Transat Jaques Vabre 2007 von Le Havre nach Bahia - Start 3. November 2007 www.jacques-vabre.com - Übersicht Date : Friday 9th November Crunch time Michel Desjoyeaux and Emmanuel Le Borgne will tonight tackle the passage between the Canary Islands of Fuerteventura and Gran Canaria: still in second position, Foncia will have the opportunity to close on the leader in a channel that may well prove to be the crunch point of this transatlantic race. On paper, the choices made by the leading IMOCA monohulls are more than logical, to the point of being virtually compulsory! The reason for this is the light, shifty winds off Portugal, which are E to NE’ly and have settled over the zone in order to generate fine weather, with sunny skies and calm seas, accompanied by summery climes… “To be in contact with Loïck Peyron, who is just two miles behind, is extremely motivating as you are constantly on your guard. Meantime Marc Guillemot has never been so close ahead since the exit from the Channel and that’s a good thing. As to Jean Le Cam's offshore option, we're watching him very carefully, but he will have to pass close to the very high volcano of Tenerife, and that may be penalising… In any case, it's been a great battle since the start in Le Havre and it’s just what we came in search of when deciding to participate in this transatlantic race! At the moment, the sailing conditions are considerably more pleasant and FONCIA is proving to be very versatile whilst up against its competitors. Consequently I’m very happy with the boat’s potential and we’re losing more ground as a result of our problems of trajectory rather than on pure speed…” Fotos: Yvan Zedda However, besides these almost idyllic sailing conditions, Michel Desjoyeaux and Emmanuel Le Borgne clearly are still very much in the match, with the leader just fifteen miles or so ahead (or with a lead of around an hour and a half) and a tenacious pursuer who is sailing within sight of FONCIA’s transom. The night ahead promises to be an important one, as the frontrunners will pass through the middle of the Canaries archipelago, with a strong risk of fickle winds: “The wind has tended to ease since our approach on the Canaries, but we have opted to pass through some of the lowest lying islands… The fleet is lined up (with the exception of VM Matériaux) to slip through at the same point: the passage is unlikely to revolutionize the hierarchy. Rendez-vous at the Saturday morning ranking!” Absence of an onshore router One particularity aboard FONCIA is the lack of an onshore router to help the crew in their tactical choices in the short and medium term. Michel Desjoyeaux chose to do it himself even though it requires a lot of work at the chart table, so that he can prepare for the Vendée Globe straightaway; the latter race prohibiting any outside assistance. “I’ve always fought hard to do things onboard myself, since we have a vast amount of information at our fingertips via internet. It’s not always simple and Manu and I have had numerous discussions about the choice of course… For the time being, it’s going well and it makes you think about things more rather than be manipulated: we are at the core of our decision making, which makes it all the more satisfying!” Down below As regards comfort, the skipper of FONCIA finally seems to be appreciating the starkness of the monohull's interior layout, especially in these particularly calm sailing conditions. “It’s certainly rather simple down below and we’re going to make a few fixtures to store the blankets for example! However, FONCIA is comfortable at sea and highly practical. There's some space to dry clothes… There is also excellent visibility to the outside and you can stand up down below: it’s not bad at all, even in big seas!” On the programme then this weekend, FONCIA will have to negotiate the Canaries archipelago, the meteorological effect of which extends tens of miles prior to and after the islands. Once this (tricky?) passage has been crossed, the leaders will be pushed along by some very variable trade winds and will have to decide between the long route along the African coast or a shift further offshore. The options won’t be easy as the meteorological situation will only become stable again once the depression around the Azores has dissipated, which won’t be before next Tuesday! The playing field is wide open then with numerous scenarios in view until they pass through the Doldrums, the latter still 1,200 miles or five days away! IMOCA monohull ranking on Tuesday 6th November at 1600 hours: 1-Marc Guillemot & Charles Caudrelier (Safran) 2880 miles from the finish 2-Michel Desjoyeaux & Emmanuel Le Borgne (FONCIA) 2896, 1 miles back 3-Loïck Peyron & Jean-Baptiste Le Vaillant (Gitana Eighty) 2898, 3 miles back 4-Kito de Pavant & Sébastien Col (Groupe Bel) 22917 miles back http://www.windreportmedia.com/sailing/Foncia/audio/el031107a_fr_e.mp3 DOCUMENTS TO DOWNLOAD Download the conference call this friday 15.00pm (TU) - In French http://www.windreportmedia.com/sailing/Foncia/audio/md091107a_fr_e.mp3 FONCIA © Yvan Zedda Télécharger http://blanconegro.extranet-e.net/public/fo241007-719Oryanoodownload.jpg FONCIA © Yvan Zedda Télécharger http://blanconegro.extranet-e.net/public/fo241007-402oryanoo.jpg http://blanconegro.extranet-e.net/public/fo241007-451oryanoodownload.jpg Emménagement FONCIA © Yvan Zedda Télécharger http://blanconegro.extranet-e.net/public/fo081007-261oryanoo.jpg Download the press release http://blanconegro.extranet-e.net/public/091107-Foncia2_en.doc ***FONCIA Present in over 500 sites around Europe (France, Switzerland, Belgium and Germany), the FONCIA Group is the leader of property management and transaction for habitation in France. FONCIA’s savoir-faire is based around 4 complementary areas of the property market: the management of joint ownership, rental management, rental and sales. Since 3rd April 2007, FONCIA has formed part of the Banque Populaire Group. Press Contact Team FONCIA Agence Blanco Negro +33(0)1 47 72 81 41 Stéphanie André Mob : +33(0)6 84 79 76 01 / Laurence Dacoury Mob : +33 (0)6 18 41 30 28 presse@teamfoncia.com mailto:presse@teamfoncia.com presse.teamfoncia.com http://presse.teamfoncia.com Copyright © 1996-2016 - SEGEL.DE