Transat Jacques Vabre 2005 www.jacques-vabre.com - zur Übersicht 19.11.2005 SILL ET VEOLIA SETTLES FOR SECOND AS VIRBAC-PAPREC TAKES VICTORY IN BRIEF: * IN THE END, AFTER 4340 MILES, ONLY 35 MINUTES (six miles) separated the victors on Vibrac-Paprec from Roland Jourdain and Ellen MacArthur onboard Sill et Veolia. * VIRBAC-PAPREC crossed the finish line off Salvador de Bahia at 23:19:02 GMT in a time of 13 days, 9 hours, 19 minutes and 2 seconds followed by Sill et Veolia at 23:54:03 GMT in a time of 13 days, 9 hours, 54 minutes and 3 seconds. * IT WAS A MARATHON, A CLOSELY FOUGHT BATTLE right from the start as these two Open 60s played an intense game of cat and mouse. * JEAN-PIERRE DICK and Loick Peyron on Virbac-Paprec smash existing monohull course record by over 3 days. Sill et Veolia finish data: Arrived at 23:54:03 on Friday 18th November 2005 Elapsed time: 13 days 9 hours 54 mins 3 seconds Distance from leader: 35 mins 1 second! Average boat speed on the theoretical route: 13.48 knots Actual distance covered: 4588m Actual average boat speed: 14.95 knots Ellen Mac Arthur und Roland Jourdain Auch ein 2.Platz ist ein Sieg FROM ELLEN AT THE FINISH: How do you think this race was won and lost? Well, we really struggled after the Equator because we were behind and the way it works is like it’s a little bit like an escalator and whoever gets off the front keeps on taking more and more miles. Basically, Virbac got away and he pulled away more and more and more in better breeze all the time so we got stuck behind. Just tell what you and Roland tried to do in the last 24hours to get back on Virbac-Paprec? We tried to close the gap 24 hours ago and we basically said we’ve got to try everything to get back those miles, so last night after the last position report we headed quite a long way inshore and that worked brilliantly and we managed to get back down to 15 or 13 miles this morning. But that still wasn’t enough so we tried something else this afternoon and, again, that worked really, really well but not well enough and we got down to 8 miles but it wasn’t good enough. How are you feeling now? I think we’re pretty glad to be in but pretty frustrated to be second… We sailed a very hard race, I think we sailed a good race, we were pretty unlucky in the Doldrums and things just didn’t really go our way. But we tried everything we could to pull back what we could but sadly it wasn’t enough. What do you think about the pace of these newer generation Open 60s? I think the speed has been absolutely incredible. I’ve sailed 60-footers a lot but this was really something different. Sailing two-handed normally helps a little bit and you’re not too tired but certainly within the first week we were absolutely exhausted. I mean so tired that Bilou (aka Roland Jourdain) fell asleep drinking a cup of tea in front of me and just dropped the tea! It really was extraordinarily hard and it seemed that every time we tried to sleep it was another sail change but we just kept pushing and that’s what kept us up with the leaders. Were you happy to be racing with Roland Jourdain? It was fantastic racing with Bilou [Roland Jourdain] and to get back to the 60s…brilliant boats, they really are. They go through anything and it was great to be sailing on one again. But sailing with Bilou is very special – I very much took on this race because Bilou asked me to do this and we both got an enormous amount of pleasure doing this race together. We laughed so much and I think I’ve laughed more with Bilou in this race than over the past year! Sure we didn’t win and a little bit upset because of that but I’ve certainly got no regrets going out there and doing what we did. It was an amazing race. Have you spoken with Jean-Pierre Dick and Loick Peyron [Virbac-Paprec crew]? They jumped on the boat as soon as we tied up! I think they were pretty happy certainly to get in first. Download audio file from http://www.ocftp2.com/audio/ellen/em181105a_uk_e.mp3 Or go to http://www.teamellen.com to listen IN DETAIL: The seventh edition of the two-handed 4,340-mile Transat Jacques Vabre race, has effectively ended in the equivalent of a photo finish. As the crowds lined the dockside at the Centro Nautico de Bahia, onlookers had little idea which boat would appear out of the darkness first. But it was the Open 60 Virbac-Paprec raced by French skipper Jean-Pierre Dick and French racing legend Loick Peyron that crossed the finish line at 23:19:02 GMT - 35 minutes and 1 second ahead of Roland Jourdain and Ellen MacArthur onboard Sill et Veolia after a frenetic race across the Atlantic from Le Havre to Salvador de Bahia. Sill et Veolia crossed the finish line at 23:54:03 in an elapsed time of 13 days, 9 ours, 54 minutes and 3 seconds. Jourdain and MacArthur sailed 4588 miles at an average speed of 14.95 knots. These two latest generation Open 60 monohulls have been locked in a closely fought and intense battle since the very start of this race on the 5th November. It was Sill that took the first initiative leading the 12-boat Open 60 fleet out of the English Channel in the extreme storm-force conditions that rattled the fleet over the first 48 hours – forcing the abandonment of four ORMA 60 multihulls. But the lead held by the Anglo-French pair was minimal and by day 4 (10.11.05), Dick and Peyron had taken control. From there it was a game of cat and mouse with the Farr Designed Virbac-Paprec who seemed to hold the edge in boat-speed in the close and beam-reaching conditions. Jourdain and MacArthur had to fight every inch of the way, briefly retaking the lead on day 9 (13.11.05) but a tougher than expected Doldrums crossing saw Virbac-Paprec come out ahead and, this time, they held on to the lead. Both crews will be extremely fatigued after this mammoth battle especially since the last 24 hours have seen Sill et Veolia come within 8.7 miles at the final positions at 1900 GMT today. MacArthur and Jordain were never going to give up and tried everything they could on the final approach to Salvador de Bahia. For Jean-Pierre Dick and Loick Peyron it is a well-deserved win and for Dick it is his second successive victory in the Open 60 monohull class in this classic two-handed transatlantic race. Jean-Pierre Dick and Loick Peyron also obliterated the existing monohull course record in a time of 13 days, 9 hours, 19 minutes and 2 seconds taking 3 days, 3 hours, 25 mins off the existing record set in 2001 by Roland Jourdain and Gael Le Cleac’h on the older generation Sill. SUMMARY OF THE RACE: (NB: day = 1500 GMT to 1500 GMT) DAY 1 05/11/2005: AND THEY’RE OFF... The monohull class start 4,340-mile race at 1400GMT off Le Havre, France. The start saw rough conditions, with a WSW wind and short choppy seas of 3-4ft. Sill et Veolia lead the Open 60 fleet into the English Channel on the first night. Ellen onboard Sill et Veolia: "We have got away to a great start, better than we could of hoped for. To stay in the top five with the leading pack is crucial, we won't be taking it easy and we know we have a long night” DAY 2 06/11/2005: A HARD DAYS NIGHT - SILL ET VEOLIA TAKE POLE POSITION Holding pole position from Mike Golding’s Ecover and Jean-Pierre Dick’s Virbac-Paprec. Only 16 miles separates top five boats as the fleet head past Ushant and into the Bay of Biscay. From Ellen onboard: “It has been a tough first night, the conditions have been extreme and although it has been full on, the boat is sailing well and we are happy if not a little tired and wet!” DAY 3 07/11/2005: A LITTLE SLEEP GOES A LONG WAY… The fleet race south preparing to clear Cape Finisterre and make their way towards the NE Trade Winds. Sill et Veolia hold slim lead of 4.3 miles over Ecover. From Ellen on board Sill et Veolia: “The first night was not an easy one, the wind was un-relenting and we were glad to be sailing in some lighter winds on Sunday. We are looking forward to reaching the downwind conditions on Tuesday as we make our way towards the Trade winds.” DAY 4 10.11.05: CHARGING SOUTH AFTER SURVIVING SECOND MAJOR STORM... Sill et Veolia slips into second place losing lead to Virbac-Paprec after another night of gale-force conditions. Four ORMA 60 multihulls (Sodebo, Foncia and Orange Project and Brossard) forced to abandon after suffering serious damage. EMAIL FROM ELLEN (1200 GMT, 08.11.05) “There are many black based high cumulous clouds around, and we are still experiencing winds over 35 knots. It's pretty full on sailing.” DAY 5 09.11.05: 1000 MILES DOWN... Sill et Veolia falls 12.1nm behind Virbac as they approach Madeira. Close sailing between the frontrunners as they make the crucial gybe south to pass Madeira Islands then Canaries. DAY 6 10.11.05: A QUESTION OF PACE AS THE LEADERS RACE SOUTH… Sill et Veolia 26nm behind leader Virbac-Paprec on an ideal route south as they pass west of Maderia, lining up to keep to the west of the Canaries. “It’s very fast sailing - Virbac are a little slower than us at the moment, and we are sailing the boat as hard as we can in the conditions that we have in order to make up some miles.” DAY 7 11.11.05: A NIGHT FULL OF ADRENALIN CRASH GYBE IN 38 KNOT SQUALL… Sill et Veolia crash gybes pushing hard in a 38 knot squall losing valuable miles to open 60 leaders Virbac-Paprec. Keeping west of Canaries. ORMA trimaran Groupama2 capsizes in squall. “We crash gybed under pilot in a 38 knot squall, we’re both a bit full of adrenalin, miraculously we didn’t break anything!” DAY 8 12.11.05: EXHAUSTED BUT ON THE ATTACK… Skippers exhausted, clocking up a maximum speed of 27.14 knots as they steam south, closing the gap with leaders Virbac-Paprec. “I took over the helm and had some of the best driving of my life. We were right up there, sailing at the 22-knot average for minutes on end, max was 27.14!” DAY 9 13.11.05: SILL ET VEOLIA RETAKES LEAD Sill et Veolia retakes lead at 1500 GMT positions as front-runners pass west of Cape Verde. Jourdain and MacArthur push hard to indextain the lead from the powerful pairing of Dick and Peyron. “Whoever leads this race in to Salvador could be there as early as Friday, less than two weeks from Le Havre!” DAY 10 14.11.05: A GAME OF SNAKES AND LADDERS Virbac-Paprec regains lead from Sill et Veolia overnight. The weather models predict an inactive Doldrums as the frontrunners head south towards the Equator approximately 440nm away. “At the moment the route through looks good, but as always with the Doldrums we cannot trust what we are experiencing too much as we might still be surprised!” DAY 11 15.11.05: ALL TO PLAY FOR AS THE FLEET REGROUPS AT THE EQUATOR Fluctuating conditions allow Virbac-Paprec to extend their lead over Sill et Veolia to 19nm. The top six boats are sailing into the 18-20 knot south-east Trade Winds. With 1113 miles to go, it has almost become a level playing field again. “We are both knackered; Bilou fell asleep and dropped his tea whilst we were talking this morning. We are frustrated that we've had the nasty clouds. Today must surely be our day.” DAY 12 16.11.05: SILL ET VEOLIA CROSS EQUATOR NOW A SPRINT TO THE FINISH Virbac-Paprec leads Sill et Veolia by 20.4nm, as the two boats are first to cross the Equator. Both MacArthur and Jourdain have reported extreme fatigue - in contrast, the French duo on Virbac-Paprec reported feeling “rested” after an easier route across the Doldrums. “We have a tough fight ahead but as they say it’s not over until it’s over!” DAY 13 17.11.05: LOCKED IN BATTLE FOR 1ST WITH LESS THAN 500 MILES TO GO... The battle for top spot on the podium continues to rage. Jourdain and MacArthur are going to have to sail out of their socks to hang onto Virbac-Paprec. Whatever the outcome, the winning boat, looks set to smash the current monohull course record of 16 days, 13 hours and 23 minutes set by Roland Jourdain onboard the old Sill in 2001. FINAL DAY 18.11.05: ALL OR NOTHING – A RACE AGAINST THE ODDS... 1500 GMT only 107 miles to go at the finish off Salvador. Sill et Veolia close on Virbac reducing the deficit by 10 miles to just 14 miles as Jourdain and MacArthur as the Lombard-designed 60 performs well in the broad reaching conditions. But will there be enough time and enough miles for Sill et Veolia to pass Virbac-Paprec on this final stretch. “Would be great to turn up for cocktail hour but it looks more like we'll arrive for after dinner coffee. It’s tough because we are so close but not close enough yet.” Roland Jourdain, skipper, Sill et Veolia FINISH Sill et Veolia finish data: Arrived at 23:54:03 on Friday 18th November 2005 Elapsed time: 13 days 9 hours 54 mins 3 seconds Distance from leader: 35 mins 1 second! Average boat speed on the theoretical route: 13.48 knots Actual distance covered: 4588m Actual average boat speed: 14.95 knots FOR LATEST POSITIONS CLICK HERE FOR FURTHER INFORMATION LOG ONTO: http://www.jacques-vabre.com For further information, please contact Offshore Challenges Sailing Team: Lou Newlands or Lucy Harwood T: +44 (0)870 063 0210 E: lou.newland@ocgroup.com or lucy.harwood@ocgroup.com Copyright © 1996-2016 - SEGEL.DE