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09.02.2011 Back to news
Will Groupe Bel make a technical pitstop?
 | © Gilles Martin-Raget |
Slightly outrun as she left the Mediterranean, Groupe Bel belted along to catch up with the leading pack. On 11 January, before Cape Verde, when the fleet was surfing at full speed in the northeasterly trade winds, the boat broached* sharply, damaging the large gennaker (downwind sail) which has since been unusable. So Kito and Seb continued under heavy spinnaker, which also gave way the next day in another forceful incident.
This kind of damage has obvious consequences on the progress of Groupe Bel. In surfing weather conditions with a wind between 15 and 25 knots, the crew does not have the correct sails. They only have the ones for less than 18 knots and for over 25. “Although it has not always penalized us in the race, we have missed the large gennaker and the heavy spinnaker these last few days. It is important to explain why Groupe Bel is not at 100% of her potential to the people who are following her”, said the skipper who, head high, has been champing at the bit for the last few weeks with his partner.
Video recorder!
If we run the film of the race again, as Foncia and then Virbac-Paprec 3 came out of the doldrums they decided to make a short technical stopover** in Recife (Brazil), which was a tempting option for the “cowboys”. However, being a hundred miles behind the leaders of the race, Groupe Bel would have found itself in another weather system in which unfavorable winds were forecast. They therefore decided to continue. Kito and Seb would have liked to have gone looking for the wind along Brazil as did the Spanish crew on Mapfre. They had to abandon the idea, since they didn’t have the right sails. So they tried passing through the Saint Helena anticyclone.
Then, the weather offered some very atypical conditions to our friends in the Indian Ocean. “We have been sailing close hauled a lot, and we’ve been running downwind in either a very strong or weak wind, which enabled us to continue at a good pace” went on the skipper. “On the other hand, in the last few days, everything got back to normal with a fair wind of about twenty knots, and this is when the gennaker has been lacking. We are 20% below Groupe Bel’s performance. Conclusion, Estrella Damm which we were sailing in view of less than a week ago, has flown away 100 miles ahead of us.”
Cruel dilemma
What should they do? From 140° East (before Tasmania), as stated in the rules, any stopover must last at least 48 hours. The course brings the boats between the two islands of New Zealand where the capital, Wellington, offers the necessary services. Groupe Bel’s technical team are preparing for a possible stopover. It will be a race against the clock, which must not exceed two days ashore and requires great anticipation.
Our sailors have a conflicting choice to make. Should they stop, lose two days, but then attack the Pacific and the second half of this round-the-world with newfound potential, or should they continue diminished, and not lose a minute ashore? “Today, there is nothing vital that requires us to stop” Kito analyses. “We will make our decision as soon as we have a precise idea of the weather conditions around New Zealand, which may or may not favor a pitstop, and which might penalize us in relation to our contenders. It is also possible that other crews are currently considering the same question. The race is far from over…”
* Broaching: In a gust, the boat heels (leans) excessively, the rudder lifts and the boat broaches to, i.e. it comes close to the wind direction.
** Foncia, in order to repair her bow crash-box (fender), and Virbac-Paprec 3, in order to repair part of the mainsail traveller which was ripped off.
RANKING WEDNESDAY 9 JANUARY AT 10:00 HOURS (UTC +1):
1 - Virbac-Paprec 3 / Jean-Pierre Dick & Loick Peyron, 13,760 miles distance to finish
2 - Mapfre / Iker Martinez & Xabi Fernandez, 583 distance to leader
3 - Estrella Damm / Alex Pella & Pepe Ribes, 596 miles
4 - Groupe Bel / Kito de Pavant & Seb Audigane, 766 miles
5 - Renault / Pachi Rivero & Antonio Piris 1,071 miles
6 - Mirabaud / Dominique Wavre & Michèle Parret, 1,587 miles
7 - Neutrogena / Boris Herrmann & Ryan Breymaier, 1,664 miles
See the rest of the ranking on the race website.
This kind of damage has obvious consequences on the progress of Groupe Bel. In surfing weather conditions with a wind between 15 and 25 knots, the crew does not have the correct sails. They only have the ones for less than 18 knots and for over 25. “Although it has not always penalized us in the race, we have missed the large gennaker and the heavy spinnaker these last few days. It is important to explain why Groupe Bel is not at 100% of her potential to the people who are following her”, said the skipper who, head high, has been champing at the bit for the last few weeks with his partner.
Video recorder!
If we run the film of the race again, as Foncia and then Virbac-Paprec 3 came out of the doldrums they decided to make a short technical stopover** in Recife (Brazil), which was a tempting option for the “cowboys”. However, being a hundred miles behind the leaders of the race, Groupe Bel would have found itself in another weather system in which unfavorable winds were forecast. They therefore decided to continue. Kito and Seb would have liked to have gone looking for the wind along Brazil as did the Spanish crew on Mapfre. They had to abandon the idea, since they didn’t have the right sails. So they tried passing through the Saint Helena anticyclone.
Then, the weather offered some very atypical conditions to our friends in the Indian Ocean. “We have been sailing close hauled a lot, and we’ve been running downwind in either a very strong or weak wind, which enabled us to continue at a good pace” went on the skipper. “On the other hand, in the last few days, everything got back to normal with a fair wind of about twenty knots, and this is when the gennaker has been lacking. We are 20% below Groupe Bel’s performance. Conclusion, Estrella Damm which we were sailing in view of less than a week ago, has flown away 100 miles ahead of us.”
Cruel dilemma
What should they do? From 140° East (before Tasmania), as stated in the rules, any stopover must last at least 48 hours. The course brings the boats between the two islands of New Zealand where the capital, Wellington, offers the necessary services. Groupe Bel’s technical team are preparing for a possible stopover. It will be a race against the clock, which must not exceed two days ashore and requires great anticipation.
Our sailors have a conflicting choice to make. Should they stop, lose two days, but then attack the Pacific and the second half of this round-the-world with newfound potential, or should they continue diminished, and not lose a minute ashore? “Today, there is nothing vital that requires us to stop” Kito analyses. “We will make our decision as soon as we have a precise idea of the weather conditions around New Zealand, which may or may not favor a pitstop, and which might penalize us in relation to our contenders. It is also possible that other crews are currently considering the same question. The race is far from over…”
* Broaching: In a gust, the boat heels (leans) excessively, the rudder lifts and the boat broaches to, i.e. it comes close to the wind direction.
** Foncia, in order to repair her bow crash-box (fender), and Virbac-Paprec 3, in order to repair part of the mainsail traveller which was ripped off.
RANKING WEDNESDAY 9 JANUARY AT 10:00 HOURS (UTC +1):
1 - Virbac-Paprec 3 / Jean-Pierre Dick & Loick Peyron, 13,760 miles distance to finish
2 - Mapfre / Iker Martinez & Xabi Fernandez, 583 distance to leader
3 - Estrella Damm / Alex Pella & Pepe Ribes, 596 miles
4 - Groupe Bel / Kito de Pavant & Seb Audigane, 766 miles
5 - Renault / Pachi Rivero & Antonio Piris 1,071 miles
6 - Mirabaud / Dominique Wavre & Michèle Parret, 1,587 miles
7 - Neutrogena / Boris Herrmann & Ryan Breymaier, 1,664 miles
See the rest of the ranking on the race website.
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