Eve of the Vendée Globe

The British skippers on the eve of the Vendée Globe race © onEdition

Dee Caffari on the eve of the Vendée Globe race © onEdition

Straight into it

For the Vendée Globe veterans start day will be a heady cocktail of déjà vu rushing into an immediate test of seamanship and brinksmanship. For the rookies – the first timers – a real baptism of fire awaits.

Those old hands, the likes of Wavre, Golding, Desjoyeaux, Peyron, may be better equipped mentally to deal with the inevitable flood of dockside emotions and will relish the warmth and strength of the completely unique send off from the hundreds of thousands of well wishers who will line the port, the narrow channel to the sea, and the beaches of Les Sables d’Olonne.

The first timers may be briefed to capacity with weather information and know that they have a rough night and first day to get through, but coming through both the mental maelstrom and the serious weather with everything intact are almost equally important through the first 24-36 hours of the race.

The forecasters promise little time for the 30 skippers to find their feet, but those who can maximise the gains through the first night have the best chance of making an early break as they cross the 300 miles or so from the Les Sables d’Olonne to Cape Finisterre before they slide south in lighter winds paralleling the coast of Portugal.

Conditions will be typical of an angry Bay of Biscay in November. The SW'ly wind, moderate at the start will gradually strengthen to 25 or 30 knots during the night, then 30 to 35 knots with gusts reaching 40-45 knots. However, more than the wind itself, it is the sea state that is going to immediately test skippers and their boats. The NW'ly swell mixed with a SW'ly wind will combine to create rough to heavy seas with waves reaching 5 to 6 metres (16 to 18 feet).

Then the wind will gradually veer through West into the NW'ly, perhaps favouring those who are out in front, continuing to veer into the north.

The weather picture is well known for this time of year and skippers are aware that the pattern can allow an early jump, separating the experienced from the less experienced, the well prepared from he programmes that struggled for time.

This first test is a real one, the need to stay with the vanguard to avoid missing the next weather system.

The biggest ever round the world race brings its own challenges to the organisers too. Getting the large fleet off the docks and into the channel in short order is a carefully planned operation which will begin at 0915h (local/0815GMT) when Dee Caffari’s yellow hulled AVIVA will lead off the fleet which will leave their berths at four minute intervals. Three more British boats follow, BT, Hugo Boss and Ecover 3, with the 30th boat Roland Jourdain’s Veolia Environnement due slipping her lines at 1100hrs.

After the gun sounds at 1302hrs (local/1202hrs GMT) the skippers will head off on port tack, unanimously agreed as the most direct route, so avoiding the need to make difficult early tacks when the fleet is so compact.

For both British skippers Alex Thomson and Steve White, it has been a battle to make the start line. Thomson’s Hugo Boss shore team made their final hurdle by flying in a specialist electrician by private jet to complete their final checks after make a last minute change to their electrical power system, with the new parts driven overnight from the UK.

It was electrical problems that Steve White was dealing with as he struggled to get Toe in the Water ready. Skipper White admitted that he would be working late into his final night and had been forced to dig into his family domestic budget to complete his preparations. White is taking food for 100 days at sea with staple rations of porridge and golden syrup.

“I will be there. I have one issue with my wind generator to deal with and after that it is small things. But another week would have been better. The last weeks have been a constant mix from elation to frustration and back again. 45 knots does not bother me too much, it is a case of putting small sails up and riding through it. It will be unpleasant but I’ll get on with it.” Promised White.

Artemis skipper Jonny Malbon, heading for his first solo round the world race:

“It’s going to be horrendous you know, 45 knots gusting 50 a times, and then hopefully becoming a lot nicer so if we can get through that then life will be good!”

Hugo Boss’ Alex Thomson, who has completed two circumnavigations but has onlty spent a maximum of 21 days solo at sea said:

“It’s all about the start now – it’s so daunting. The prospect of spending 100 days at sea alone is a very daunting one. Going up that canal is an experience and a half, and part of me loves it and part of me absolutely hates it. Luckily I did it last time so I know what to expect, but no matter what anyone says, when you go up that canal in some ways it’s pretty horrific and in some ways it’s one of the best experiences of your life. I’m certainly not looking forward to it. Mike and I have both been through that with the Velux 5 Oceans and it’s horrendous. We could see 50 gusts of up to knots which isn’t very pleasant, but on the other hand if something breaks it’s better it breaks on the first night than deep in the Southern Oceans.”

AVIVA’s Dee Caffari: “I’d thought I’d have lost the plot by now! But we’ve just got to get out there and do it. We know the forecast for the first 24 hours is horrendous, Bay of Biscay is just not where you need 45-50 knots. We almost just need to nurse ourselves through that first day and then we can get going again in much better conditions. It is a really difficult because the start’s quite stressful anyway. It’s quite an emotional drain saying the good bye and then we’ve got to go through that heavy weather and really difficult sea conditions which is possible boat breakage time. You’ve just got nurse your boat out there, then as soon as we get the front through we can point south it’ll be okay, now we can start again at this game!

Plan is to nurse the boat through the first 24-48 hours and then get into my rhythm. It’s going to be a bit of a baptism of fire, and it will take a while to adapt, but then I’m sure I’ll settle into a rhythm and get my head around the race.”

Live coverage of the start will be available on www.vendeeglobe.org

British yachtswoman Dee Caffari set to lead out the Vendée Globe fleet (from Caroline Ayling)

Tomorrow at 08.15 (GMT) British yachtswoman Dee Caffari and her Open 60 yacht Aviva will lead out the 30-strong Vendée Globe fleet from Les Sables d’Olonne, France. In her first attempt at the gruelling round the world race, the former PE teacher from Hertfordshire will be the first skipper off the dock in Port Olona followed by the other 29 Open 60s for the official race start at 12:02 (GMT).

Caffari, who is sponsored by Aviva the world’s fifth largest insurance group, will be the first skipper to parade in front of an anticipated 300,000 supporters lining the coast and the famous channel leading out to the start line in the Bay of Biscay. French broadcaster Partick Poivre d’Arvor, who is also Aviva’s Godfather, will fire the starting gun that will set the 30 solo skippers off on their 27,000 mile circumnavigation of the world.

Whilst this is Caffari’s Vendée Globe debut, it will be her second solo circumnavigation of the globe having set a world record becoming the first woman to sail solo and non-stop against the prevailing winds and currents in 2006. On successful completion of the 27,000 mile race Caffari will make sporting history by becoming the only woman to have sailed solo, non-stop around the world in both directions.

Caffari said: ‘I can’t quite believe that tomorrow Aviva and I will be lining up against so many sailing legends and to lead the fleet out is an awesome feeling. In 2000, I was here as part of Mike Golding’s shore crew, but at the time my limited experience meant I was given the glamorous jobs like jumping in the freezing water and scrubbing the bottom of the boat! Now I’m here with my own Open 60 and I can’t wait to go racing against the best in the world.’

Caffari added: ‘To compete in the Vendée Globe is a dream come true but I’ve also got my eyes on another personal goal to become the first woman to sail solo, non-stop both ways around the world. The forecast looks pretty wet and windy tomorrow but I’m raring to go and can’t wait to get started.’

Countdown to the start (from Mike Golindg)

After four years of preparation there are now less than 24 hours to the start of the sixth edition of the Vendée Globe.

As daylight fades on the eve of this big race, shore teams are still rushing around carrying out the final jobs on the boats, while most of the skippers are enjoying spending the last few hours with their family and friends.

There are still hoards of spectators jammed into the race village and many former Vendée Globe competitors including the likes of Ellen MacArthur, Jean Luc van den Heede, Anne Liardet, Alain Gautier, Tony Bullimore and Nick Moloney have all turned up for tomorrow's big send off.

The current weather situation for the start indicates there'll be 25 knots of wind from the south-west. The wind will abate and veer round to the west-south-west for a while but shortly after the 13.02 start, the wind will shift round to the south-west and increase leaving competitors battling it out with the elements as the wind increases further over night.

Mike Golding chatting this afternoon said: "Well it's not looking very nice is it! It's not ideal, I think most of us would all have preferred a softer introduction to the Vendée. This has got smacks of the 5 Oceans about it! But it won't change anything - I think everyone will be pushing to get a little bit of an edge. But the question is whether to be a little bit sensible in your sail changes and make sure you don't break anything?"

Because of the strong wind and big sea forecast, and the risk of collisions and capsizes, the race office is recommending spectators watch the race start from the shore rather than venturing out in small craft.

The start will be streamed live on the official Vendée Globe website from 0930 to 1230 (radio) and from 1230 to 1330 (video). And will be shown live from the huge screen on the beach.

BBC Breakfast News will be following the race start with Mike starting from tomorrow at 0600h.

HUGO BOSS set to sail (from Gail Willows)

After one of the most miraculous repair stories in the Vendée Globe history, Alex Thomson is now ready for the start line tomorrow. It has been a turbulent three weeks for the record breaking yachtsman, but today Alex confirmed HUGO BOSS is repaired and he will be on the start line tomorrow for the race which is deemed the ‘Everest of the Sea’.

“I haven’t even been able to think about getting into race mode yet. And now the daunting fact of the matter is from tomorrow I will be spending up to 90 days at sea alone! But to be honest, I am excited about getting racing – I have been preparing for four years for this race and I very pleased after the feeling three weeks ago I had a 5% chance of making the start line to be there and ready. If this incident had occurred anywhere else in the world, I believe I wouldn’t have made it to the start line. But because of the passion of local people and businesses, and the dedicated support from the Vendee organisation - the unthinkable has happened. When I look back to the devastation I felt the night we were stuck, I cannot believe what we have been able to achieve. I have had amazing support throughout this repair and I am forever grateful to all those that have helped me and the team achieve our goal” Said Alex Thomson

It was a race against the clock to get Alex ready for the 9th November and the Vendée start; at the final hour yesterday a specialist electrician Will Best, was flown in on Sir Keith Mill’s , Alex Thomson Racing Chairman’s, private jet, to do the concluding checks on all the electrics onboard. Last night, a friend of the Alex Thomson racing team (Will Lowe) drove for 12 hours, to get the essential last minute parts to the team today for final preparations.

Unlike usual preparation for a Vendée, Alex has been managing the stress of the damage and repair project for the last three weeks. To put this into perspective of how well the boat was prepared before Alex left the UK, top of the job list for when the boat arrived in Les Sables d’Olonne was to make a carbon fibre sponge holder for the sink, unfortunately there has been no time for the sponge holder to be made. Alex has also had to put on hold his physical training he had worked so hard on, having increased his body weight by 12 kilos since the end of the Barcelona World Race. This has purely been done by increasing muscle bulk without increasing body fat at all. In a recent test at the University of Chichester, Alex was tested for pulling strength. The results showed him to have more strength in this area than they have seen in any Olympic, America’s Cup or Volvo Ocean Race sailor before.

“Alex has been through a hard time over the last few days. He had the extreme low of thinking his Vendée dreams were over - through to the jubilation of completing the repairs in record time. Usually he would have spent these 3 weeks getting into race mode - preparing both physically and mentally. These testing times have truly shown Alex’s strength of spirit and determination, all of which he will need in the next three months.” Shaun Biddulph, Alex Thomson’s Trainer

It was only 22 days ago whilst waiting outside the harbour entrance that Alex was struck dramatically by a local fishing boat. The technical team from Alex Thomson racing were drafted in to help get Alex and HUGO BOSS to the start line. Sir Keith Mills brought in support staff from Team ORIGIN in the form of Team Director Mike Sanderson, Shore Operations Director David Duff and others to assist Alex in making the start line a reality. In addition, specialists from around Europe and the UK worked on the project. At the peak of the repair over 40 people were working, separated into the repairs to the hull and repairs on the rigging. The team worked alongside Pascal Conq the designer at Finot Conq, structural engineer Dr. Paolo Manganelli from SP and Multiplast in Vannes to plan and deliver repair project. The local support Alex received meant he was able to complete these repairs.