MOD 70 Krys Ocean Race from New York to Brest - Overall
by Multi One Design 14 Jul 2012 08:52 BST
7-13 July 2012
Saluted by sailors aboard just about every conceivable type of floating craft, the KRYS OCEAN RACE’s MOD70’s fleet, which had just completed a lightning fast crossing of the Atlantic, received a rousing welcome when they docked this afternoon in the very centre of the massive Tonnerres de Brest maritime festival.
Yann Guichard’s winning team on Spindrift racing lead the finishers, as they speared spectacularly down the Rade de Brest, at more than 25 knots hulls flying, to give the huge armada a front row view of these exciting ocean racing multihulls, before taking the applause of the big crowds which lined the pierheads as they docked by the KRYS OCEAN RACE village.
As the latest and most exciting concept in ocean racing, the MOD70’s, and their world renowned crews which had traversed the Atlantic in under five days could not represent more of a contrast with the traditional boats, and their respective sailors, which flocked out of the harbour to cheer them in.
From local brightly coloured Breton fishing smacks, Dutch sailing barges, tiny brown sailed traditional dinghies bobbing among the confused wakes in the harbour, restored historic lifeboats, to three masted tall ships from around the world, the warmth of the welcome offered to the KRYS OCEAN RACE teams reflected a unity of respect and admiration for fellow mariners.
Yann Guichard, winning his first ocean race as skipper, paid tribute to his own team, citing a special feeling and mood on board Spindrift racing during the crucial second night of the race when they had to push hardest to leverage their lead.
“The wind increased all the time, that night was just fantastic for us.” Said Guichard, “The feeling and spirit on board that night was just very special. All the helmsmen that night did such a good job.”
And he revealed that it was only early today that he learned how high their 24-hour record for the MOD70’s is: “711 miles is incredible, we only discovered that this morning, but it is cool. It was amazing at that time, averaging 30kts all the time.”
Michel Desjoyeaux, finishing third on FONCIA praised the winners for their drive and for benefiting from a strategic risk which he said he felt that his FONCIA team were not prepared to take at the time:
“We saw him just in front of us, but the problem was we were very close to the strong wind side of the cold front which we took all the way across the Atlantic. But the problem here is that if you go a little bit too much to the left side, then you lose the wind, stop the boat and then you have go far from the straight course to find the wind again. And so we did not want to take that risk.” Explained Desjoyeaux,
“For sure it was our first Transatlantic race downwind and the first objective was to finish the race and not capsize. So if you do not want to take risks then you lose places. That is the game. But we were happy to finish three boats in less than two hours after five days racing after a very, very fast race.”
Stève Ravussin’s fifth placed Race for Water crew are expected to finish early Saturday morning, perhaps as the team most relieved to dock in Brest. After hitting a submerged container during the first night of the race, the crew have had ease off the pace and maintain a constant regime of pumping water from their boat every 40 minutes.
Quotes:
Sébastien Josse, skipper Groupe Edmond de Rothschild:
“You just know that when you sail in a fast boat that you just have to forget about staying dry. In a Volvo 70 or Open 60, anything that goes faster than 20kts, you have to just forget staying dry. This is no worse than a Volvo 70…just the same: inside is wet, outside is a bit wetter, usually. It is part of the game.”
“Overall it is all a good sign for the boats competing together. The first 48 hours we broke the 700-mile barrier and that is good for the future. I don’t think it (the record) can go much higher than that, maybe 10 miles, because here we really did have the perfect conditions.”
Michel Desjoyeaux, skipper FONCIA:
“I think they (Spindrift racing) is a very good team and pushed the boat very hard downwind. You need to be very precise driving the boat and trimming the sails, we have to work hard. For sure it was our first Transatlantic race downwind and the first objective was to finish the race and not capsize. So if you do not want to take risks, you lose places. That is the game. But we were happy to finish three boats in less than two hours after five days racing after a very, very fast race.”
Sidney Gavignet, skipper Musandam-Oman Sail:
“We validated out learning. Our goal was to arrive here, we did that well but we really learned a little too, and we keep that to ourselves. I am pretty confident we can be in the game in the next race. But leading out of New York, we had some good luck, but it was delicious.”
More from Spindrift Racing
A few hours after crossing the finish line in Brest, Yann Guichard reflects upon the incredible past week, the exciting regattas off Manhattan, the mad rush across the Atlantic, and a great victory built on performance and most of all, on a fantastic team effort by a solid crew of friends totally dedicated to the boat. Speed, record pace, opposition, teamwork and the key to a great victory… Guichard says it all :
"It actually all comes down to our ability to stay longer than anyone under gennaker on the second night of the race. Winds were really blowing hard as we entered the low pressure system and we were picking up speed, close to 35 knots. The sea was still very calm and flat so we pushed an little bit harder than any of our competitors. We were able to combine great boat speed and a better wind angle. We slid downwing the entire night and in the next morning, we were in command, on a better course with greater speed. It was then all a matter of keeping that advantage, which we did as we were day after day the fastest boat in the race. We only slowed down as we reached the Scilly Islands with the low pressure dying out on us. But we had a small edge over our opponents that proved sufficient to secure victory…"
"Considering the start inside New York Bay and the mark at the Scilly Islands, we've raced as fast as the Maxy Catamaran Orange in 2006. I was part of Bruno Peyron’s crew at the time and we set a transatlantic record in 4 days and 8 hours. Our performance on board Spindrift racing, which is a much smaller boat is quite comparable. We were able to maintain high speed during a long time by switching the man at the helm very often, to make sure we had at all times the fitter man to deal with conditions that kept on getting rougher as we moved along. It’s been an all out team effort, with constant watch on the proper sail plan, according to sea state."
"We’ve been under water most of the time. Big waves kept spraying the cockpit and the man at the helm was the most exposed. We’ve stayed wet during the entire race. We were quite tense at the beginning as it takes a while to get used to high speed sailing. When you do 35 knots and over for hours, you get the feeling that disaster awaits at the next wave. Then you kind of get used to it, you build up confidence and you keep on pushing hard. At night, things really get stressful as you can no longer anticipate the direction of the waves. I know all the MOD70 have had their moments of sheer fright, when the boat hits the wave with three hulls and boat speed drops from 35 to 5 knots within seconds. You wonder which side the boat is going to fall. And then you just keep on going."
"Spindrift racing is a project born out of nothing. We’ve built everything on human qualities, competence and respect. And it works. Everyone involved with the project has blended into that philosophy. The atmosphere onboard during the race was the perfect representation of that philosophy, when every man looks after each other, and dedicates himself to the boat."