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14.02.2011 Back to news
Stopping to make better headway
 | © Groupe Bel |
The decision has been made; Groupe Bel will make a stopover! It is a decision that has been carefully thought through by the two sailors, who must stay at quay for at least 48 hours, as stipulated in the race rules. This stopover will also guarantee that they start the second half of this round-the-world at the top of the boat’s potential. Groupe Bel’s lack of speed in relation to Estrella Damm, more than XXX miles from her this Monday at 15:00 hours, has begun to weigh heavily in the ranking and also on the crew’s spirits; which are not very happy about sailing ‘diminished’. ‘We have confirmed our choice’, said Kito this lunchtime by telephone. ‘Some good may come of it, but there will be a delay. However, we will stick by our choice till we get to Barcelona!’
Things are being prepared in Wellington already! This ‘pit-stop’ will be carried out briskly. It is worth recalling that one sail cannot be replaced by another. Only the repair of up to 60% of the total surface area is allowed. A gennaker and all the necessary equipment is already on site. An ‘express’ sewing room has been set up thanks to North-Sails in New Zealand and Yann, the North France sail specialist is travelling there from Vannes. Reached at midday, the two sailors were confident in their choice and had only one thing in mind: Stopping to make better headway’
Sébastien Audigane: ‘We are under spinnaker since this morning. There is a lot of swell but it’s not quite as wet. Life is more agreeable on board Groupe Bel. The wind will fall off by the end of the day. The anticyclone will move east under the wind from New Zealand and therefore we will pass just above it. It’s not looking too bad. We will see each other in 4-5 days in Wellington if everything goes well. This stopover may reopen the debate. The race is far from finished, there’s still 12,000 miles to go, and who knows, perhaps we will not be the only ones to stop. We imagined going on to Barcelona without these sails, knowing that between Cape Horn and Spain, we will be sailing mostly close hauled, but there’s the whole Pacific Ocean to cross, and we realized that we have been severely handicapped these last few days.’
Kito de Pavant: “We’re in good spirits. We’ve got used to the idea of stopping, because together we have been talking about this for nearly a month. Groupe Bel needs all her sails to run at the best of her potential! This stopover is a necessary interruption! It is important to enjoy sailing the boat in the second half of this round-the-world. It will also be an opportunity to carry out a full check-up, and do some small jobs, particularly the hydrogenerator’s bracket which is in a fairly bad way. We are updating the ‘job list’. The whole team is ready, so there’ll be no hanging about! It’s the first time that I have spent so much time at sea and it’s a wonderful experience. Nonetheless, I do feel the fatigue. We’re sleeping longer, and much better! Finally, we have got used to the ambient noise. When I sleep in my bunk, I often ask myself where I really am!’
RANKING MONDAY 14 FEBRUARY AT 15:00 HOURS (UTC +1):
1 - Virbac-Paprec 3 / Jean-Pierre Dick & Loick Peyron, 11 865 miles distance to finish
2 - Mapfre / Iker Martinez & Xabi Fernandez, 497 distance to leader
3 - Estrella Damm / Alex Pella & Pepe Ribes, 666 miles
4 - Groupe Bel / Kito de Pavant & Seb Audigane, 870 miles
5 - Renault / Pachi Rivero & Antonio Piris 1426 miles distance
6 - Mirabaud / Dominique Wavre & Michèle Parret, 1754 miles distance
7 - Neutrogena / Boris Herrmann & Ryan Breymaier, 1768 miles distance
Things are being prepared in Wellington already! This ‘pit-stop’ will be carried out briskly. It is worth recalling that one sail cannot be replaced by another. Only the repair of up to 60% of the total surface area is allowed. A gennaker and all the necessary equipment is already on site. An ‘express’ sewing room has been set up thanks to North-Sails in New Zealand and Yann, the North France sail specialist is travelling there from Vannes. Reached at midday, the two sailors were confident in their choice and had only one thing in mind: Stopping to make better headway’
Sébastien Audigane: ‘We are under spinnaker since this morning. There is a lot of swell but it’s not quite as wet. Life is more agreeable on board Groupe Bel. The wind will fall off by the end of the day. The anticyclone will move east under the wind from New Zealand and therefore we will pass just above it. It’s not looking too bad. We will see each other in 4-5 days in Wellington if everything goes well. This stopover may reopen the debate. The race is far from finished, there’s still 12,000 miles to go, and who knows, perhaps we will not be the only ones to stop. We imagined going on to Barcelona without these sails, knowing that between Cape Horn and Spain, we will be sailing mostly close hauled, but there’s the whole Pacific Ocean to cross, and we realized that we have been severely handicapped these last few days.’
Kito de Pavant: “We’re in good spirits. We’ve got used to the idea of stopping, because together we have been talking about this for nearly a month. Groupe Bel needs all her sails to run at the best of her potential! This stopover is a necessary interruption! It is important to enjoy sailing the boat in the second half of this round-the-world. It will also be an opportunity to carry out a full check-up, and do some small jobs, particularly the hydrogenerator’s bracket which is in a fairly bad way. We are updating the ‘job list’. The whole team is ready, so there’ll be no hanging about! It’s the first time that I have spent so much time at sea and it’s a wonderful experience. Nonetheless, I do feel the fatigue. We’re sleeping longer, and much better! Finally, we have got used to the ambient noise. When I sleep in my bunk, I often ask myself where I really am!’
RANKING MONDAY 14 FEBRUARY AT 15:00 HOURS (UTC +1):
1 - Virbac-Paprec 3 / Jean-Pierre Dick & Loick Peyron, 11 865 miles distance to finish
2 - Mapfre / Iker Martinez & Xabi Fernandez, 497 distance to leader
3 - Estrella Damm / Alex Pella & Pepe Ribes, 666 miles
4 - Groupe Bel / Kito de Pavant & Seb Audigane, 870 miles
5 - Renault / Pachi Rivero & Antonio Piris 1426 miles distance
6 - Mirabaud / Dominique Wavre & Michèle Parret, 1754 miles distance
7 - Neutrogena / Boris Herrmann & Ryan Breymaier, 1768 miles distance
See the rest of the ranking on the race website.
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