Trophée Jules Verne 2005
Morning Press Release N°19 / 0500 GMT
Paris, Friday 18 February 2005
The International Date Line for Orange II today!
Mid morning today the maxi-catamaran Orange II will return to the
Western longitude. « That shows that we’ll stop moving away and start
closing in. It’s a punctuation in the course » as Bruno Peyron says,
which in real terms means that from now on any degrees gained will
bring the team closer to Ouessant and home. Yesterday saw their entry
into the Pacific and a passage of the International Date Line today
achieved under favourable auspices, as Orange II has tucked onto the
Northern edge of a depression which may enable the maxi-catamaran to
swallow up half the Pacific Ocean. It is likely to prove an
interesting game as the team will have to try to hold onto the positive
effects of the low pressure for as long as possible, a great luxury
that the latest generation of maxi-multihulls can offer themselves.
The depression comes at a point which will also give Orange II the
benefit of not having to dive too far South. It is a detail and a
meteorological boost which takes on its full meaning when you know that
a vast ice field lies to the SE of the catamaran. Whatever happens
though, « the decision has been taken » as Bruno emphasises: Orange II
will cover more miles as it rounds to the North of the floating
minefield and the visual watch will begin over the next few hours, the
high-risk zone starting to the SE of Stewart Island.
Bruno Peyron : « We are currently setting a good pace and are
positioned well in terms of latitude which means that we’ll be able to
benefit from a good angle to the wind and favourable seas. We made two
small tacks yesterday to line ourselves up better and since then we
have been on a single tack in a NW’ly airflow which is catching up with
us. If we work well, we should be able to cover half the Pacific with
it. This depression is moving faster than us but not at a constant
speed, so it’s going to be an interesting game. »
The ice field. « We have clearly set ourselves a way-point and are
ready to pay the price for passing above this zone. We’re quite lucky
as the forecast is helping us to pay as cheaply as possible. With
regards organisation, we are going to set up the same visual watch as
we did off the Marion and Kerguelen islands. The ultimate precaution
is not to get close to the zone though, prepared to extend the
course... The decision has been taken! »
The International Date Line. « It’s an important passage. It’s a
punctuation which reminds us that we have taken 25 days to get halfway
round the course. We thought about it again this morning : Good Hope
in 11 days, Leeuwin in 21 days and mid-course in 25 days, that speaks
for itself somewhat! And at the midway mark we are stronger today than
at the start with a boat and crew in perfect shape! I have even slept
like a baby which is a sure sign that all is well aboard the boat and
that the boat isn’t suffering. »
References :
Day at sea : 25th
Date : 18/02/2005
Time (GMT) : 04h00
Latitude : 49 41.64' S
Longitude : 161 10.44' E
Instantaneous speed : 26.1 kts
Instantaneous heading : 82
Average speed : 26.9 kts
Speed over 24 hr : 24.6 kts
Distance over 24hr : 591 nm
Speed since the start : 23.0 kts
Total distance : 13 676 nm
Distance reindexing : 11 804.80 nm
Record distances :
- record Jules Verne : +2 026 nm (ahead)
- absolute record : +2 160 nm (ahead)
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Internet : http://www.maxicatamaran-orange.com
Radio sessions: Every Monday, Wednesday and Friday at 1.15 p.m. GMT at
Orange race headquarters and live on Internet. Wednesday’s broadcast
will be a live video link on Internet and on Orange mobile handsets.
PC Course Orange : Fédération Française de Voile
17, rue Henri Bocquillon
75015 PARIS
(Métro Boucicaut)
Audio: Apart from the radio session three times a week, an audio
recording is made every morning at 5 a.m. with the boat.
These recordings can be heard and downloaded in MP3 format in the press
section of the website: www.maxicatamaran-orange.com
For any individual requests, please contact Bénédicte Etienne on 06 87
30 12 83
Boat’s positions:
The position of the boat is updated every quarter of an hour on the
website: www.maxicatamaran-orange.com
The records Orange II has to beat
– The Jules Verne Trophy, held since 29th April 2004, by Olivier de
Kersauson and the crew of the trimaran Geronimo, in 63d, 13h 59mn.
– The absolute round the world record held since 5th April 2004, by the
American Steve Fossett, in 58d, 09h, 32mn.
Orange II’s latest records
- The world 24 h record (706.2 miles covered at an average of 29.42
knots) - August 2004.
– The Mediterranean record (17h, 56 mins and 13s, at an average of
25.53 knots) - September 2004.
- The Record between Ushant and the Cape of Good Hope (14 days, 8h and
19 mins) - February 2005.
- The Record between the Equator and the Cape of Good Hope (7days, 5h,
and 22mins) - February 2005.
- The Record between the Cape of Good Hope and Cape Leeuwin (7 days, 5
hours and 35 minutes) - February 2005.
- The Record between Ushant and Cape Leeuwin (21 days 13 hours and 54
minutes) - February 2005.
- The Record between the Equator and Cape Leeuwin (14 days and 11
hours) - February 2005.
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About Orange ...
Orange, a subsidiary of France Telecom, is one of the global leaders in
mobile telephony. Orange France is the leading operator in mobile
telecommunications in France with a market share of 47.7% and more than
21.3 million clients on 31st December 2004.
index partners: Orange, France Telecom
Local authority partners: City of Marseilles, Marseilles Metropolitan
Authority
Official supliers: TD Com, International Peinture, Henri Lloyd, UKHO,
Lomac, Yamaha, Nera, Valderas Consulting, Telemar Scandinavia, Aramid
Rigging, Southern Spars.
Video production for the Orange Maxi-Catamaran:
Arnaud de Belinay : +33/(0)6 84 84 14 71 - debelinay@therace.org
Official Photographer: Gilles Martin-Raget : +33/(0)6 07 55 45 85 -
gmr@martin-raget.com
Press contacts for France Télécom / Orange :
Sébastien Goalès - France Télécom / 01 44 44 93 93 -
sebastien.goales@francetelecom.com
Marie-Cécile Leprat - C Sports Communication / 01 58 47 84 58 –
mc.leprat@csports.fr
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