices allowed him to never get outdistanced by the frontrunners and stay a few miles behind Gabart, Le Cléac’h, Dick and Stamm. He obviously learned from his previous races and stayed in the race until he finished on the podium.

 

Radio silence

But that did not mean Alex’s troubles were over, as the British sailor had to face hydrogenerator trouble again, forcing him to either repair at all cost or forget about finishing his round-the-world race. The Hugo Boss skipper therefore decided to drastically limit his communication with the outside world, a real sacrifice for a man who is always in need of expressing his feelings and exchanging with his family and friends. He did not give up, though, and after rounding Cape Horn, he finally managed to successfully carry out the necessary repairs. He was still in fourth place and sailed through the Doldrums with his sights set on one thing and one thing only: Coming back on Jean-Pierre Dick, 150 miles ahead of him.

 

A noble gesture

When Jean-Pierre Dick lost his keel on Monday, January 21, he also put Thomson in the spotlight. The Virbac-Paprec 3 skipper was getting prepared to face terrible weather off the Azores when the Hugo Boss skipper spontaneously and sportingly decided to change his heading and stay close to Dick in case the Nice-based sailor found himself in a dangerous situation. Having lost his keel in the South Indian Ocean in 2006 and been rescued by fellow competitor Mike Golding, Thomson fully empathised with the situation and said later there is no way he would have considered leaving Dick to his own devices. By doing so, the British sailor also let go of the hope of sailing around the world in less than 80 days. But by finishing the Vendée Globe on such a noble note, Thomson achieved something even more important than breaking a record: he won a place in the public’s heart and in the race history.

[Guest]

Three down with nine to go. So François Gabart (MACIF), Armel Le Cléac’h (Banque Populaire), François Gabart (MACIF) and Alex Thomson (Hugo Boss) may have written the opening lines of the epilogue of the seventh Vendée Globe, but there remains nine pretenders to yet end the tale. Today, the plotline revolves around a tired, lonely, Jean-Pierre Dick (Virbac Paprec 3) moored keel-less to a buoy for three days with too much time to think and not enough food or fuel. He is waiting for a weather window so that he can begin his 291 miles journey back to Les Sables d’Olonne. So near yet so far.

 

After 24 hours of surfing the coast to round Cape Finisterre in 30 knots of wind, rough seas, amongst the busy maritime motorway of cargo ships and fishing boats, a sleep deprived Jean-Pierre Dick (Virbac Paprec 3) has found shelter along the Galician coast, in the mining port of San Ciprián (San Cibrao). At 5:30 this morning, Virbac-Paprec 3 picked up a mooring buoy in the harbour, protected from the prevailing winds and the sea

 

On today’s Vendée Globe Live, Jean-Pierre said he was exhausted. He was planning to dive and check to the boat so he could further secure it in face of an incoming gale expected between late Thursday lasting until Friday. He also indicated that he had used his engine, which broke the engine seal, in order to finalize his approach to the buoy. He must write a report to the jury to explain the facts. A second report will be issued to specify the start time.The jury will then decide his fate.

 

Re-start on Sunday?

The big question is when will he be able to resume his route to Les Sables d'Olonne? A potential weather window opens in just over 48 hours. "I set myself a limit of 25 knots of wind " he explained. In the Bay of Biscay, this weekend, the weather should improve. Virbac-Paprec 3 is currently 291 miles from Les Sables d'Olonne. If he returned to the race on Sunday morning, realistically he could arrive in the Vendée on Monday night. A double victory, fourth place and also, managing to successfully sail 2200 miles without keel.

 

A fair weather fight

In the south-west of Madeira and Jean Le Cam (SynerCiel) and Mike Golding (Gamesa) are enjoying good conditions and speed on the edge of a depression as they pick miles off the mark, Les Sables d’Olonne. Soon the Azores High will force them to climb up towards the British coast and then descend down onto the finish line.

 

If the High remains stationary, the gang of four pursuers, Dominique Wavre (Mirabaud), Arnaud Bossières (Akena Verandas), Javier Sanso (Acciona 100% EcoPowered) and Bertrand De Broc (Votre Nom Autour du Monde avec EDM) will also be forced to detour through the great north.

And so, this group of six boats, to which we must add Bernard Stamm (Cheminées Poujoulat), should all arrive in Les Sables d'Olonne next week with a series of arrivals which will run from 6 to 10 February.

 

For Tanguy de Lamotte (Initiatives Cœur) currently in the doldrums and Alessandro Di Benedetto (Team Plastique) just off Salvador de Bahia, the end of the race will be around mid-February.

[Guest]

More to come in the morning

 

The technical team Initiatives Heart received a call at 4:18 Tanguy (French time) this morning. Following a collision with a UFO, the rudder was already damaged is now broken. But mostly drifting port would be seriously affected. In the collision, the drift has pivoted into its well causing a leak in the front compartment of the vessel.

[benny14 6]

ACCIONA 100% Eco Powered Capsizes, Javier Sanso in his liferaft awaiting rescue

 

ARTICLES | Sunday 03 February 2013, 20:20

 

This Sunday morning 3rd Feburary around 1049hrs UTC two distress beacons of ACCIONA 100% EcoPowered, skippered by Spanish solo sailor Javier Sanso which is racing in the Vendée Globe non stop solo round the world race were triggered. The alarms were received at 1052hrs UTC.

 

 

At 1049hrs UTC the boat was positioned at 31° 59.00 N 27 26.24 W, so 500 miles west of Madeira and 360 miles south of the Azores island of Sao Miguel

 

 

Weather conditions in the area that Sanso was sailing were a NE’ly wind of 15kts. The boat was racing upwind in a moderate trade winds swell. Prior to the incident all was reported to be well on board, only minutes before Sanso had e-mailed a daily report to Race Direction.

 

 

 

At 1110hrs UTC (1210hrs local time Les Sables d’Olonne, France) Vendée Globe Race Direction were alerted by Ricardo Maldonado, the manager of ACCIONA sailing team, who informed Vendee Globe Race Direction that MRCC Madrid had received the warning that two EPIRB distress beacons (COSPAS/SARSAT) had been activated.

 

 

 

Immediately Race Direction in Les Sables d’Olonne, the MRCC Ponta Delgada (Azores) and CROSS Griz Nez tried to contact the IMOCA Open 60 ACCIONA but received no reply.

 

 

MRCC Ponta Delgada then requested an aerial reconnaissance of the area by plane. A C295 plane was on zone by 1630hrs UTC. On arrival they found Javier Sanso in his liferaft. Sanso made hand signals and smoke signals (smoke hand flare) next to his capsized boat.

 

 

At 1650hrs UTC this information was confirmed to Race Direction by MRCC Ponta Delgada.

 

 

At 1750hrs UTC an EH101 helicopter was dispatched from the Azores island of Terceira heading to the zone to effect the rescue of Javier Sanso and is expected to be in the area by 2300hrs UTC.

[Guest]

Thanks for that one Benny. Heres what else has been goign on the fleet and its been a drama filled last 12 hours.

 

Vendée Globe skippers know only too well that their own race is not over until the finish line is crossed. And although the Southern oceans delivered relatively benign conditions for this edition, the ascent of the Atlantic, for different reasons, has again issued reminders that anything can happen at any time.

Jean-Pierre Dick was 550 miles south from the Azores when his keel broke off 11 days ago, his damage consequently handing over his third place to Briton Alex Thomson. And last night, at around 0200hrs UTC Tanguy de Lamotte, some 440 miles to the SW of the Cape Verde islands hit something in the water which damaged his rudder and his keel.

 

Also climbing the Atlantic Alessandro Di Benedetto, the Italian skipper of Team Plastique is very much compromised at the moment having lost or damaged all of his downwind sails, although he is still working to complete a gennaker repar.

 

Such incidents, even so close to the conclusion of the race, still issue a reminder to the remaining skippers – racing tired boats with tired bodied and minds - that even though they stay on a high state of vigilance the element of fate, of simple bad luck in being in the wrong place at the wrong time, can also seriously affect, or even terminate their race.

And so on the 85th day of racing since leaving Les Sables d’Olonne on 10th November there is still a high level of stress aboard the nine IMOCA Open 60’s which remain on course.

 

Dick back on course

 

Jean-Pierre Dick, seeking to finish his final 290 miles across the Bay of Biscay, left his mooring in the Spanish haven of San Cyprian in Galicia at 0720hrs this Sunday morning in very light conditions, giving himself the best chance of a gentle restart into the race, ready to enjoy the optimum evolution of the wind conditions from light to moderate to fresh reaching conditions. Dick is expected now in Les Sables d’Olonne between midday and 2000hrs, and was taking it easy through the early stages of his final passage. Dick is still waiting for the Jury decision concerning his use of his engine whilst mooring, but remains confident that his action will be looked on objectively:

 

“ I think I made the right choice.” Dick told Vendée Globe LIVE! today on the subject of his Spanish pitstop, “ I don’t know exactly when I’ll be in Les Sables, it should be between midday and 8PM tomorrow. I’m also waiting for the jury decision about my stop and the fact I used the engine. I hope they will understand it was for the good of my boat.”

 

De Lamotte : ‘I can go on’

Tanguy de Lamotte is determined that the damage to his rudder, daggerboard and daggerboard casing will not halt his progress towards the finish of his first Vendée Globe. He spent several hours almost stopped head to wind as he sought to make some running repairs. His starboard rudder is broken and his port daggerboard is crushed, jammed in the daggerboard casing whilst it and some cracks around it are letting in water. As a former preparateur if there is anyone left in the race who has the skills as well as the drive to keep going, then Tanguy is the one:

 

“The daggerboard took the first of the impact, it is completely tilted back and cracked the daggerboard case. There is water entering the boat. I have been going slowly since and that allows me to limit the amount of water which comes in, especially protecting the boat’s electrics. The situation is under control but it is vital that I remove the daggerboard so I can plug the holes.”

De Lamotte was moving slightly quicker this afternoon, making just under four knots but has around 2700 miles to make to the finish.

Meantime Alessandro Di Benedetto is also compromised but still making a good 11.5kts despite lacking downwind sails.

Hand to hand, head to head

 

The duel between Jean Le Cam and Mike Golding, tussling over fifth place, continues to simmer around the Azores high pressure. Yesterday the French skipper was staying tight lipped, silent through the day forcing the British skipper to wonder…. ‘he has gone strangely quiet at the moment, hasn't he…’ whilst Le Cam himself told Vendée Globe live that he too just focuses on his own race.

“ I like my position. Now I have to deal with the weather as it comes. So far I’ve been doing some good work, but I don’t want to speak too soon because in half an hour it might change. I’m focused on my own job and I don’t think about anything or anyone else.”

 

His sole adversary Golding conceded:

“ We are very close to be honest, you can't split the difference except to say I think Jean's routing is the safer bet, but on the other hand there is another high coming in and Jean ends up potentially in some difficulty in getting going really but we'll have to see.”

 

“ It all depends on timing and it seems like the two routes are very, very similar but of course there are lots of other variables, the file might not be perfect and so on. By dividing like this it gives me more possibilities to get past Jean.”

From being 85 miles ahead this morning, Golding held an advantage of 62 miles on the 1500hrs UTC ranking this Sunday afternoon.

[Guest]

Javier Sanso (ACCIONA 100% EcoPowered) safe and sound

 

 

 

Lifted off his liferaft by helicopter at 2340hrs UTC last night Javier Sanso, the Spanish skipper of ACCIONA 100% EcoPowered arrived to the Azores island of Terceira at 0330hrs UTC this morning. He was examined by a doctor in the helicopter who did not find any signs of hypothermia and at the military base in Terceira the Spanish sailor was further examined by doctors. At 0430hrs UTC Sanso made a call to Vendée Globe Race Direction to confirm that all is well.

[Guest]

LEGENDRY FINISH

 

Jean-Pierre Dick on Virbac-Paprec 3 finished fourth in the Vendée Globe arriving with no keel. He received a huge welcome to Les Sables d’Olonne today. Here are his key quotes and thoughts :

 

The Vendée Globe welcome afforded to fourth placed Jean-Pierre Dick by a huge and passionate crowd was one worthy of a race winner. Having sailed more than 2500 miles with no keel, having lead the race – his third participation – and having been among the top three for most of the course, all clearly inspired a big, partisan crowd to take to the channel into the heart of Les Sables d’Olonne this afternoon to welcome ‘ JP’. The skipper who is originally from Nice and only really took to the IMOCA class ten years ago left Les Sables d’Olonne 88 days ago as one of the favourites and returned one of the outstanding heroes. Dick took disappointments in his stride but they took their toll on his overall performance. First, he recalled, he lost a key small gennaker in the water – one which would have been his reaching workhorse in the South which forced him to re-think his strategy at times. Then he struggled with a jammed halyard hook which left him unable to set the optimum headsail for some time. He eventually climbed the mast of Virbac-Paprec 3 several times to free it but lost more miles. His problems were capped when he lost his keel on the evening of 21st Janaury.

And so his fourth place reflects the incredible tenacity of JP Dick. He concluded with a Chinese proverb:

“The goal is not in the goal but in the pathway.”

 

Jean-Pierre Dick on the podium:

 

On stopping in Galicia:

“ It was very difficult in the north of Spain to try and get some rest. I had to try and make the most of that time to get the rest because it had been so stressful around Cape Finisterre with big waves because there was a good chance of the boat capsizing then. I managed to get the sail reduced, but yes it was really tough. I was really pleased to stop there and get some rest.”

 

On the welcome back, mooring in Spain and sailing with no keel.

“The welcome here has been extraordinary. That transition between being alone and arriving here makes me so proud to be here. The main feeling I have is pride, I am so proud just now of getting my boat back here across the finish line. It was not easy and I was not sure I would finish and so that is important too. And also finishing in a good position, that is important too. You have to really want to do it. And really dig deep into yourself to bring the boat home. I really tried to work the depression but it was not easy without a keel. It is this race which lets you do that and it is this public which appreciates it, it is just magical. So you can just about make it without a keel but only if you are super safe with reduced sail and then you can rest a bit, but as soon as you get more than 20% a heel then you have to be careful, you can heel too much and so you have to keep a small headsail area and the mainsail reefed right down to what you need. We like going fast as a racer, you want to go fast. So obviously when the wind gets up you want to go faster. And so you have to change your thinking. Three days on the mooring and you are rested and then you have to remember to go along slowly.

 

On safety and security changes since the last Vendée Globe and the most stress, at Cape Finisterre:

“Looking at the IMOCA today we did a lot of preparation inside the boat and with Jean Le Cam’s experience, I have changed a lot of the inside so I can close a lot of the compartments to make it more secure. You have a survival suit, and iridium phone, and there are a lot of advances in security, and so you know that you grab the right things. That luxury was not available to people in the past. Things have really moved on and that is good. You can have special alarms and can speak on the VHF over long distances which makes you feel more secure. Cape Finisterre really was tough, a bit cross swell, fishing boats which don’t show up on the AIS, the automatic positioning system, but you cant sleep. There are boats all around you, there are cargo ships all around. At one point I crossed a bit cargo and they go straight on. They don’t see you and they go straight on. I saw him on the AIS. I had three or four minutes to change course, but it was close. I should have been ahead but chose not to.”

 

Advice on sailing with no keel and going on:

“Marc Guillemot and Roland Jourdain gave me advice, as much as I could gather which would be useful. Marc and I had a long chat, and he said it really you who makes the decision. I tried sailing like that but he said you are the one who makes the decision and it worked out in the end. The tough question was whether to carry on to Les Sables d’Olonne or to stop. That was a difficult and tough decision to take. There are dangers in stopping too, so going in to the right place, finding a mooring at the right time without too much tide and wind.

 

On mooring and using the engine

“It is strange to come in at night. Thankfully there was not too much wind to do the manoeuvres but I had to use the engine for one or two minutes because I was getting too close to the wall. You could not let go on the mooring for a minute. There was 35-40kts on the mooring and I went and swam around to put some extra rope around the mooring and so now here I am.

 

Looking at his race, the good and the bad:

“ I must say I was not expecting a Vendée Globe like this. I was really well prepared but the toughest things I had were when the loop on one of my sails broke in the south and I can remember at the time I was trying to get some rest and I was looking up through the hatchway to see that the sail was alright and suddenly there was nothing there. The sail had fallen into the water and gone under the boat and got stuck. That was just when I had moved into the lead. I had taken a good option and with that sail in the water it was my key sail. My small gennaker which I would rely on in the 25-30kts of wind in the south, I lost it and so I had to rethink how I would use the other sails.

 

So psychologically that was hard, realising that I would really have to fight to win and it was not really going to be possible. I did my best but did lose a few miles, maybe fifty or sixty miles where I just did not have much luck. I then got stuck in an anticyclone and Francois and Armel managed to get ahead about 500 miles and I just could never get back. I made to 250 miles, bit by bit, but then I had a few other technical issues. I had to go up the mast two or three times to fix a hook which was stuck. There was a really big swell in the south and going up the mast there I went up a few times and it is impressive and managed to fix it in the end without losing too much ground and then I had the problem with the forestay when the strop

 

And from his Press Conference:

 

Overall.

“ It’s a wonderful feeling. I’m back home. Somehow you forget all of these faces a little bit when you’re alone and far away during three months. It’s a real pleasure to see everyone. It’s a great. It’s going to be one of my best memories.

 

One of his last races with Imoca?

I’m proud of my races in the IMOCA. It’s been a great adventure. Single-handed sailing is incredibly hard on you mentally. You have to deal with yourself; you must know how to do everything. My dream was to win the Vendée Globe; I didn’t manage to do it… yet!

 

Scariest moment.

The scariest moment was when I lost my keel. I had to fill my ballasts very quickly. It was a very complicated moment. Fortunately, I managed to do it well. There was a lot of water in the hole and I couldn’t see that much thing. I don’t know how it happened. It was suppose to be its last world tour. According to our calculations the keel was supposed to hold and that’s why we decided not to change it. It cost a lot of money. We had our contract with Virbac Paprec and we don’t renegotiate it every single day when we need something.

 

Stop in Galicia

My stop in Galicia was epic. When you sail into the IMOCA class, it’s not easy to come close to the coast. It was a tough decision. I chose this port because I though it was a good shelter. The most difficult part was to secure the boat. There were 35 knots of wind. I dived in order to attach my mooring line to a buoy. So it was very complicated. Remember what happen to Bernard Stamm, 4 years ago.

 

Mast climbing.

When you climb up the mast, you have to trust your automatic pilot. If I was up the mast when I lost my keel, I don’t know what would happen.

 

What did I learn?

When something bad happen and you manage to deal with it, you certainly get more and more confidence in yourself. I thing I learned to be more methodical.

 

Third or fourth place?

I’m a true competitor. My goal was to win this race, I finally changed it in to an adventure. I wanted to be in the top three, and I didn’t manage to do it. So regarding the sporting aspect it’s a failure. Now, I managed to bring the boat back to les Sables and this is a great thing. Anyway, I think it will now be complicated for me to recover from losing my third place

[Guest]

5th and 6th finish

 

Jean Le Cam crossed the finish line of the Vendée Globe at 12h:14m:58s UTC (local time France minus 1hr) this Wednesday 6th February to end a gale stricken final passage across the Bay of Biscay and secure fifth place overall after a long, protracted battle with English skipper Mike Golding, an adversary which he has enjoyed many previous encounters with, not least the 2004-5 edition of the race when Le Cam took second ahead of Golding’s third.

Le Cam’s elapsed time is 88 days 00 hours 12 min 58 sec. His average speed over the theoretical course of 24,394 miles is 11.5kts. He actually sailed 27,575 miles on the water at an average speed of 13.1 kts.

He finished 9 days 21hrs 56 mins 18 sec after race winner François Gabart (MACIF) and 1 day 21hrs 09 mins after fourth placed Jean-Pierre Dick. Sixth placed Golding had just 88 miles to the finish when Le Cam crossed the line.

 

Jean Le Cam has once more proven himself one of the most experienced, talented and wily skippers on the Vendée Globe course, not only delivering a good result considering the relative lack of racing miles he had completed in the IMOCA class since he abandoned in the 2008-9 edition, but again the charismatic Breton soloist has shared his experience with the public widely, passionately and with typically understated humour throughout the highs and lows of his race.

 

A late project

In fact Le Cam could be considered lucky to have made it into the race at all. At nine months before the start he still had hardly any backing for his quest to take the start line of his third Vendée Globe. Since his dramatic capsize on VM Materiaux before Cape Horn in the last edition it had seemed like an uphill struggle for Le Cam to land a major backer. And starting and not finishing the last Barcelona World Race, due to a broken mast, did not help his cause, especially considering the straitened economic times.

 

It was through the help of the Absolute Dreamer organisation that Jean Le Cam was able to set off on this race. In February when he started the project the clock really was ticking. He took the former boat of Loick Peyron, which lead the last Vendée Globe. It became Renault ZE and completed the last Barcelona World Race which it finished undamaged in any way, but the Farr design was given a serious weight loss programme to try and allow Le Cam to be more competitive with the newer generation boats.

 

Given the limited time before the start, Le Cam chose to focus his efforts on the preparation of the boat rather than training against his contemporaries in Port La Fôret. “To compare you need to be evenly matched otherwise it is useless. I prefer to work to be ready and save my energy instead of pretending against guys who have been training for two years.”

The race itself runs something close to expectations. The latest generation boats sailed by the top seeds open the gap early. Speed potential and weather conditions which generally favour the leaders, play to the strengths of the newer boats. But Le Cam finds himself quickly locked into a group of close contemporaries he knows well, Mike Golding and Dominique Wavre. Crossing the Doldrums is good for the trio who pull back some miles on the leaders.

On entering the Roaring Forties, King Jean gets a rope around the bulb of his keel and the solo skipper finds himself with no choice but to dive to get rid of it. As soon as he has succeeded in the operation he makes sure, typically, that he sends images of his adventure. Short Le Cam videos are informative and entertaining, like when he learned of the penalties for the alleged infringement of the traffic separation zones off Cape Finisterre.

 

So close, so far

On the morning of December 7 Jean Le Cam and Dominique Wavre found themselves side by side on the waters of the Southern Ocean. Two of the most experienced racers, friends with huge respect for each other, sailed within a few metres of each other on a flat sea watched by an attendant albatross. It was one of the iconic images of this race. They sail in company for a few hours before their courses diverge. On 22nd December he gives his rivals the slip and in three days is nearly 500 miles ahead of Golding. And across the Pacific he maintains a relatively comfortable lead over his pursuers. He passed Cape Horn in fifth position close to the tip of Tierra del Fuego in the early morning with the Cape Horn light still illuminated. But in many respects this was the start of an Atlantic climb which was purgatory.

 

The South Atlantic offered little mercy to Le Cam and the group who pursued the leading four boats. Winds were variable, the seas often confused, and the most struggled with inaccuracies of the weather models and the climb from Cape Horn to the Equator was tough. Increasingly Le Cam had to watch the comeback of Mike Golding, who from being nearly 500 miles behind in the South Pacific came back to 0.7 of a mile as the pair converged courses between Rio and Recife. But to the Equator and beyond Le Cam managed to hold his lead over his British rival.

 

But the finale to their race proved to be a chess game around the Azores high pressure. Le Cam, who had the small speed advantage, went west – sailing more miles but to be rewarded with faster downwind and reaching angles – whilst Golding went east, fighting lighter winds but trying to sail shorter miles. Le Cam’s popularity in the race is evident at the finish. The crowds in Les Sables d’Olonne always ask to dream the Vendée Globe dream, but Le Cam – more than most – lives the dream and shares it from the heart in glorious technicolour.

 

The Vendée Globe of Jean Le Cam in figures

Biggest distance covered in 24 hours : 432 miles (18kts average) on the day of 30 November

- Les Sables – Equator : 11d 20h 08mn (does not beat his own record from 2004-1005 of 10d 11h 28mn)

- Equator to Cape of Good Hope : 12d 16h 40mn (record JP Dick 12d 02h40mn)

- Good Hope – Cap Leeuwin : 14d 03h 25mn (record F Gabart 11d 06h 40mn)

- Cap Leeuwin – Cap Horn : 20d 03h 03mn

- Cap Horn – Equator : 16d 11h 41mn

- Equator – Les Sables d’Olonne : 12d 17h 14min

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Mike Golding (GBR, Gamesa) finishes sixth in the Vendée Globe 2012-2013

 

 

When British skipper Mike Golding on Gamesa crossed the finish line of the Vendée Globe at 18h 38m 26s UTC this Wednesday 6th February he took sixth place. He became the first sailor ever to finish three Vendée Globe races and finished just 6 hours 23 mins and 28secs behind his French rival Jean Le Cam who he has been duelling with over fifth since early December.

Le Cam and Golding have a history as rivals including in the 2004-5 Vendée Globe when the Frenchman took second and Golding third, but their courses have crossed many times over the last dozen years on major solo and short handed ocean races.

 

Golding’s elapsed time is 88d 06h36min 26s. His average speed over the theoretical 24,393 miles course is 11.5kts. He actually sailed 27,281 miles on the water at an average speed of 12.9 kts. He finishes 10d 04h 19m and 46s behind the race winner François Gabart.

The British skipper had to reduce speed during the final 36 hours of the race when the gale force winds and big seas increase the ingress of water into his boat due to leaks in the keel box following the loss of a fairing at the front of the keel head.

 

Golding’s race

It would be fair to say that Mike Golding started his fourth Vendée Globe with high hopes of finishing on the podium. After all in the last, record-breaking edition of 2008-9 he was in the lead in the Southern Ocean when his mast crashed down.

 

And in recent races like the Transat Jacques Vabre and the B2B he was clearly still very competitive.

But from the early stages Golding, like his hugely experienced contemporaries Le Cam and Dominique Wavre, found that he could not quite match the latest generation design boats sailed by the likes of winner François Gabart and second placed Armel Le Cléac’h.

 

The Trio Together

By early in the Southern Ocean the small gaps grew very quickly as the chasing trio of 50-something year olds became parted from the leading group who were a weather system ahead. Neither in the Indian Ocean nor the Pacific were this chasing group given the chance to really catch miles. Often they struggled with lighter winds in high pressure systems and certainly never had the fast rides like Gabart, Jean-Pierre Dick, Le Cléac’h and Alex Thomson had. When Gabart was setting his new 24 hours record making 19-22kts, Golding, Le Cam and Wavre were making relatively modest speeds of 12-14kts.

 

Golding’s duel with Jean Le Cam has been one of the high points of the race. In essence they not only are about the same age with similar experience in the class, but Golding’s training programme in the pre-start season was curtailed when the mast of Gamesa fell down in early May. Hence his summer offshore training could not be completed – opting, like Le Cam to maximise time preparing the boat to ensure reliability.

 

To that extent Golding has succeeded with no major issues, other than losing the fairing from the front of his keel during the final days of the race which through the last 48 hours of the race has seen him having to slow down and allow his pumps to work. Other issues which have specifically affected his performance are splits in his ballast tanks which occurred early in the South Atlantic, losing his key Code Zero sail on 16th December after the Amsterdam Gate and problems with his hydrogenerators which increasingly affected his ability to make electricity, although in the end his choice to take just enough diesel proved a prudent choice.

In the early stages of the race down the Atlantic Golding admitted he found the early going tough, finding the race routine not as easy to slip into. He railed against a 30 mins penalty imposed for allegedly transgressing the Traffic Separation zones off Cape Finisterre.

 

In the first big pair of transitions he held east and south with Le Cam and made some good initial gains but ultimately lost out. But by the Cape Verde Islands ‘the three musketeers’ had formed the tight knit group Le Cam, Golding, Wavre which was to last all the way until the more senior Swiss skipper was slowed after Cape Horn. Although they all made good gains in the Doldrums initially, they were slowed slightly after them. But it was after Gough Island that the leaders first really stretched. A tentacle like ridge stretched down SE to hold the trio while the leading group extended away.

 

Cape Horn

Golding’s personal duel with Le Cam waxed and waned. As they entered the Pacific Ocean south of Tasmania Le Cam was able to hold on to the back of a low pressure a little longer whilst Golding struggled and the gap then extended to nearly 500 miles at one point. But the British skipper pegged miles back with a good approach to Cape Horn. At the legendary rock Mike Golding became the first sailor to have sailed six times around Cape Horn solo, three times in either direction. And he continued to claw distance back as they started a painful climb up the Atlantic.

Le Cam found his way towards the South American coast whilst Golding stayed more to the east seeking to get to the Trade Winds first, but all the time the breeze was shifting in direction and pressure and their South Atlantic was the worst that both he and his rival Le Cam could recall. But when their courses converged Golding was just 0.7 of a mile behind Le Cam.

 

When they did break into the trade winds Golding felt himself at a disadvantage to Le Cam due to being unable to optimise the trim of Gamesa on the close reaching conditions due to his broken ballast tanks. He progressively lost miles until, after exploring lots of different options, he learned to sail with an abnormal heel angle. As they closed into the Azores High pressure Golding caught and caught, finally passing Le Cam on 1st February when his rival separated to go west around the high. In the end the French skipper’s strategy prevailed whilst Golding had to take care of his boat on the boisterous Bay of Biscay in the strong winds and big seas due to leaks around his keelbox.

 

Mike Golding pledged this would be his last Vendée Globe. After finishing today when asked if he would do it again, he retorted :

« In another life »

He has proven himself to be the ultimate professional over the course of his career, racing hard and often with success. This has proven to be a tough swansong for him as it has been for Le Cam and Wavre especially. They have never had the really sustained, favourable low pressure systems which the leading group enjoyed in the south. But he completes the race for a record third time with a commendable result.

First Quotes after the finish line

 

Mike Golding : « It is a relief to be finished. It has not been the easiest of Vendée Globes, in fact it has been the hardest without any question because of the weather. The boat has been good, we have had a few problems, but the race itself has been hard for this group of boats [synerCiel, Gamesa & Mirabaud] right up to the end, right up to Biscay. I had 50 knots in Biscay and I put the very small storm sail, the ORC up, for the first time. It is a relief to be in and for a number of reasons, which will become clear over the next few days » …..

 

"Yes, I am the first person to have completed the race successfully three times. Lots have competed in the Vendée, and lots multiple times. I have competed four times and finished three times and I have beaten the odds. The odds say that usually less than half of the boats will finish the Vendée Globe and I have beaten those odds in multiple races. »

 

"I didn't do this Vendée Globe, or any other, to stack up a numerical supremacy, I did them to compete, and to win it would have been a dream. I haven't done that, but in pursuing that dream, I have made several others come true, including this one of having finished the race successfully three times. It's an honour to hold that accolade."

 

The Race of Mike Golding in figures

- The greatest distance covered in 24 hours: Gamesa 30 November 17h30 UTC 410,84 nm 17,1 nds

- Les Sables d’Olonne to Equator 11d 13h 13mn (record held by Jean Le Cam in 2004-2005 10d 11h 28mn)

- Equator- Good Hope 12d 18h 05mn (JP Dick 12j02h40mn record)

- Good Hope - Cape Leeuwin: 14d 23h 40mn (F Gabart record 11j 06h 40mn)

- Cape Leeuwin - Cape Horn: 20d 07h 25mn (record F Gabart 17j 18h 35 mn)

- Cape Horn - Equator: 15j 22h 09mn (record F Gabart 13j 19h 28mn)

- Equator - Les Sables d'Olonne: 12j18h24min

[Guest]

Third time lucky

 

In finishing the Vendée Globe in ninth place Bertrand de Broc not only finally laid to rest his jinx that had plagued his two previous attempts, but his time of a little over 92 days is around three days quicker than the boat went round in 2008-2009 in the hands of Armel Le Cléac’h who finished second.

For de Broc, getting to the start line at all was a victory of sorts. He only launched the project in February 2012. He worked tirelessly over the next months raising funds, crossing France many times, speaking with hundreds of contacts and in the end raising his funds through public subscriptions, following the same formula as he did back in 1996, mobilising thousands of people to share his dream, to join his adventure carrying ‘your name around the world’. Scepticism was rife from the start but not only did de Broc prove them wrong, but here he is today fulfilling that dream for the thousands of believers who have gone around with him.

 

Short preparation time

 

With the acquisition of the former boat of Armel Le Cléac’h, de Broc knew he had a good, reliable craft. But it was June when he got the boat and so his preparation time was necessarily short. Indeed it was really just the bare essentials which he had managed to cover off before the start and he was desperately shy on sailing miles when he started. And indeed his main, simple focus was just to have the boat ready to go on departure day. In total he had probably around three weeks of sailing before the start, but a tiny fraction of what the winners accumlated in the years prior to the start.

 

False start

 

His Vendée Globe started with a bang. Minutes before the start gun went one of his semi rigid inflatable support boats struck the front of his boat. And so rather than start with a potentially weakened hull around the puncture, he took the hard decision to return immediately to Les Sables d’Olonne to repair and leaves again 20 hours later.

 

The door closes

But his delay in leaving Les Sables d’Olonne proves a weighty one as the weather conditions he then gets for crossing the Bay of Biscay when the favourable reaching winds which the fleet had become much lighter. In fact that rather sets the tone for his descent of the Atlantic. The 20 hour initial delay becomes small by comparison as he crossed the Doldrums and passes the St Helena anticyclone, the winds always favouring those in front of him

 

Accentuate the positive, every cloud has a silver lining….

 

De Broc is always positive, the lighter winds give him a chance to learn his new boat progressively. The lack of training becomes less of an issue and by the Pacific he is pushing hard and making very good miles. And he makes the best of the passage between Cape Horn and the Equator and is only seven hours or so slower than the record set by François Gabart, second quickest of the fleet. And in the process he catches nearly one thousand miles on Arnaud Boissières who is in his sights.

 

But an finally his nearest rivals escape a little and it hurts him again when Boissières and Javier Sanso get to the trade winds first and Bertrand has to fight through a transition zone of light winds. So in the end he is left making sure that he can finally close the circle, completing the Vendée Globe for the first time. His final hours are suffused with concerns that he might suffer the same fate as in 1996 when he lost his keel within 100 miles of the finish. This time Les Sables South Nouch Buoy marks the end of a Vendée Globe driven by willpower, enough to take you to the other side of the world, and back!

[Guest]

heres the underwater view from accionia that capsized last week.

 

http://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=player_embedded

[banaari 27]

Maybe this?

[Guest]

In Search of Lost Wind

 

It looked like Saturday night, running into Sunday morning ,but it could still be Sunday night for the arrival of Tanguy De Lamotte (Initiatives Cœur) and behind him Alessandro Di Benedetto (Team Plastique) is already twisting in no wind.

 

The final act of the Vendée will test the two skippers still at sea. What to do? Where to go? How to get out? Di Benedetto is in hole and De Lamotte has one in front of him, with apparently no way round it on the way back to Les Sables. At 503 miles from the finish in Les Sables d'Olonne De Lamotte has little choice but to be patient in the face of this unwelcome calm and must just head east as fast as he can. After enjoying a few down of downwind speeds, his last 24 hours have been at a sedate 10.7-knot average and the gauge will continue to drop.

 

"My routing has me arriving on Saturday evening, I think that’s too late to go directly up the channel, so it will be Sunday morning,” De Lamotte had written, perhaps hopefully, on Thursday morning.

 

But the routing is becoming increasingly complicated. The computer models suggest at the moment that he will be 80 miles from Les Sables on Saturday afternoon but that the wind will go so light and easterly. That would mean he would still get in on Sunday morning with the tides allowing him directly up the canal. But if it veers right and is more south-easterly, he could be looking at arriving on Sunday evening. It is not seem like fair news for his Initiatives Cœur campaign – the boat with a heart – to have on Valentine’s Day.

 

The pressure is not just mental, he will also be keen to get out of the heavy traffic zone as fast as possible. He already another UFO scare on Wednesday.

 

“I was on the deck, finishing shooting a short video, I hit ANOTHER Unidentified Floating Object, a piece of wood this time...” he wrote. “It hit the starboard rudder blade, which had already been seriously damaged, but at least it didn't make things worse. I'm on my way to Les Sables and I shouldn't have to use that rudder blade too much, but I'll still keep an eye on it.”

 

For a moment, De Lamotte’s heart would have been in his mouth because all the skippers know that they cannot take for granted finishing the Vendée Globe until they have crossed the line.

 

Di Benedetto, averaging just 5.1 knots for the last 24 hours and zigzagging his way north, 500 miles south of The Azores, is in a similar position, but has more options open.

 

Di Benedetto is currently sailing in the heart of the anticyclone, the punishment is severe as he has made just 121 miles in 24 hours. As well as many frustrating manoeuvres, he has passed the time making donuts, growing salads and writing for a possible book on his race. In 24 hours, the arrival of a front should allow him some westerly downwind sailing to Cape Finisterre. But on Thursday he was suggesting that a February 21 finish was looking optimistic.

 

Alessandro Di Benedetto (ITA, Team Plastique) writes: The days pass between squalls and unstable wind that runs continuously and force me to manoeuvre a lot. I often find myself to change tack four times in the same hour, send and lower the Code Zero several times in a row, just to earn a few miles. On the day before yesterday, after problems with the hydrogenerator, I decided to set up the wind turbine so for now a big part of the battery charge is made from the wind. The circuit wedge of the rudder is broken, so I made some knots to replace it and it should hold until Les Sables. I started again my little "vegetable garden" production to make new salads as between the two tropics, without the high humidity and heat, it is more difficult to grow the seeds. From time to time I find flying fish and presto... there we go to the kitchen! Today I prepared donuts again but now the meal is almost over ... it's time to go home ...

[Guest]

Tanguy de Lamotte (Initiatives Cœur) – all heart and one tenth of the Vendée Globe 2012-2013

 

Tanguy de Lamotte crossed the finish line of the Vendée Globe on Sunday at 10hrs 58min and 10 seconds (French time). He finished in 10th place with a race time of 98 days 21 hours 56 minutes and 10 seconds. He has travelled 28,160 miles on the water at an average speed of 11.9 knots.

 

That means he has logged the second highest number of miles in the race behind the winner Francois Gabart who travelled 28,649.32 miles. (Reminder: the theoretical distance of the route is 24,394 miles). De Lamotte finished 6 days 4 hours and 45 minutes behind ninth-placed Bertrand De Broc and 20d 19hrs and 39min behind the winner Francois Gabart.

 

The Heart of Vendée Globe

 

Whilst taking himself and his boat around the world for the first time, Tanguy de Lamotte and Initiatives Cœur became one of the beating hearts of the Vendée Globe. His impressive debut was made more so by the scrapes he survived. His ability to find ingenious fixes with limited resources led to him being dubbed "Tanguyver" after the old American TV show MacGyver, which is apparently still popular in France. His years at Southampton University studying yacht design and experience as a boat preparateur, most notably on Ellen MacArthur’s 2000-01 Vendée campaign, helped produce a well-rounded self-sufficient solo skipper.

 

De Lamotte knew from the beginning that this Vendée Globe was one of discovery and apprenticeship. This was his first Vendée Globe and the third time for his Marc Lombard-designed Open 60 boat, which was launched in 1998. But this is the first time the boat has finished. (Note: the first entery was as Catherine Chabaud’s Whirlpool in the 2000-01 edition, dismasting 500 miles from the finish, then as Marc Thiercelin’s Pro-Form stopping in New Zealand with technical problems).

 

De Lamotte’s race goal was to match the top times from the same generation as his boat in the 2000-01 race and despite his multiple problems in the North Atlantic, his time would have been good enough for fourth place in the race. The campaign objective was to generate interest and clicks to save children with heart disease. By the early hours of Sunday morning he had passed 175,000 clicks – enough for 14 operations – and rising fast. It helped that he has been one of the best communicators in the race and brought to life his great adventure through his messages and videos.

 

The Early Hierachy

 

After the start from Les Sables d'Olonne, de Lamotte was separated from the bulk of the fleet on the Iberian coast. A mixture of dropouts – seven in the first week - and some tactical options by his fellow competitors saw a split in the fleet. After the passing Cape Verde, a difficult doldrums for those ahead saw De Lamotte join a group of four with Javier Sanso (ACCIONA 100% EcoPowered), Bertrand De Broc (Your Name Around the World with Projects EDM), Arnaud Boissières (Akena Verandas). As they descended in the South Atlantic, De Lamotte was unable to keep pace in his older boat, staying west and dropping back. At the first compulsory gate, Agulhas, Initiatives Cœur was in 12th position, sandwiched between De Broc in eleventh, and Alessandro Di Benedetto (Team Plastique) in thirteenth.

 

Fun in the Deep South

 

Settling into his rhythm in 12th place, De Lamotte consistently racked up the miles, with De Broc, always 250-300 miles before his bow. Though comparatively mild, the Indian and the Pacific Oceans left some traces on Initiatives Cœur and de Lamotte. But between encounters with a first UFO, numerous breaks, worn sails, his sense of fun and enjoyment was emerging. His air guitar to Deep Purple’s ‘Smoke on the Water’ will live long in the memory. Although, by day 35 he also admitted, in good humour, that he was aware of being alone in a small space for a long time and had been having imaginary conversations with his brother on the foredeck. He was eighth fastest across the Indian Ocean between the Cape of Good Hope and Cape Leeuwin in 14 days, 17 hours and 44 minutes.

 

He had less wind in the Pacific than he expected, causing him to miss out being able to welcome in 2013 twice as he crossed the International Dateline. But he was making good speed a few days before reaching Cape Horn and was back to within 130 miles of De Broc. On January 15, de Lamotte completed his first passage round Cape Horn with a time of 35 days at sea to swallow the two oceans, the Indian and the Pacific.

 

The Atlantic with Two Faces

 

After rounding the Horn, De Lamotte joined the South Atlantic Express. As those ahead struggled, he recorded the sixth fastest time in the fleet between Cape Horn and the Equator. That, despite some tense moments after another collision with a UFO and seeing his Code 0 suddenly come down and trawl out behind his boat. The broken halyard forced him to climb the mast. But he made the most of mishaps and after that collision sent back the beautiful image of him swimming in the middle of the South Atlantic in 4000m deep water, to check the appendages underneath Initiatives Cœur.

 

On January 27, De Lamotte was 830 miles from the equator whilst François Gabart entered the canal at Les Sables d'Olonne as the winner of the Vendée Globe. By the end of January, De Lamotte was back in the northern hemisphere for what would become his most difficult passage of the race. Twice Initiatives Cœur suffered a collision with a UFO, the first causing major damage to the daggerboard and rudder. Close to exhaustion, it took many hours in the water and in the bowels of his boat to successfully clear the blocked daggerboard, plug the hole and install a pump to drain the water. The legend of "Tanguyver" was born.

 

The last collision with a UFO damaged his rudder even more, making navigation on port tack very difficult. After passing near Flores in the Azores and a good progression towards Cape Finisterre, de Lamotte finally needed to add patience to his humour and handyman skills. An anticyclone in the Bay of Biscay gave him a little bit more time than he wanted to plan his arrival and worry about the busy maritime traffic. His time from the Equator to Les Sables of 17d 11h 48min was tenth fastest and almost four days slower than the next man.

 

After 98 days 21 hours 56 minutes and 10 seconds of racing, de Lamotte finally completed his circle, writing his own legend in the history of the Vendée Globe.

[Guest]

The Vendee is almost over

 

Less than 50 miles to the northwest of La Corruna, Spain Alessandro di Benedetto on Team Plastique is now counting down the final miles to finish his Vendée Globe, expecting to cross the famous line off the Nouch buoy on Friday morning. The conditions for his finish will not be easy.

Di Benedetto had another demanding night with no sleep due to the variable winds which boxed the compass on several occasions – working all the way around 360 degrees – but also having to keep a wary eye out for the shipping traffic off the busy NW corner of Spain, a gateway from the Mediterranean to the Atlantic and beyond.

 

Speaking this morning Di Benedetto shrugged off his lack of sleep and was very upbeat, enjoying the spring sunshine as the breeze picked up, and with it, his speeds directly towards his own home port of Les Sables d’Olonne where a huge welcome will await the very popular skipper who has stolen so many hearts over his 103 days at sea.

 

.Di Benedetto’s finishing miles, across the Bay of Biscay are likely to be upwind in a breeze which will build to over 25-30kts with some unpleasant seas. The Franco-Italian skipper explained to Race HQ this morning.

 

“ I have some wind now, 11-16kts of wind and so the boat is making between 10 and 12 knots of average speed. And I have some sunshine on my starboard side, also a lot of cargo ships. The night was a bit complicated then. I did not have any sleep and I had to make some time on the Code Zero because the wind was very light. And sometimes the wind came up and in from the wrong side and so it came round 360 degrees at times, several times I had to pay attention to this, and also to avoid the cargo ships. Now I am going a little more into the Bay of Biscay and so we will start to see more fishing boats and less cargo ships. Conditions are fine and I have just had my last rice pudding which I made yesterday with coffee and milk.

 

So I hope to be in Les Sables d’Olonne, across the finish line within two days.

I really know the boat well now and can make small trim changes which I know will make one tenth of a knot of difference and it all counts.

 

I feel great with the boat. I took some time to have a good relationship with the boat, but more and more I have felt better and better with the boat and I will be sad to step off. But I will see her every day at the marina in Les Sables d’Olonne where she lives.”

[Guest]

Alessandro Di Benedetto (FRA - ITA) on Team Plastique has crossed the finish line of the Vendée Globe at 15h 36 mn 30 s (French Time). He finishes eleventh in the race. In completing his race 26d 00h 17min 50s after race winner François Gabart, completed the course he ensures this seventh edition of the renowned solo non stop around the world race makes history with the shortest gap ever between the first and last finishers.

Di Benedetto’s elapsed time for the course is 104d 02H 34mn 30s. His average speed on the course was 9.8 kts. He actually sailed 28,840.00 miles on the water at an average speed of 11.5 kts. Reminder: the theoretical distance of the course is 24,394 miles.

 

Fratelli d'Italia*

 

Whatever the weather, wherever he was on the globe, Alessandro di Benedetto was this Vendée Globe’s eternal ray of sunshine. His constant good humour, his transmission of his simple joys of being at sea, his rich accent and unstoppable dialogue stole the hearts of race fans and followers a long time ago. But in finishing eleventh today so too he completes a very good sporting performance.

When he arrived in Les Sables d’Olonne in July 2010 to end his circumnavigation on a tiny, cockleshell Mini 6.5m, Alessandro Di Benedetto intrigued the Sablais offshore community. Many know, or indeed have sailed in the Mini class, and could not countenance Alessandro’s 268 days circumnavigation solo in such a tiny boat, finishing under jury rig. And, among them, Arnaud Boissières has never forgotten his own ‘Mini’ years. Naturally he takes Alessandro for a sail on his IMOCA Open 60 and a dream is born.

 

A boat with a history

 

So he sets his sights on Solune, the boat sailed by ‘Cali’ Boissières in 2008, Sébastien Josse in 2004 and Thomas Coville in 2000. It is not the fastest or most efficient boat but it is simple to control and sail. De Benedetto further benefits from Boissières advice. Staying in Les Sables d’Olonne he becomes the second skipper to be based in the Vendée Globe’s home. And he finds support from a company with very strong Vendée links. But stepping into a relative unknown, his first IMOCA race, he takes food for 140 days.

 

Nothing compares

 

His race does not bear comparison to his rivals because he does not have the machine to compete in the pack and he has little experience of racing. And so he chooses to start steadily, to learn his boat day by day. To start with he is laid low by flu and that makes for a difficult first few days.

Di Benedetto finds himself at the back of the fleet but he takes pleasure from simple things.

 

Birds, crepes and salad

 

He tells of his daily life vividly and with passion. An encounter with a big bird, growing his own green salads, and his diet of crepes, such are the typical first anecdotes from the Franco-Sicilian skipper who loves his good food. And his music. Each major passage is celebrated appropriately. He passes Cape Leeuwin with ‘O Sole Mio’ – a virtuoso ‘solo’ performance. And he passed Cape Horn on January 17th a day quicker than Arnaud Boissières had done in 2008-9 on the same boat.

 

A growing force

 

In a way the passage of Cape Horn is a watershed for the skipper of Team Plastique. He is no longer happy to just live his days in a good mood and get on steadily. He has learned his boat and what makes each tenth of a knot of difference and he has upped the pace and rhythm accordingly. But successive damages have taken their toll. He is left with no downwind sails, has to climb the mast several times to sort out halyard issues. And a tumble into the cockpit when he gybes unexpectedly results in a broken rib for Alessandro. But he never shared a moment which was not upbeat and insightful. Just about every Di Benedetto broadcast started with ‘everything is good, everything is OK ’…

And now finishing today, Friday 22nd February, Alessandro has improved on the reference time for the boat of his pal Boissières by more than one day, a performance which gained him seventh in the last race. And Arnaud Boissières will be proud. And rightly so.

[RushMan 31]

Stumbled across the last 10 minutes of the Vendee Globe on ESPN tonight

 

The good news is it will be repeated this Saturday at 6:00am

 

The English dubbing is pretty ordinary from what I saw tonight.