IMOCA-Race: ECOVER BtoB 2007 www.transatecoverbtob.com - www.imoca.org - Übersicht Thursday 29 november 2007 A start is born A new event in the IMOCA calendar, the Transat ECOVER BtoB has been created to serve as a qualifier for the next Vendée Globe. However, the fifteen solo sailors who set off this Thursday 29th November at 1400 hours UTC in a light 7 knots of breeze cloaked in grey have already demonstrated that they are indeed in racing mode and won’t be letting anyone past them without a fight. Gitana Eighty headed the fleet around the first and final course mark, with 4,200 miles between Salvador de Bahia and Port la Forêt. For the first time, a single-handed transatlantic race will finish in Brittany on France's NW coast: the Transat Ecover-BtoB! The start of the race from Salvador de Bahia to Port la Forêt was given at exactly 1400 UTC in a fairly weak, S’ly breeze. A stormy zone has settled over All Saints' Bay this Thursday and the difficulty for the five monohulls in a fairly fluky breeze lies in getting free of the Brazilian coast as quickly as possible in order to hook onto the NE’ly trades off Brazil. In these conditions with a S’ly 6 knot wind, filling slightly to 10 knots just after the the start gun, the fifteen solo sailors had the choice between starboard tack at the Committee boat (therefore with a priority) or the pin end in front of the Yacht Club on port tack… The fleet were then split into two groups with Loïck Peyron, Marc Guillemot, Bernard Stamm, Michel Desjoyeaux, Mike Golding, Jean-Baptiste Dejeanty… on shore meantime Yann Eliès, Kito de Pavant, Arnaud Boissières, Yannick Bestaven… opted to reindex in the channel, the tide on the ebb favouring their exit from the bay. Close encounters Gitana Eighty was the fastest out of the starting blocks on port tack, followed very closely by Safran whilst Cheminées Poujoulat rounded the mark at the end of the line too tightly and got its canting keel caught up on it: Bernard Stamm was then forced to place himself against the wind to free the boat, giving half the fleet time to overtake! On the other side of the line, Generali arrived on starboard tack and rapidly rounded beneath the two leaders whilst several solo sailors crossed within a few metres of each other in order to reposition themselves near the coast. Everyone then ended up on port tack upwind to hunt down the Santo Antonio mark, five miles to the South, with Loïck Peyron leading the way, followed by Marc Guillemot and Armel Le Cléac’h. It wasn’t long before the first and final course mark in this 4,200 miles race between Brazil and Brittany was rounded. However, Dee Caffari indicated that she was experiencing some technical problems with her gennaker furler and Aviva has rapidly made it back into the port of Bahia to carry out express repairs. This first half-day of racing is likely to be characterised by a long beat along the Brazilian coast against a 10 knot NE’ly tradewind, set to fill at the start of the night as it clocks progressively round to the East: the fifteen solo sailors may then lengthen their stride as they head for Recife, then the equator. Next on the agenda they can expect to sail heeled over at 25° for a good week in the hope that the Azores High will be well positioned to the SE of the archipelago. A depression is then likely to scoop them up and enable them to complete this Transat Ecover-BtoB in less than fifteen days… Gitana führt am Start Fotos: Vincent Curutchet/DPPI Passage of the Santo Antonio mark: 1-Gitana Eighty : Loïck Peyron 2-Safran : Marc Guillemot 3-Brit Air : Armel Le Cléac'h Ranking at the start of the Transat Ecover-BtoB: 1-Gitana Eighty : Loïck Peyron 2-Safran : Marc Guillemot 3-Cheminées Poujoulat : Bernard Stamm 4-Generali : Yann Eliès 5-Foncia : Michel Desjoyeaux 6-Brit Air : Armel Le Cléac'h 7-Groupe Bel : Kito de Pavant 8-Akena Vérandas : Arnaud Boissières 9-Maisonneuve : Jean-Baptiste Dejeanty 10-Spirit of Canada : Derek Hatfield 11-Great American III : Rich Wilson 12-Ecover 3 : Mike Golding 13-Cervin enR : Yannick Bestaven 14-Roxy : Samantha Davies 15-Aviva : Dee Caffari Mike Golding (Ecover 3) “It’s an interesting race with a lot of headwinds which will enable Ecover 3 to evaluate how it performs in relation to the rest of the fleet. However, it will be a difficult route with a lot of manœuvres, sail changes… and at least six days of being heeled over at 25 ! I will continue to sail at my pace but I think that the Transat Ecover-BtoB will be very hotly contested all the way to the finish… The first challenge is to get out of Salvador de Bahia and hook onto the trades in the East. We'll then have to sail against the wind and the big question is to know how many miles from Brazil you have to position yourself. In addition, the breeze is quite different day and night, and it will be important to be in phase with these wind shifts. If the Azores High is in its normal place for this season, we will have to curve a trajectory northwards to round it and end up with a depression. In this way the key points of the Transat Ecover-BtoB will be the first few hours after the start, the doldrums and the decision about whether to be closer or further away from the Azores. At the moment the trades in the Northern hemisphere are fairly powerful..." Dee Caffari (Aviva Challenge) “This is a really important race for me as it will be the first time I’ve sailed solo since completing the Aviva Challenge. I’m raring to get out there on my own and prove to myself and the rest of the class that I’m a competitive Open 60 skipper. A major incentive for me is this race is a qualifier for the Vendée Globe. A successful finish in Port-La-Forêt will mean my name is on the list of entrants for next year’s round the world race.” Rich Wilson (Great American III) “I think the Ecover BtoB is going to be a great race and it’s going to be a qualifier for the Vendee Globe which is a big event and so that makes this a big event. There are also a lot of terrific sailors here. I've never been to a skippers' briefing which had quite this calibre of short hand and offshore ocean racers in it. It's very special to be in a room with Michel Desjoyeaux, Bernard Stamm, Loick Peyron and so forth! There were a lot of ocean racing miles in that room and just to be sitting there was very, very special. My aim is going to be to try to get through the doldrums as quickly as possible, that’s the key element for everybody. I’ve crossed the equator now eight times under sail and I’ve seen a variety of conditions so hopefully I'll make the right decisions going through there. I think it's important for Americans to participate in these races as it's the greatest sailing in the world. The IMOCA fleet is a very friendly group that welcomes you with open arms.” Bernard Stamm (Cheminées Poujoulat) “The Transat Ecover-BtoB is above all else a qualifier for the Vendée Globe. There are no real stakes in play other than getting to the other side without hurting myself or breaking the boat. For a build like mine, Cheminées Poujoulat is currently hard to manœuvre on its own. That said they are all increasingly powerful and increasingly difficult. We know what we're expecting as far as the doldrums are concerned, which is tradewind sailing and then some upwind conditions. Following that we'll see what conditions we have on zone but it's winter in the North Atlantic so it's never delicate…We’re planning the work that has to be done to prepare for the Vendée Globe and it should last several months as there are a fair number of important things to modify or change. It’s true that our energy is more focused on that. The Transat Jacques Vabre has born fruit in this way too. It has enabled us to confirm the choice of modifications and to make some more radical decisions. Here in Bahia, it’s grey and there's a tropical depression to the South, which is making the start zone a little strange. We’ll have to get away from here and gradually get into the tradewinds and open our sails a bit. After Recife, we should have the wind on the beam for a little while. Once we’re past the doldrums, which we'll probably take the same doorway as when we went through before, then it will be upwind again in the tradewinds of the Northern hemisphere. As for the rest of the course, everything depends on the situation, there's no guarantee that there will be any wind up there!” Downloads http://blanconegro.extranet-e.net/public/SKIPPERS.jpg http://blanconegro.extranet-e.net/public/START_071129_02_HR.jpg Click to download http://blanconegro.extranet-e.net/public/START_071129_02_HR.jpg Copyright : Vincent Curutchet / DPPI http://blanconegro.extranet-e.net/public/START_071129_01_HR.jpg Click to download http://blanconegro.extranet-e.net/public/START_071129_01_HR.jpg Copyright : Vincent Curutchet / DPPI http://blanconegro.extranet-e.net/public/GITANA_80_071129_01_HR.jpg Click to download http://blanconegro.extranet-e.net/public/GITANA_80_071129_01_HR.jpg Copyright : Vincent Curutchet / DPPI Radio sessions As from November 30th and until the race’s arrival, radio sessions with the competitors will take place, daily, at 3:00 pm (french time). These radio sessions will be broadcasted, live, on the race’s website every day a 3:00 pm. As from November 30th until December 9th, the radio sessions will be opened to the public and will take place, live, on the Brittany region’s booth (STAND Hall 1 N92-R111) at the Paris boat show. www.transatecoverbtob.com http://www.transatecoverbtob.com Rights free photos for non commercial and press use only - 10x15 cm max. Compulsory Copyright : V.Curutchet / DPPI Press Contact Brasil Agence Blanco Negro e-mail : media@transatbtob.com Florence Elizalde FRANCE +33 (0) 6 34 18 66 54 Kate Jennings E-mail : katejennings@free.fr Sur Paris - Blanco Negro Copyright © 1996-2016 - SEGEL.DE