Author: Grégoire Chéron

 
Dona Bertarelli and Yann Guichard are once more set to take on the Jules Verne Trophy, held since 2017 by Francis Joyon and his crew in a time of 40d 23h 30’ 30’’. Remodelled for improved performance over the course of last winter, Sails of Change (ex-Spindrift 2) maxi-trimaran will be sailed by an 11-strong crew.

 

This will be Yann Guichard’s fourth attempt as skipper on this round the world passage under sail, and he is taking on two challenges as he aims to both secure the Jules Verne Trophy and produce all their energy requirements self-sufficiently. Indeed, for the very first time, the whole journey will be undertaken with no auxiliary engine.
 

“We’re going to take on an additional challenge, since we’ll be attempting to break the round the world record without using any energy produced using fossil fuels. Our main sources of energy will come from the sun and wind, as well as an on-board bike-powered generator. We are keen to show it’s possible” – Yann Guichard.

 
This new energy challenge accompanies a series of technical solutions introduced over the winter, which relate to the cockpit, aerodynamics and central hull, the latter having been shortened by three metres. This latest modification provides improved balance at the helm and reduces vibration aboard the largest racing multihull ever built (37 metres), which has been renamed specially for this attempt: Sails of Change.

 

 

About Sails of Change
 
Sails of Change is a community of sport and nature lovers, who want to create a sustainable future for our planet. Founders Yann Guichard, Dona Bertarelli and her children are committed to sharing ideas and information, as well as creating partnerships to protect and restore the environment, and working for a sustainable future for all.
 
The first campaign supported by Sails of Change, ‘30×30’, is a global call to action to protect at least 30% of the ocean and land by 2030. The maxi-trimaran will carry this message around the world, with #30×30 logos emblazoned on her sails and hulls, together with distinctive blue and green colour-coding for the new livery on the racing stable’s flagship.
 
“Through the medium of a sport that we love, I invite everyone to embark with us on this human adventure, discover the beauty of nature and join us in our circumnavigation of the globe,” says Dona Bertarelli, on-board reporter for this latest attempt.

 

 

About Spindrift for Schools

The Sails of Change maxi will also fly the flag of the Spindrift for Schools educational programme, whose educational kit “Inspired by Nature: committed to action!” has just been published in partnership with the Departmental Service of National Education of the Morbihan region, the French Réseau Canopé in Lorient, Brittany, and with the support of UNESCO.
 
“Our aim is to inspire, raise awareness and prepare young people as they become the adults of tomorrow. We hope that through our passion and our commitment to nature, we can share knowledge and values to support children as they learn to work together and commit to their future,” explains Dona Bertarelli.

 

 

On standby from 1 November
 
The maxi-trimaran Sails of Change will set out from La Trinité-sur-Mer in south-west Brittany to make for the start line off Ushant as soon as there is a favourable weather window, with a standby commencing 1 November 2021.
 
Ten sailors with complementary backgrounds, five of whom have already circumnavigated the globe, will set sail alongside skipper Yann Guichard on this fourth crewed attempt. Two of them, Thierry Chabagny and Xavier Revil, won the Jules Verne Trophy in 2012, whilst Dona Bertarelli has held the title of fastest woman to sail around the world since 2016. In all, nine of the eleven sailors have previously been involved in a Jules Verne Trophy attempt. Only Julien Villion and Yann Jauvin will be making their Trophy debut in this legendary international offshore racing event.

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At the end of last week, just a matter of hours was all it took for the Gitana Team to go from the satisfaction of a record time for its descent of the Atlantic aboard its flying maxi-trimaran to the great disappointment of discovering damage on its rudder, which definitively put an end to its Jules Verne Trophy record attempt. Since then, the crew of the Maxi Edmond de Rothschild has turned back and has spared no effort in what have been tricky weather conditions to reach more hospitable latitudes to the north. Up against a number of logistical constraints, directly linked to the health restrictions in force as a result of the global pandemic, the six sailors, in agreement with Cyril Dardashti and their router, Marcel van Triest, have decided to return to their home port via the sea and under their own steam, which means without stopping off to effect repairs in Cape Town, South Africa, as was initially envisaged.

 

 

Breakage is not compatible with safety or performance

“Our decision to abandon our attempt is a result of breaking the rudder stock on the starboard float”, Pierre Tissier reminds us. “It’s still too early to explain the exact reasons for this damage, even though we have had a lot of discussions with the crew and are able to substantiate certain hypotheses. However, access to the area in question is very difficult as the rudder system is too exposed on the boat’s aft section, meaning that lengthy investigations are not possible as yet. This is why envisaging carrying a spare part to make a replacement at sea is totally out of the question”, added the technical director of the five-arrow racing stable.

 

In fact, the question about a spare part has been raised on several occasions following the announcement of the team’s abandon. As such, it’s important to respond to this issue: “It’s worth noting that a rudder weighs around 200 kg and assembling or dismantling such a part requires a special procedure, up to three people and a support rib, and that is when the boat’s in a port and without heavy seas… Offshore, the crew does not have the necessary tooling and, above all, it is not able to access the area in question, which is a long way aft and is protected by the rudder ‘chimneys’”, explained Sébastien Sainson, the director of Gitana’s design office.

 

This damage forced Franck Cammas, Charles Caudrelier and their four crew to reluctantly interrupt a record attempt that was in full flight and looked very promising in terms of the upcoming weather… However, plunging down into the Southern Ocean, far from habitation and out of reach of any rapid emergency assistance leaves no room for approximation. At a latitude of 50° south, bordering on a zone prone to ice, the crew has to be able to be autonomous and in control of its trajectory under all circumstances.

 

 

“The Maxi Edmond de Rothschild is equipped with lifting float rudders, which is fortunate because since the damage occurred, the crew has been able to sail almost normally with the rudder raised. In practical terms, had this damage occurred further down the track in our round the world, we may have looked at things differently, however in our case, it’s the safety aspect that prevailed. We’d only just entered the Southern Ocean. We were unable to use one of our float rudders, which meant that the only way to steer the boat was by using the other float rudder and the central rudder” explained Pierre Tissier, with Sébastien Sainson providing more light on the subject: “Thanks to the experience we’ve gained and the numerous miles the Maxi has now covered, we’ve noticed that the central rudder is more exposed to impact than before, which must be down to the addition of the elevators. As a result, there’s an added risk of ending up with two damaged rudders and a boat that is impossible to steer in some of the remotest areas of the globe. It simply wasn’t reasonable and therefore it was unthinkable to proceed.”

 

Last but not least, there was the issue of performance. Taking on a speed record involves knowing what goal you want to achieve before you set sail. Given the exceptional time of 40 days 23 hours and 30 minutes recorded by Francis Joyon and his men, the moment we crossed the start line on 10 January offshore of Ushant, the sailors on the Maxi Edmond de Rothschild knew that there was no room for error. “If you were to put the safety issue in the Southern Ocean to one side, which obviously is not feasible in the real world, this breakage is a genuine handicap when the boat is sailing on port tack. We reckon that you lose around 20% of the boat’s potential. In the south, where the point of sail is predominantly off the wind, this would inevitably have had a major impact, but during a beat, which involves sailing close-hauled, or on a reach, we envisage that the speeds would have been even worse, except on starboard tack of course (namely pressed down on its port float and appendages) where the boat is intact. It’s tough, but that’s the nature of record attempts and the Jules Verne Trophy”, concluded Cyril Dardashti.

 

Hats off to Boris Herrmann

Just hours away now from the much-awaited denouement of the Vendée Globe, the present scenario is completely unprecedented with eight sailors grouped together within 500 miles. Added to that, a series of time bonuses are yet to be awarded, which should reshuffle the cards for the final podium, and for once this will likely differ from the line honours. At this historic moment, Gitana Team’s thoughts go out to Boris Herrmann. The German sailor, who is attacking his last night at sea in the top trio is the surprise of this 2020-2021 edition. He has sailed a masterful race aboard the Imoca Malizia Sea Explorer and has been proudly flying the flag of the Yacht Club de Monaco during this action-packed round the world. The 60-footer is none other than the former Mono60 Edmond de Rothschild, which the racing stable competed on in the race’s 2016 edition and it is a great source of pleasure to see one of the team’s former steeds performing so well. The final ranking will be revealed tomorrow offshore of Les Sables d’Olonne.

Sailing in the Indian Ocean since yesterday afternoon and their passage of the longitude of Cape Agulhas, the men of Gitana Team were positioned at 48°28 south at 11:00 UTC with a lead of over 860 miles over the record when they informed their shore team of damage to the giant’s float rudder to starboard. After a thorough inspection carried out by David Boileau, the boat captain, the verdict is in. The appendage’s stock is seriously damaged, which means the rudder can no longer be used on this tack. With the six sailors unable to effect repairs in the open ocean as the part would need to be entirely replaced, the crew of the Maxi Edmond de Rothschild has been forced to interrupt its Jules Verne Trophy record attempt. Indeed, it is inconceivable for Franck Cammas, Charles Caudrelier and their four crew to take on the Southern Ocean with a boat that is no longer performing at her full potential. It’s a massive disappointment, as much in the roaring forties as in Lorient, at the heart of the technical base, but the most important thing right now is that the crew is able to head into more hospitable latitudes.

 

 

Contacted by Cyril Dardashti, the director of the Gitana racing stable, Charles Caudrelier shared his first impressions:

Sailing in the Indian Ocean since yesterday afternoon and their passage of the longitude of Cape Agulhas, the men of Gitana Team were positioned at 48°28 south at 11:00 UTC with a lead of over 860 miles over the record when they informed their shore team that they’d encountered some problems with the rudder on the starboard float, which is the leeward rudder and hence the one under load. Having reduced its speed, the crew is currently carrying out a thorough inspection of the appendages and its connecting systems with its experts onshore. Further information will be communicated over the coming hours.

 

Since their successive passages yesterday of the Cape of Good Hope at 11:37 UTC and then Cape Agulhas four hours later, the men of the Maxi Edmond de Rothschild are navigating the Indian Ocean. The six sailors are having to deal with sailing conditions the crew describe as difficult. Indeed, with strong and shifty winds in terms of force and short, cross seas, the journey south is no picnic, particularly in light of the fact that this dive down towards the austral latitudes is accompanied by a significant drop in temperature. At the 06:00 UTC position report, Franck Cammas, Charles Caudrelier and their four crew were positioned at 48°28 south and had a lead of 887 miles over Idec Sport.

 

 

In the thick of things

The contrast aboard the flying blue maxi-trimaran is striking. There’s no doubt about it, the crew, now the fastest of all time on the descent of the Atlantic, has switched sailing mode since entering the Indian Ocean, as detailed by Yann Riou, contacted at daybreak: “It hasn’t been a very pleasant night. The wind is particularly shifty in force and it’s very tough to get the Maxi making headway as she should and at a constant pace in these conditions. We’re doing our best, taking it in turns at the helm quite a lot, but it’s not always easy. The sea state is really poor, not big but short and crossed, which is forcing us to helm as the autopilot gets lost in this kind of sea. The conditions are putting a strain on the both the men and the boat.”

 

With the crew now sailing close to a latitude of 50° south, the atmosphere has clearly cooled on deck and below the cuddy of the Maxi Edmond de Rothschild. “From one watch to the next, we can really feel the difference. We’ve been on a south-easterly heading since we passed the tip of South Africa and conditions today are a world apart from those yesterday. It’s been cold since last night and we’re having to equip ourselves accordingly before taking up our watch on deck. We’re here, it’s the Deep South!”, admitted the media crewman.

 

To tackle this new day in the Jules Verne Trophy record attempt, the sailors of Gitana Team have managed to retain a lead of over 887 miles in relation to their virtual adversary.

By leaving the longitude of Cape Agulhas in her wake this Thursday 21 January at 15h37’53’’ UTC, the Maxi Edmond de Rothschild has officially entered the Indian Ocean. After 11 days 14 hours and 3 minutes at sea, Franck Cammas, Charles Caudrelier and their four crew are attacking the Southern Ocean with a lead of more than 1 day 7 hours and 19 minutes over Francis Joyon and the men on Idec Sport. In so doing, they have become the fastest sailors in history on this descent of the Atlantic; a fantastic time which they naturally dedicate to Baron Benjamin de Rothschild, whose passing was announced just a few days ago.

 

 

Two capes and two new reference times 

This twelfth day at sea has enabled the Maxi Edmond de Rothschild to secure her first accolades in her Jules Verne Trophy record attempt. After setting sail from Ushant on 10 January at 01h33’46’’ UTC, the six sailors passed the longitude of the Cape of Good Hope this Thursday morning at 11h27’46’’ UTC after 11 days 9 hours and 53 minutes at sea. In so doing, they improved on the reference time set by the crew on Banque Populaire in 2012 in the Jules Verne Trophy by 11 hours and 55 minutes. It’s also worth noting that until this 21 January, the outright record for this section of the course was held by a solo sailor with a time of 11 days 20 hours and 10 minutes. The latter was François Gabart who, in 2017, posted a staggering performance to the tip of South Africa. Some four hours later, at 15h37’53’’ UTC, Franck Cammas, Charles Caudrelier, David Boileau, Erwan Israël, Yann Riou and Morgan Lagravière repeated this performance at Cape Agulhas, arriving in the Indian Ocean with the best reference time and, most importantly, a lead of 1 day 7 hours and 19 minutes over the current Jules Verne Trophy holder.

 

“Less than 11 days 10 hours to get to Good Hope is great going, which means that it was a favourable weather window and we were right to snap it up! That said, we still feel like we lost some time along the way, especially in the doldrums, but we’re happy to be here and to be posting these speeds. Now comes the hard part,” admits Franck Cammas to Yann Riou’s camera.

 

 

In at the deep end in the Southern Ocean 

The Maxi Edmond de Rothschild is navigating the first miles of her career in the Southern Ocean, as is the case for David Boileau and Morgan Lagravière, who are tackling their first passage across the Indian Ocean. However, the crew is all too aware, this is where things start to get serious! The first reason for this is that over this long section of the course in the Southern Ocean, Francis Joyon and his crew were brilliant and clearly broke new ground in relation to the Trophy thanks to a trajectory bordering on perfection; namely 5 days 21 hours to devour the Indian Ocean and then 7 days 21 hours till they made Cape Horn… The second reason is that the men of Gitana Team are plunging down towards latitudes which are never a trivial matter.

 

“It’s a fine first reference time since it’s the outright record over this course between Ushant and the tip of South Africa. Even though it’s a record that doesn’t really count for a lot, it’s important for us because it has enabled us to complete this passage with a lead of nearly 1 and a half days over the Jules Verne Trophy record held by Francis Joyon and that’s the objective we set ourselves. After that, Francis enjoyed a completely crazy Southern Ocean and we have very little chance of finding such conditions. Moreover, we won’t have such a quick Indian Ocean, so we’re delighted to have this cushion which, to my mind, is barely enough to stay ahead of him or level with him by the time we exit. As a result, our primary objective has been quite successful! On top of that, the boat is in tip-top condition and that’s the main thing!” concluded Charles Caudrelier.

 

By way of a tribute to Benjamin de Rothschild, our dear departed owner

Since last Friday, Gitana Team, the offshore racing stable he founded with his wife Ariane de Rothschild in 2000, has been mourning the loss of its owner. In our own way, from the sea he was so fond of, we wanted to pay him one last tribute. These new reference times, the best of all time over this section of the course, we dedicate to him and offer them to Ariane de Rothschild and her four daughters in his honour.

 

“The wake of the Maxi Edmond de Rothschild will punctuate the history of flying boats and offshore racing. We could never thank Benjamin de Rothschild enough for having enabled us to embark on this incredible adventure and for having believed in this project and in our team to make it a reality. He managed to transform his heritage with boldness and passion. Every day we remember how lucky we are to be a part of this story and to have a chance to add new pages to this quite unique lineage”, stated Cyril Dardashti, director of Gitana.

After setting sail from Ushant on 10 January at 01h33’46’’, the Maxi Edmond de Rothschild passed the longitude of the Cape of Good Hope this 21 January at 11h27’46’’ UTC after 11 days 9 hours and 53 minutes at sea. In so doing, Franck Cammas, Charles Caudrelier, David Boileau, Erwan Israël, Yann Riou and Morgan Lagravière have secured the new reference time for the descent of the Atlantic, improving on the crewed reference time set by Banque Populaire in 2012 in the Jules Verne with a time of 11 days 21 hours 48 minutes (some 11 hours and 55 minutes faster) as well as that of Francois Gabart in solo format. Until this lunchtime, the skipper of Macif held the outright record for this section of 11 days 20 hours and 10 minutes.

 

 

Another cape awaits the crew of the Maxi Edmond de Rothschild, that of Agulhas, in a few miles’ time. However, this less well-known reference is just as important because it’s only on reaching this longitude that the Indian Ocean begins and with it the record approved by the WSSRC (World Sailing Speed Record Council).

Throughout the night, the crew of the Maxi Edmond de Rothschild has had to contend with shifty conditions to get the 32-metre giant making headway towards the gateway to the Indian Ocean. In short seas, where the boat accelerates and decelerates in every wave, piloting by night has not been the easiest of missions, especially in light of the fact that the dying breeze is still serving up a few suprise gusts to spice things up. As such, it was important to be on the sheets last night under the cuddy of the flying blue maxi-trimaran. Franck Cammas, Charles Caudrelier and their four crew had to hunt down a pivot point to the north before gybing on the stroke of 04:00 hours and then diving back down towards the south and the fortieth parallel. Despite conceding some ground to their virtual adversary over recent hours, at the 07:00 UTC position report, the men of Gitana Team still boast an 821-mile lead over the record holder, giving them a good cushion for rounding the first major cap of this round the world under sail.