28.12.08
Deliverance for Dominique
Last sunset for Dominique |
Whilst a few hours from his arrival in Australia you might have expected to see the skipper relax a little from the tension which has accompanied him since leaving Kerguelen, this didn’t appear to be the case. In the end it proved difficult to be totally free of stress due to a 30 knot breeze and a sea which was making the boat round up.
Fortunately, just a stone’s throw from Fremantle the wind finally eased enabling the skipper to benefit from the last few moments of solitude, his only companion the sun, which was rising in front of the bow of Temenos II.
At 0830 hours local time, after a little over 10 days of highly stressful sailing, the monohull made her entrance into the commercial port, escorted by a rib containing the shore crews from Ecover and Gitana Eighty, who had kindly come out to lend Dominique a helping hand. Even though we can imagine the skipper’s disappointment at the idea of stopping in any port except that of Les Sables d’Olonne, Dominique can at least take some satisfaction from having brought his monohull safely back to port.
“I am relieved and also proud to have got Temenos II this far. We’re a duo and I’ve done my best to preserve her somehow so I’m happy to have achieved that. I’m still suffering from the fact that I had to retire from the race. I’ll always be a little frustrated about that until the race is over and I have the next one in my sights. However, for today the overriding sensation is one of relief. I haven’t forgotten that the consequences could have been a lot more dramatic than a simple retirement from the race.”
For Dominique the time is ripe for action rather than devastation. The skipper and his team certainly won’t be short of work on zone.
“We’re going to have to roll up our sleeves. The jobs list on site is a long one and if all goes well we hope to be able to put Temenos II aboard a container ship mid-January. The arrival of the boat in Europe is scheduled a month later. At that point we’ll get together with the architects, engineers and experts and work out how the keel broke and above all why.”
The land at least |
The decisions made about this new keel were dictated by some highly reliable research so the skipper’s incomprehension must be especially great today.
“Together with the engineers and the architects we thought we’d opted for a solid and reliable technical solution, but evidently this was not the case.”
This incomprehension is something that the British skipper, Mike Golding, must share. The latter sailor’s boat is equipped with the same keel as Temenos II and it was revealed a few days ago that some worrying cracks were observed in it during the race, to the extent that the skipper admitted that he was almost relieved to have been forced to retire from the race after his dismasting.
“Mike and I have a similar kind of problem. We discussed the matter on my arrival and we’re going to seek the solutions together. We’re going to have to find the means to head back out to sea with a 100% reliable keel at all costs. We cannot accept any concessions on this matter. The racers’ safety depends on it.”
For today however, these keel issues were temporarily put to one side and under a warm Australian sun it was good humour and relief which prevailed.
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26.12.08
Temenos II expected in Fremantle tomorrow
After setting out from Kerguelen on 17th December, Dominique and Temenos II are reaching their goal. Contacted at midday a little over 24 hrs from the finish, the skipper was preparing to launch into a last gybe, which should enable him to make a direct course towards Fremantle. As a result he is expected into port tomorrow by his shore crew.
“It’ll do me good to tie up and know my little Temenos is safe!” admitted the skipper yesterday when questioned within the framework of the French broadcast “L’hebdo du jeudi”. Even though the skipper has managed to maintain a certain control of the keel movements of his damaged monohull, we can well imagine how keen he is to bring the tension associated with this decisive delivery to a close. “I’m eager to complete this voyage. I’ve realised that I’m not managing to relax or sleep properly. I’m still a bit under pressure with my keel issues, which is naturally a little wearing. I’m constantly on my guard but fortunately I’m managing to do a spot of reading to clear my head.”
Despite the lack of good sleep, Dominique was still able to relish the small savoury delights. “I’m eating well and managing to knock up a feast at virtually every meal time. Now that I know I’m going to spend New Year’s Eve on shore I’m making the most of it and tucking into the special meal we’d scheduled aboard for that date.”
Under the influence of the high pressure for the past two days, the seas have finally calmed protecting the keel from the harshest movements. To Dominique’s satisfaction, Temenos II had avoided the flat calm conditions and has been managing to make honourable speeds over the past 48 hours. “I never really got stopped in the high pressure. I always had a little wind, with the exception of a short moment where I had to use the engine. Other than that I am happy as it’s not gone too badly at all. I’m a little less than 250 miles from Fremantle, so if all goes well I should be offshore of Perth in 24 hours time. I hope I’ll make it in at about 1000 hrs with the evening tide.”
With another day at sea to go, Temenos II’s approach should be accompanied by a moderate S’ly flow, though Dominique will have to watch out for the thermal winds famed for being violent in this zone. “For tomorrow the forecast is showing S’ly wind. There is likely to be around twenty knots offshore and a lot less in the bay of Fremantle. This will also depend on how sunny it is. If it’s cloudy, as it is at the moment, this is likely to limit the thermal breeze, which can be very strong in that area. The S’ly wind should thwart its development which is a good thing.”
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24.12.08
Another Christmas in the antipodes for Dominique and Temenos II
Happy Christmas !! |
Christmases seem to be much of a muchness for Dominique. As was the case in 2007, the skipper of Temenos II is currently spending the festive period at sea, only last year there were two of them aboard and they were competing in the Barcelona World Race. The crew configuration makes a big difference at these times where the absence of your nearest and dearest must be particularly poignant.
A few hours ahead of European climes, Christmas and its wealth of emotions, as well as its abundance of presents, have taken over the monohull, to the great delight of her skipper. Contacted at the start of the afternoon, Dominique had this to say: “I’ve just done a bit of tidying up. I couldn’t use the chart table anymore with all the parcels! On opening the presents, I went from laughing to high emotion, all this kindness took me over a bit.”
In order to fully experience this moment of communion, the skipper geared himself up for a little moment of tranquillity. “I waited for sunset then I put in a reef and left the pilot to helm so I could open my parcels. I cut myself off from the boat a bit so my thoughts could centre on my nearest and dearest. Christmas is a festival which you spend amongst your family. It’s a privileged moment to think of those we love. You know that they’re thinking about you too so it’s naturally an emotionally moment.”
The Christmas meal though is something that Dominique is saving for a little later. “I’ve already succumbed and had a little foie gras and marrons glacés so I’ll have to make a bit of room in my stomach before I tackle the rest!”
An emotionally moment for Dominique
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630 miles from Fremantle, Dominique isn’t yet able to give an exact ETA. Though the Australia stopover is still scheduled between 27th and 28th December, as Dominique explained yesterday, the high pressure is making forecasts a little complicated. “A ridge of high pressure will pass over the top of me. I’m expecting to have a fair amount of light conditions and I don’t know how the boat will handle in the calms. I’m not ruling out the fact that I may have to alter course a little. I’ll certainly have to hoist the large gennaker and I’ll be at the helm if the wind drops below 10 knots, or I may rely on the engine. I’ll have to find a good way of preventing the boat from getting too shaken about.”
For the time being Temenos II still has an average of around twenty knots. “The wind isn’t adhering to the forecasts at the moment. They should be lighter than they are right now.” Aboard Temenos II, the current weather is just another little Christmas present for the skipper…
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24.12.08 Merry Christmas onboard Temenos II
www.dominiquewavre.com/p/fr/multimedia/video/241208/index.php
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23.12.2008
Temenos II 900 miles from Fremantle
Dominique with the Argonautica's beacon |
Though Dominique wasn’t able to totally escape the influence of a vigorous low situated to his south, the winds generated on his passage are likely to remain moderate. “It’s going to fill in little by little without being very strong if all goes to plan. With the 20 to 25 knots of breeze I should manage to keep up an average of 10 knots and be able to gain northing and some milder latitudes.”
Having just completed a gybe the skipper was expecting to have to continue with a series of these moves as far as Fremantle. “In simple terms I’m making headway to the east and the wind is coming from the west. As such, it’ll be one gybe after another virtually all the way to my arrival.” Though sailors are normally helped to fill the windward ballast tanks in order to facilitate the switching of sails from one tack to another, the monohull’s keel problems are forcing Dominique to slightly adapt the manœuvre. “I’m ensuring that I can gybe by carrying little sail and above all by filling all the aft ballast tanks so that the boat’s motion is dampened and thus avoids excessive heeling. Also, the minute I’ve gybed I empty the ballast tanks again which serve no purpose. It’s rather a long manœuvre but it works well this way.”
Although the skipper was delighted about leaving the influence of the austral lows and its tempestuous winds, he was rather fearful of the calms forecast across the last stretch of his course. The constraints on the gear are considerable on these boats when becalmed. Without wind, the sails flog violently causing the boat to make some rather brutal movements at times. It’s a scenario which befits Temenos II and her rather ‘fickle’ keel. “I’m going to have to traverse a ridge of high pressure so the boat will slow. I still have an ETA of 27th or 28th but it will depend on how I manage to push Temenos II in the light conditions. It’s the great unknown. If the boat is really put under stress I can still put her on a different heading, abeam of the course, in order to avoid excessive heeling.”
Out of the race but still at sea, Dominique admitted that he was still in contact with a number of skippers in the fleet; exchanges that we can well imagine are a comfort for these solo sailors who have been at sea for over 44 days. “We swap news with each other. I’m following the race very closely and I am 100% behind what the others are experiencing. Between ourselves, we can talk in all honesty about things that we might not necessarily say in the radio sessions.”
900 miles from the Australian coast and 24 hours before Christmas Eve, the skipper was preparing to celebrate Christmas in the most traditional of ways, or almost… “I’m going to decorate the boat a bit and have a real little Christmas ceremony. For this I’ll chose a favourable moment where the boat is very stable. In any case, I haven’t invited many people to the party this year. Nobody is going to be early or late if I shift the scheduled timing a little. (laughs)
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Bye-bye "fille de l'Atlantique" |
At 0130 UT, Tuesday 23rd December, Dominique released a beacon at 37°34.37’S and 96°56.99’E, which had been entrusted to him in Les Sables d’Olonne, within the framework of the Argonautica educational project. The purpose of this educational device developed on the initiative of the CNES (National Space Study Centre) is to make young populations aware of the fundamental role of the oceans in climate change, to enable them to understand the ocean currents and be aware of the contribution of the satellites in this domain. The movements of the beacon, rechristened "fille de l’Atlantique" (the Atlantic’s daughter) by classes from the Ollières and St Julien schools in the Haute-Savoie, will be recorded, and this data will be studied by over fifty classes.
Dominique has previously been committed to this scheme as he took part in it in the last Vendée Globe. Being particularly attentive to the marine environment the skipper was happy to take part in it again this year.
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Added to this Dominique has poignant memories of his time in the Kerguelen Islands and it’s only logical then that the skipper wanted to pay homage once again to the men from the TAAF, by addressing them a message, of which the following is an extract:
‘I have kept a very vivid memory of your kindness, backing and support. Solidarity and friendship are the attitudes which really characterise the whole of the L7.
You all have an abundance of solidarity and human uprightnesss, which is enveloped in a great deal of humour and modesty.
I am proud to include you amongst my friends.
I am really more than grateful to you for having given me back my physical and mental strength to carry on with the damaged Temenos towards Australia and for enabling me to refuse the assistance offered by the Emergency Services when the repair broke. That would have meant the total loss of the boat, which is something that sailors like you would have refused, as I have done.
As the quartermaster will tell you, we only abandon a vessel if it is sinking.
Temenos is courageous and we’ll arrive in Australia together.
This will be thanks to you all.
Thank you again
All the very best
Dominique’
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22.12.2008
French radio station has a little surprise in store for Dominique
Dominique de bonne humeur aujourd'hui |
Temenos II is continuing her climb northwards and Dominique is planning to extend this tack for nearly a day more, “until the wind eases and shifts round to the south.” Yesterday the skipper hadn’t yet experienced calmer conditions and was still tackling the steady winds from the tail of a cold front, which is currently passing across the zone. Under reduced sail area, the skipper was continuing to keep the boat on an even keel and, with a cup of coffee in his hand, was benefiting from the beauty of the surrounding spectacle.
Contacted midway through the day, the skipper had this to say: “This morning the wind filled in quite markedly and right now I have between 25 and 30 knots, accompanied by a fairly big swell of around 4.5 metres. I wasn’t expecting it to be this strong. I thought I would be a little more sheltered than this by being up in the north and I also imagined that the swell would calm down a little quicker. I’ll have to be patient! The sun is playing hide and seek with the clouds and the light and colours are superb today. From time to time I settle myself in the boat’s companionway with my coffee to enjoy the spectacle. By tomorrow I should have been able to hoist a little more sail area and make a pretty much direct course towards Fremantle. For the time being I’m managing to maintain a 12 knot average and the strong swell is pushing the boat along nicely. The keel is moving but there are no suspect noises or water ingress. According to the forecasts, the wind could climb to 35 knots. Squalls are likely so I’m watching the horizon, though there’s no sign of them at present.”
Of course it hasn’t escaped Dominique’s attention that as each day passes Temenos II is moving another step closer to Fremantle: “I’m monitoring my progress virtually hour by hour! (laughs) I’ve got precisely 1,110 miles to go!”
At sea, music has a special place aboard Temenos II. At times it plays a motivational role when the fatigue sets in or in contrast it provides a relaxing environment when the conditions are too harsh and you are keen to extract yourself from the omnipresent stress. Indeed it is fairly rare for a skipper to set off without this precious ally. Around ten days ago Dominique admitted during a radio session that he regularly tuned his anti-noise headphones into his onboard ipod. He also said he surprised himself sometimes by laughing alone in his boat whilst listening to some recordings from the Laurent Ruquier show. By the magic of the airwaves, the information was conveyed to the famous host of one of France’s top radio shows who, together with his merry band, decided to contact Dominique in the utmost secrecy. We can but imagine the skipper’s surprise as he hadn’t been warned about the call!
“It was very nice to be able to speak to them. I really laughed a lot and I’m still laughing now. It was extremely strange because just this morning I was listening to a podcast of them. To suddenly find myself in the middle of the ocean on the telephone with the whole team was totally surreal! It gave me a real boost.”
A little moment of relaxation for the skipper of Temenos II…
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21.12.2008
Dominique and Loick crossing paths and destinies
Little surprise for Loick |
Since this morning Temenos II has been adopting a N’ly course again. Dominique opted to gybe in the early hours so as to get away from the steady winds forecast. The skipper is adjusting his boat’s trajectory and although it’s to the detriment of his heading at times, it is permanently in search of milder weather conditions. Indeed Dominique explained that he wasn’t too fearful of the wind, but the waves are a serious risk for the damaged keel.
Contacted late afternoon Dominique described the current scene: “I’ve gybed due to the strong wind forecast. The wind isn’t hampering my progress too much but it’s the sea state which is my primary concern at these times. The keel doesn’t like the boat rolling in the waves. I must continue on this tack for a further ten hours or so, prior to being able to make a course for Fremantle again. I’d like to find an area where the swell isn’t so intense.”
In a 20 to 25 knot wind for the time being, Dominique isn’t yet feeling any marked improvement in the state of the waves. The presence of squalls and the still fairly big seas had prompted the skipper to reduce the sail area. With two reefs in the mainsail and staysail the skipper was managing to stabilise his boat.
“Temenos II is good when it’s flat but the swell is still fairly strong. I have an average of three to four metre waves and some of them are as high as 5 metres. In fact two of them had completely filled the cockpit earlier. I must be making an average of 10 or 11 knots. I’m not going fast enough and certain waves are managing to catch up with me, but I don’t want to go too fast in the conditions I have right now either. If the pilot suddenly malfunctions whilst I’ve got too much sail up, the boat would broach completely leading to a brutal keel movement. It’s all about compromise, and in the conditions we have at the moment, it’s not a very quick compromise.”
Even though the racer is lacking speed and isn’t satisfied with his meagre averages, they are enabling Temenos II to close on Australia. Right now everything’s going well aboard the monohull, but we can imagine how impatient Dominique is to make Fremantle in good time. It’s not surprising then to hear the skipper say without a moment’s hesitation that there’s “1,300 miles to go”!
“It’s going quite quickly nonetheless, I’m not complaining. I realise that I’ve already sailed halfway since leaving the Kerguelen Islands. I’m still remaining on the alert. As soon as the wind fills in and the waves shake the boat, I double my vigil. However, on average it’s rather calm and I’m confident about the next stage.”
The weather forecasts for the next few days certainly aren’t unfamiliar to the skipper. Dominique’s climb north should initially enable him to avoid the low forecast tomorrow and is also likely to enable him to make headway along the edge of a zone of high pressure in some manageable conditions.
“I’m going to remain slightly further north than the direct route to try to make headway in a 15-20 knot corridor of wind along the edge of the anticyclone.”
If this scenario is confirmed, Temenos II may well enter the port of Fremantle on around 27th December and meet up there with Ecover, which is expected to reach port in the next few days. Logically, Gitana Eighty is likely to be the last to make the Australian port due to being deprived of a rig.
“It must be interminable for Loïck. It’s alright for me as I have to be on the sheets and trimming the boat to ensure she’s always stable. That all means I have to be active and that keeps me pretty busy. In stark contrast to him, I still have my mast and I’m lucky to see the miles file past”.
With the solidarity of seafarers, it was only natural that Dominique should offer the skipper of Gitana Eighty a can of fuel.
“I spent the whole day adapting my trajectory to be able to cross tacks with Loïck but unfortunately we met up at nightfall. I threw him a floating line to which I had attached a bag with some bread and some fresh fruit given by the people of the TAAF, three books, and above all around twenty litres of fuel. I think that’s what he was most in need of. There was virtually no wind on zone, but quite a lot of swell. All went well. It was really nice to be able to make out Loïck’s silhouette and be able to speak to him over the VHF.”
After this encounter, the two skippers’ routes quickly separated, with Dominique heading north in order to escape the strong wind expected on zone, winds which should in contrast be a delight to Loïck under jury rig…
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21.12.08 Last video from Temenos II
www.dominiquewavre.com/p/fr/multimedia/video/181208/index.php
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19.12.2008
Temenos II reaches some more welcoming latitudes
Dominique on his arrival in the Kerguelen Islands, a stopover which will remain engraved on the skipper’s memory for a long time to come |
This evening at 42 degrees South, the future is looking brighter for Dominique and Temenos II now out of the influence of the train of austral lows. Since yesterday, the skipper has managed to pass through the solid cold front by taking great care of the damaged appendage. Despite winds of over 35 knots and big 6 metre seas, Dominique had managed to dampen the boat’s motion sufficiently thanks to a good choice of sail area, filled ballast tanks and regular adjustments to his course according to the wind shifts, thus avoiding excessive heeling. It is worth recalling here that too steep an angle on the keel, which is now deprived of any lateral restraint, could seriously damage the boat’s hull at any point.
Initially under-canvassed, making headway at a reduced pace, Dominique very quickly realised that, “up to a certain point, speed was a guarantee of stability”. Indeed the skipper has concluded that “it helps the boat stay upright; in the Indian there is always this cross swell and ultimately, by going fast, the boat is supported and is prevented from being tossed around too much by the waves.”
Currently approaching a ridge of high pressure, the wind is easing and the monohull has seen its progress slowed. In driving rain, in a S’ly wind not in excess of ten knots, Temenos II can now make easting towards Australia. Helped along by a conciliatory weather forecast, and flatter seas, Dominique is monitoring his boat with the greatest vigilance and care. As the miles go by the skipper recognised that he was “regaining trust in his boat”.
Even though the keel remains damaged, Dominique was relieved to feel “the immediate danger dissipating”. The skipper was even managing to get back into the daily routine of a solo sailor aboard his boat, with the exception that, now he is out of the race, he can proceed with a few slight adjustments. Dominique still has nearly a month and a half of food aboard so he now has a choice of menu, or indeed menus, given that the skipper admitted to having a massive appetite.
“It’s funny, I’m constantly hungry. My body must be in the process of recuperating. I’m making the most of my large stock of food to rummage through all the bags and take what I like! In addition I left Kerguelen with some bread, jam, oranges and some mutton from the islands, which I’m roasting in a pan. It’s delicious!”
However, the skipper recognises that he’s left the Kerguelen archipelago with a lot more than just food. Time spent here clearly makes its mark. “It was an emotional moment leaving the island. I spent a long time thanking all the people who helped me. I hoisted the TAAF flag up the shrouds, the Marion Dufresne sounded her horn and all her crew came out on deck to wave me off. It was three days of exceptional human solidarity and a real sense of brotherhood. The people on site were extraordinary. They boosted my spirits and I was straightaway adopted and pampered by these exceptional people.”
Concerned about the state of health of Yann Elies, victim of a fractured femur yesterday morning, Dominique has been regularly getting news about how the skipper of Generali is doing. As such it was with great relief that he learnt that a hospital frigate from the Australian navy is making for the zone.
The broken keel head, the object of so many disillusions for Dominique and now the object of considerable attention from the skipper |
Around every hour, Dominique is compelled to carry out regular checks on the keel, even though the skipper recognised that it was the boat’s movements above all which was the best indicator of an anomaly.
“I’m not sailing on flat waters yet. There is still a swell so I’m being careful. I’m making sure that there’s no water ingress, or any play in the pivot point, but they’re just very quick little rounds to assess the situation. The rescue services from Reunion Island have stopped calling since this morning and I’ve entered into the Australian surveillance zone. If I have any problems it’s them I have to contact but I am confident I won’t have to!”
Though yesterday Temenos II was managing to rack up some good average speeds, she still had 1,700 miles to go to reach land, a distance her skipper hoped to be able to cover in 7 to 9 days. Tomorrow, Temenos II should pass fairly close to Gitana Eighty, the latter under jury rig since her dismasting. It’s likely to be a fairly brief affair though because, with a wobbly keel but his mast still aloft, Dominique clearly has the edge. With Gitana Eighty and Ecover, there will be three boats due into Fremantle. “We’re going to have a little secondary Vendée Globe in Fremantle!” joked Dominique when questioned by the Race HQ. He concluded by alluding to the numerous messages of support he was continuing to receive: “It’s really good to know that people are continuing to think about us even though we’re out of the race.”
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17.12.2008
Dominique in difficulty
aboard his monohull
At 1015 UT, Dominique contacted his shore crew to alert them that the imposing steel part weighing close to 100 kilos, which had been attached to the head of the keel in Kerguelen, wasn’t able to withstand the considerable stresses currently placed on this area of the boat.
Surprised by weather conditions which were more violent than forecast, heightened by the strong venturi effect around Kerguelen, the skipper is currently negotiating a solid cold front and is struggling to make headway in cross seas and a wind oscillating between 30 and 40 knots. For the time being there is no way Dominique can envisage returning to Kerguelen. Were he to turn back, the boat would end up in headwinds, tacking upwind, slamming against what is already a very bad sea state. The damaged keel would stand no chance of withstanding that.
Dominique finds himself in the same situation as when he arrived in Kerguelen. Though he’s not requested assistance, the skipper has transmitted a PANPAN (emergency message). The CROSS (emergency services) and the Vendée Globe race management were immediately alerted to the skipper’s situation and are ensuring the regular monitoring of the boat’s positions. Though the skipper is currently preparing his grab bag and getting into his survival suit, he isn’t abandoning the boat for the time being.
Dominique is sailing at a reduced speed, with all his ballast tanks filled so as to make the boat as stable as possible. The two lowered daggerboards are also limiting the boat’s movements as much as possible as it gets tossed about in the big seas of the Indian Ocean. In this configuration, Temenos II is managing to make headway under reduced sail, three reef mainsail and storm sail, making between 8 and 10 knots.
Dominique will only be able to escape the strong winds by climbing northwards, but the keel damage is limiting the points of sail which are possible for the boat. Currently the skipper is managing to maintain a course of 45°, a heading which is still not far enough North to stand a chance of extracting himself quickly from the continuous flow of australe depressions, however it should progressively get him away from them. In order to make more manageable conditions forecast at around 46 degrees South, Dominique still had 200 miles of northing to make. However, prior to being able to reach this latitude, the skipper still has to negotiate strong winds forecast tomorrow morning. The next few hours are likely to be difficult aboard Temenos II.
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16.12.08
Departure from the Kerguelen Islands scheduled tomorrow for Temenos II
Arrival of Temenos II three days ago |
Whilst the chaotic Indian Ocean continues to wreak havoc on the Vendée Globe fleet, the race against the clock for the two Swiss sailors continues. It is imperative that Bernard Stamm loads his monohull, wounded after running aground, onto the Marion Dufresne which is set to leave tomorrow.
Meantime, on the advice of Sylvain Mondon from Météo France, Dominique will have to have left the base in the Port aux Français, where Temenos II has been tied up for the past three days, prior to the arrival of further violent winds forecast to hit within the next 36 hours. The bad weather conditions on site are hampering the smooth running of operations. Since the arrival of Temenos II, all the TAAF team have been working around the clock and a system to stabilise the keel has been found. Work was due to continue aboard from 0200 hours local time. The skipper hopes to be able to leave Kerguelen during the course of the day, once the system has been put in place and validated. He should then make for Fremantle in Australia following a 2,800 mile delivery trip. The journey will require the utmost vigilance at all times due to the monohull’s damaged keel.
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15.12.08
Kerguelen Islands, a fantastic land of welcome
Temenos II |
For the time being, news from Dominique is being drip-fed to us but the brief phone call from the skipper this morning was reassuring. Tied up to a buoy in the middle of the Baie du Morbihan, Temenos II weathered last night’s strong gale without hassle.
Today however, the skipper’s priority was to help free Cheminées Poujoulat, which was driven onto the shore yesterday in some brisk conditions. In 45 knots of breeze, Bernard wasn’t able to pick up the mooring which had been laid up for him yesterday. Dominique went to assist in the manœuvre but was forced to leave the monohull with Bernard as it was pushed onto the coast.
Seemingly the boat was successfully refloated early this morning, but for now we are unaware as to the extent of the damage suffered aboard the monohull.
Aboard Temenos II, a procedure to stabilise the keel has seemingly been found. The island’s mechanics are currently trying to prepare a thick steel lid which is designed to cover the keel head. The rams should be able to be fixed to this lid, limiting the magnitude of the keel movements. The means at their disposal and the good will on site are impressive. Taken care of from the minute he arrived, Dominique described them as “incredibly generous, helpful people.”
The reception the skipper has received from the people on site has been as brilliant as expected. We remember their involvement with Roland Jourdain and Jean-Luc Nélias on stopover during the Barcelona World Race, whose ruling permitted outside assistance in contrast to that of the Vendée Globe.
Formerly nicknamed the Desolation Islands by Captain Cook, the Kerguelen are above all a tremendous land of welcome...
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More information about Kerguelen : www.taaf.fr
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13.12.08
Refuge at Kerguelen
Dominique between disappointment and sadness |
It was no surprise that the disappointment and sadness was palpable in Dominique’s voice when questioned at the Race HQ link-up today. Indeed, it was with a heavy heart that the skipper has seen months, not to mention years of preparation suddenly vanish to nothing.
Battling with Marc Guillemot and Yann Elies, whose lead he had been eating into for the past two days, even gaining an edge over Generali at the 1600 hour ranking yesterday, Dominique seemed very much at one with himself on tasting, for the 8th time, the salt of these austral seas he holds so dear.
During the radio session the skipper related how he had suddenly been “alerted by the massive heeling of the boat as she broached over onto her side”. Though he initially thought it was a broach to leeward, once on deck he immediately understood that the diagnosis was a lot more serious. “At the point where the keel broke I was flat out. I was down below and had to climb up the walls to get out. I went up top to ease the sheets but it was impossible to right the boat. I went to have a look at the keel head and was dumbfounded. The keel was swinging freely in its box. I couldn’t believe my eyes; the keel head had completely shattered and there were little pieces of carbon all over the place. I managed to furl in the large gennaker and right the boat under mainsail alone. I alerted race management and my team, then I tried to progressively get the boat moving northwards again with all the ballast tanks filled, without shaking the keel.”
Deprived of any lateral support from then on, the keel was acting like a pendulum between the boat’s hull. Accentuated by the sea state, if this motion caused the boat to heel beyond 45°, it could lead to considerable structural damage to the boat’s hull, possibly resulting in water ingress. “The keel is free to swing. If the angle exceeds 45° it may break the hull bottom and potentially sink the boat.”
Protected from the strong gale about to hit the Baie du Morbihan in the Kerguelen Islands, the skipper and his boat are out of trouble. This last night aboard the ‘injured’ monohull proved particularly long for the skipper. This contrasted with the previous night where, on the look-out for ice indicated not far from the monohull, the skipper only took his eyes off the radar for short periods. This time though it was the keel box which was his primary focus.
To help him through this difficult ordeal, numerous messages of support were forwarded to the boat and this encouragement boosted the skipper’s rather wobbly spirits even more than a good cup of coffee. “I’ve kind of done my grieving for the race though I’m more than sad about it all. I’ve received a vast number of messages of support in my inbox and I had a very heart-warming call from my sponsor, which really cheered me up. That was very important to me and I’d like to thank everyone for that. It was a massive help. I am all too aware that I’m here thanks to the support of the people that have got me this far, my sponsor, my friends, my partners as well as all those who are following us.”
Over the coming days, in coordination with the boat’s architect and the keel designer, and thanks to the invaluable assistance from the people on site, Dominique will try to install a system to immobilise the keel. At 49°S, right in the middle of the Indian Ocean, we can imagine that the means available to the skipper will be limited. “We’re going to try to find a temporary means of immobilising the keel. I don’t really know what we’re going to have to invent yet. My goal is that I’ll be able to head off again in as safe a condition as possible.”
The skipper is then likely to have to wait for a favourable weather window to stand a chance of making southern Australia and ultimately envisage getting the boat back to La Rochelle. For the time being the team have come to no conclusions about why the damage occurred and at this stage no repairs can be envisaged without a through examination and the support of the professionals concerned.
Tying up at 1330 UT, the skipper was given a fantastic welcome by the people present on the islands and lost no time in taking a hot shower. With a 5 hour time difference, night was beginning to fall in the Kerguelen Islands. The skipper was planning to enjoy the comfort of a warm bed in order to be in good shape for tomorrow, where a solid day’s work awaits him.
Official retirement of Temenos II
We can imagine that it was with a heavy heart that Dominique must have made up his mind to inform race management of his retirement from the race this afternoon. Making a pit-stop in the Kergelen Islands, after having received outside assistance, Dominique was therefore forced to retire from the race.
**********
Video of the day in french:
www.dominiquewavre.com/p/fr/multimedia/video/131208/index.php
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Vacation of the day first part in french - second in english;
www.dominiquewavre.com/p/fr/multimedia/audio/131208/index.php
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13.12.08
An arrival at Kerguelen in the spotlight!
At 1230 UT today, Temenos II moored up in the Baie du Morbihan in the Kerguelen archipelago. Helped along by several ribs which came out to greet the skipper, the manœuvre went extremely smoothly.
“All went well” said Dominique during a short discussion with his shore crew, “the people on site really helped me. The arrival on zone was tricky. There was 25 knots of wind on the tail and just fifty or so metres around the tun-buoy to moor with sufficient depth. They were a great help in positioning the boat properly. All’s well. It’s a bit of change as the boat is full of people, cameras and a soundman…”
This image isn’t due to the skipper’s hallucinations as a result of his hallucinations; in fact the film crew seems to be that of a the Thalassa broadcast (a weekly French programme on all elements related to the sea), who are currently making a stopover at Kerguelen. We can well imagine the rather abrupt transition for the skipper who, other than a few marine mammals, hasn’t seen a living soul since the start in Les Sables on 9th November!
**********
13.12.08
Approaching Kerguelen
Sad day for Dominique |
The night went well for Temenos II, despite powerful wind reaching 30 knots. Dominique kept his shore crew informed of his steady progress the whole time.
Approaching Kerguelen at 0830 UT, Dominique still had a good fifteen miles or so to go.
Though the seas have calmed as he approaches the archipelago, a localised venturi effect has made the wind pick up again to between 20 to 25 knots. Compelled to perform a series of tacks at the entrance to the Baie du Morbihan and making 7 knots of boat speed with the wind on the nose, Dominique doesn’t envisage being able to moor up before 1130 UT.
At Kerguelen Dominique is likely to get help from the people present on the island.
.
Kerguelen |
More information about Kerguelen :
www.taaf.fr/spip/spip.php?article109
**********
12.12.08
Temenos II approaching the Baie du Morbihan, Kerguelen
Night has fallen aboard Temenos II, a night which at this time of the year in these austral latitudes, doesn’t last more than 5 hours. With seas on the nose, Dominique has been forced to ease off the pace over the past few hours. Despite this slight reduction in speed, the skipper should make the Baie du Morbihan in time to take shelter there. Situated to the SE of the Kerguelen Islands, this large harbour constitutes a safe haven. The wind is set to build from late tomorrow leaving the monohull time to moor safely.
Temenos II is expected late morning tomorrow.
**********
12.12.08
Temenos II is making route towards the Kerguelen Islands
The latest news from onboard is rather encouraging.
In agreement with the architects from Owen Clarke Design, Temenos II is continuing her course towards the Kerguelen archipelago where the boat should be able to shelter from the powerful gale about to hit the fleet.
Under reduced sail area, the ballast tanks filled so as to dampen and stabilise the boat as much as possible and thus avoid overly violent movements to the keel, which is no longer attached to its rams, the boat is managing to make headway at around ten knots. If she manages to continue at this speed, she may well arrive on zone tomorrow morning at around 0900 UT.
A whole chain of solidarity has been set up both in terms of researchers on the island, who immediately expressed their desire to help, and fellow skippers in the race, ready to intervene if need be.
The skipper’s night promises to be difficult one, coloured by a mixture of disappointment and surveillance of any evolution in the damage.
12.12.2008
*********
Special news flash
There’s been a tough blow aboard Temenos II. Around 1430 UT Dominique contacted his shore crew as the ram attachment to the keel head has yielded. The result of this breakage is that the keel has come away from its rams and is no longer held in a stable position and is free to swing in big seas (Dominique spoke of 6m waves during the midday radio session) which is threatening the solidity of the hull bottom and hence the boat’s integrity.
For the time being the skipper is fine and is requesting no assistance. He doesn’t envisage abandoning ship. He immediately dumped his sails and contacted naval architect Merfyn Owen so as to determine the consequences of such damage.
The skipper explained that he hadn’t felt any impact at the point that the damage occurred.
Further information will be available later on.
*********
11.12.08
First iceberg on zone
QWhat better than a chemical pack to heat up fingers numb with cold
|
Though Loick Peyron’s dismasting sent a cold shiver throughout the fleet, judging by the speeds being maintained by the leaders at the 1600 hour ranking, the awareness of the problem must have only been short-lived amongst the skippers in the fleet. With every mile that’s ticked off, the competitive spirit is as fierce as ever, and it is hard to see who might soften the infernal pace of this Vendée Globe.
During contact with his shore crew, Dominique regretted Gitana Eighty’s withdrawal from the competition, because even though its skipper hasn’t yet officially retired it would be hard to see how it could be any different. “Loick was a great driving force in this race. It’s sad to see him leave the Vendée Globe in this manner.”
For the 23 other skippers the race goes on. Aboard the boats, the cold and dampness are continuing with their shared offensive. Manœuvres are performed at the cost of considerable use of energy reserves, and the skippers are taking a long time to warm themselves up. Numb with cold the skippers are thinking twice before they set about making a sail change, and extra time is needed to perform manœuvres. “With the same amount of wind the difference in the time it takes to carry out a manœuvre is incredible between the tradewinds and the Deep South” explained Roland Jourdain during the radio session. Armel Le Cleac’h meantime expected to see his beard grow and he joked that he just couldn’t bring himself to remove “a layer of hair that was keeping him warm”.
Dropping down as far as 52 degrees south during the day, it was the same scenario aboard Temenos II. Despite being used to the rigours of the Swiss winter, the skipper was beginning to feel the biting cold as he dove southward. “It’s freezing! The minute you drop down in latitude you can feel the difference; you feel the boat getting colder too. The air is icy and saturated to 200% humidity. Added to that a small cloud of rain passes over us from time to time…”
There are limited ways of responding to these cold spells aboard these spartan carbon hulls. For today Dominique admitted that he was really going to town with methods of warming up: maximum number of fleece layers, hot coffee, calorie rich meals, small chemical warmer packs to rapidly warm up hands which are frozen by sea water of 3°C, “the perfect equipment for the Deep South” according to the skipper. Though managing the gear is the subject of much debate, physical management of the sailor must not be overlooked either. “The cold makes life a bit complicated. As soon as we go on deck and start the slightest little manœuvre, you go back down below with freezing hands. You can almost physically feel the calories disappearing. It’s important to eat well and cover yourself up so as not to lose too much energy. This morning I went to the mast foot to take in a reef and was completely soaked. I went back inside with frozen extremities. During the manœuvre you manage to get hot but that’s even worse because sweat cools down very quickly and makes you feel even colder. I sometimes have to force myself a bit to eat, as it’s an effective way of warming yourself up.”
It’s freezing!
|
Without too much hesitation a passage to the south of the Kerguelen archipelago seems to be taking shape for the first part of the fleet. Fairly soon after that a beefy low generating violent wind is set to join up with the boats. However, for the time being, Dominique still has around 500 miles to go before the islands and is likely to have a W’ly air flow which is seemingly going to compel the skipper to make another gybe. “There’s a good breeze at the moment, between 20 and 30 knots. When we pass Kerguelen we’re likely to be slowed a little by a small, localised calm patch, which won’t affect the frontrunners. I should get there tomorrow evening. After that we’ll have to gain northing rapidly to escape the worst of the upcoming low. This morning we still had fairly cross seas and two big breakers smacked against the side of the boat. Since then the sea has become a little more organised. It is more regular but it’s not very comfortable! It’s quite unpleasant to be running on the edge of the wind with our boats. There isn’t a laminar air flow in the sails and we’re not being pushed along at a constant speed. With the waves we’re managing to do some great surfing at 20 knots, but immediately after that the boat drops back down to 10 or 12 knots.”
The first boat to see an iceberg at 51°09S and 61°02E, estimated to be between 30 and 40 metres long, was skippered by Michel Desjoyeaux, who alerted race management today. Though Dominique hasn’t reached this zone yet, the skipper shouldn’t drop his guard. A non-identified floating object was signalled across Temenos II’s route. Whether it is an iceberg or a fishing boat, the satellite observation was unable to distinguish, but Dominique is going to have to double his vigilance. In the pitch black with virtually zero visibility, the skipper planned to devote his time to a scrupulous radar vigil.
**********
Ranking 16:00
Rang |
Skipper |
Bateau |
Ecart / 1er |
Depuis 1h / |
|
Vitesse |
Cap |
||||
Rk |
Skipper |
Boat |
Dist. to leader (NM) |
Speed |
Course (Deg) |
| 1 | Dick Jean-Pierre | Paprec-Virbac 2 | 0 | 18,7 | 78 |
| 2 | Desjoyeaux Michel | Foncia | 31 | 18,3 | 81 |
| 3 | Jourdain Roland | Veolia Environnement | 31,3 | 18,1 | 91 |
| 4 | Golding Mike | Ecover | 33,5 | 17,5 | 93 |
| 5 | Josse Sébastien | BT | 48,7 | 15,9 | 95 |
| 6 | Le Cam Jean | VM Matériaux | 77,6 | 19,2 | 94 |
| 7 | Riou Vincent | PRB | 125,4 | 14,8 | 98 |
| 8 | Le Cléac’h Armel | Brit Air | 141,3 | 16,2 | 83 |
| 9 | Eliès Yann | Generali | 195,8 | 13,2 | 88 |
| 10 | Guillemot Marc | Safran | 217,4 | 17,1 | 85 |
11 |
Wavre Dominique |
Temenos II |
245,8 |
16,2 |
87 |
| 12 | Peyron Loïck | Gitana Eighty | 354,3 | 7,8 | 62 |
| 13 | Thompson Brian | Bahrain Team Pindar | 558,3 | 14,6 | 95 |
| 14 | Stamm Bernard | Cheminées Poujoulat | 584,2 | 16,2 | 87 |
| 15 | Davies Samantha | Roxy | 651,8 | 14,9 | 96 |
| 16 | Caffari Dee | Aviva | 831,6 | 14,9 | 103 |
| 17 | Boissières Arnaud | Akena Vérandas | 852,6 | 15,7 | 94 |
| 18 | White Steve | Toe in the Water | 1137,3 | 13,1 | 81 |
| 19 | Malbon Jonny | Artemis | 1274,8 | 9 | 107 |
| 20 | Wilson Rich | Great American III | 1447,5 | 12 | 100 |
| 21 | Dejeanty Jean-Baptiste | Groupe Maisonneuve | 1598,3 | 14,1 | 106 |
| 22 | Hatfield Derek | Algimouss Spirit of Canada | 1972,2 | 13,2 | 100 |
| 23 | Dinelli Raphaël | Fondation Océan Vital | 2388,5 | 10,3 | 78 |
| 24 | Sedlacek Norbert | Nauticsport-Kapsch | 2440,7 | 9,5 | 143 |
**********
10.12.08
"Shaken but not stirred"
TEMENOS II |
It’s a classic situation in the deep south as the deficits increase and decrease in line with the passage of fronts associated with the lows and the zones of high pressure. On the other hand what is most surprising is to find that after a month of racing and a third of the distance covered, the top 9 boats are grouped within 100 miles.
Over 400 miles had been covered in 24 hours aboard Temenos II at the midday ranking. The average speeds are picking up and some believe the pace is beyond reasonable. What should the set pace be? It’s a nagging question at the heart of the fleet and at times the skippers are divided on this issue. Managing the gear is a dominating factor over a 3 month race, and Vincent Riou, winner of the 2004-2005 edition, wondered at what speed you had to drive the boats at. He reckons that we won’t have the answer to that until the finish in Les Sables.
Sadly, Loick Peyron, won’t experience the joy of crossing the finish line. After emphasising the importance of finishing a race like the Vendée Globe a few days ago, he informed the race management that his boat had suffered a dismasting this afternoon. The furious pace of the boats, structural faults… the reasons for this damage remain unknown, but we hope that it will encourage the skippers to ease off the pace for a while at least.
At the 1600 hour ranking, the head of the race, who watched nervously as the chasing pack gained on them yesterday, have themselves hit the winds related to the front now and have been able to shift up a gear. Aboard Temenos II a steady wind was continuing to blow but the sea state was hampering the boat’s progress.
Contacted this afternoon, prior to learning of Gitana Eighty’s dismasting, Dominique had this to say: “I have a very favourable wind which is enabling me to get in some southing. It had dropped to 18 knots this morning but now it’s been boosted to 22, 23 knots. There are messy cross seas and the swell is beam on and the boat’s struggling to get into the groove. It’s often halted by a wave the minute it launches into a surf. The speeds are quite varied and Temenos II is making headway in fits and starts. It requires a great deal of work as regards the sail trimming, which isn’t always easy.”
In this furious quest for performance, the sea state is a deciding factor, and it’s the waves rather than the wind which dictate the speeds of the monohulls. It’s impossible to maintain an 18 knot average without putting the gear under pressure unless you’re in a conciliatory sea at the very least. “When the sea state is good, with a wave on the tail which launches the boat into the surf, you can expect 18 knot average speeds without forcing things too hard. However, the minute the sea state is poor you lose 3 knots straightaway. In this instance you really get the feeling that if you force the boat too hard by carrying too much sail aloft, you can cause damage with the violent braking in the waves. Forcing your way through these types of seas isn’t reasonable. You have to try and weave your way through gently when the sea state is poor.”
Since yesterday, Dominique has been making the most of a passing front to make up some of his deficit. A touch vengeful after coming to a standstill in the calms two days ago, Dominique was benefiting from the good conditions to “push the machine” and rather than getting some sleep, the skipper has gained some ground on the head of the fleet and is now just 227 miles off pole position. “It was a good day. I had a good wind angle and good seas and that enabled me to push the machine. As the squalls went through I had over 30 knots of breeze and had to reduce the sail area a little. The boat was burying too much and it would have been difficult to go faster without risking the gear. When you maintain average speeds like these it’s both intense and stressful. We’re really shaken about and it’s harder to get off to sleep. You feel like you may be unseated from your bunk at any moment by the movement of the boat. You have to sleep in boots and foulies to be ready to intervene on deck if the boat runs off the racetrack. The nervous tension is palpable. The pilots do a good job but we know that they’re not infallible. They can give up the ghost in a split second and send the boat into a broach. When that happens you have to be able to react extremely quickly if you don’t want to break gear.”
The range of creaking and impacting on the boat in the waves is not designed to improve the growing state of anxiety, though Dominique has his own way of softening things which may appear very austere from land. “As soon as the boat’s making more than 20 knots the rudders scream creating a fairly stressful, sharp noise. I tune the Ipod into my anti-noise earphones and that tones down the noise well and it becomes more bearable.”
**********
Ranking 16:00
Rang |
Skipper |
Bateau |
Ecart / 1er |
Depuis 1h / |
|
Vitesse |
Cap |
||||
Rk |
Skipper |
Boat |
Dist. to leader (NM) |
Speed |
Course (Deg) |
| 1 | Dick Jean-Pierre | Paprec-Virbac 2 | 0 | 18,1 | 103 |
| 2 | Josse Sébastien | BT | 0,3 | 20,4 | 100 |
| 3 | Jourdain Roland | Veolia Environnement | 21,4 | 15,4 | 109 |
| 4 | Golding Mike | Ecover | 28,3 | 17 | 104 |
| 5 | Desjoyeaux Michel | Foncia | 38,6 | 19,3 | 95 |
| 6 | Peyron Loïck | Gitana Eighty | 45,8 | 2,9 | 59 |
| 7 | Le Cam Jean | VM Matériaux | 63,7 | 17,3 | 96 |
| 8 | Riou Vincent | PRB | 83 | 14,9 | 105 |
| 9 | Le Cléac’h Armel | Brit Air | 99,6 | 15,3 | 117 |
| 10 | Eliès Yann | Generali | 134,8 | 12,2 | 116 |
| 11 | Guillemot Marc | Safran | 182,6 | 17 | 128 |
12 |
Wavre Dominique |
Temenos II |
227,3 |
15,8 |
132 |
| 13 | Thompson Brian | Bahrain Team Pindar | 526,9 | 14,2 | 68 |
| 14 | Stamm Bernard | Cheminées Poujoulat | 556,5 | 15,7 | 86 |
| 15 | Davies Samantha | Roxy | 593,7 | 14,2 | 80 |
| 16 | Caffari Dee | Aviva | 752,6 | 13,5 | 101 |
| 17 | Boissières Arnaud | Akena Vérandas | 771,5 | 13,1 | 92 |
| 18 | White Steve | Toe in the Water | 975,6 | 12,9 | 75 |
| 19 | Malbon Jonny | Artemis | 1122,6 | 11,9 | 73 |
| 20 | Wilson Rich | Great American III | 1334,4 | 11,8 | 86 |
| 21 | Dejeanty Jean-Baptiste | Groupe Maisonneuve | 1568,1 | 15,8 | 87 |
| 22 | Hatfield Derek | Algimouss Spirit of Canada | 1842,7 | 12,8 | 87 |
| 23 | Dinelli Raphaël | Fondation Océan Vital | 2257,9 | 11,9 | 93 |
| 24 | Sedlacek Norbert | Nauticsport-Kapsch | 2282,1 | 12 | 86 |
**********
09.12.08
Temenos II hotfooting it once more
A littler corner of blue sky |
Aboard a good number of boats contacted at the link-up today, the humour was a little lacking. To listen to the voices of certain skippers you could sense a little drop in spirits, which in all probability was due to the head of the race extending their lead. Whilst the top ten were sailing just a hundred miles or so apart 3 days ago, the deficits have grown and the 10th placed skipper was relegated to over 180 miles astern of the leader at midday. And what must be going through Yann Elies’ mind as he bombed out of the top spot five days ago and has now seen his Generali drop to 8th position?
Since that time those boats relegated to the leaders’ wake have seen a reverse in this trend fortunately. Aboard Temenos II, spirits were high again, the loss of miles the previous day had been ‘digested’ and the skipper was benefiting from a steady 25 knots of breeze to lengthen his stride and thus reduce the deficit which separated him from the leader Paprec Virbac.
At the midday radio session, Dominique confirmed this: “I’ve finally got into some wind over the past hour or so. The boat is going fast and I’m surfing at 25 knots. I hope that this vein of wind will hold for as long as possible and enable me to make up part of my deficit.”
The proximity of the islands attracted a string of birds to the monohull’s wake. “I’m to the south of Marion and Prince Edward, two remote little islands in the Indian Ocean. There must be a fair number of birds nesting on it as I’m surrounded by petrels and little albatrosses. It’s rather nice!”
Powering along on a reach at 18.5 knots, Dominique was seeing his hopes become a reality. 404 miles from the leader yesterday, the skipper had got back to within 308 miles at the 1600 hour ranking. These crazy average speeds have a price though; the “cockpit beneath the water” in seas which were becoming almost “vicious”. The skipper’s words suffice in giving us an idea of the atmosphere that reigns aboard.
Contacted late this afternoon, Dominique confirmed this. “It’s pretty sporty. I’m getting shaken about every which way. It’s good to see the speedo climbing; it’s felt like a kind of revenge over the past 24 hours. I’m going to try to rest a little because in the cold conditions, you have to be careful that you don’t try too hard. I’m at the chart table at the moment with the duvet rolled around me and the pilot remote in my hand. The sun has begun to set so I’ll make the most of it to top up on calories again.”
Despite a few timid attempts by the sun to break through the cloud, it’s an icy temperature aboard the boat and the cold remains a sly enemy to the skippers. “It was amazing. I had a little ray of sunshine between two squalls during the afternoon. That only lasted quarter of an hour though, so there was only just enough time to get out the camera before the greyness took the upper hand again. The wind changes according to the passage of squalls. I had up to 28 knots and the rest of the time it varied between 20 and 25 knots. I am focussed on the trimming and I regularly go up top to ease or harden the sheets a further ‘umpteenth’.”
At the chart table of his boat, Dominique was studying which trajectory to adopt over the next few days. The Kerguelen Islands are taking shape ahead of the monohull, and with it comes the decision of whether to pass to the south or north of them. Added to this is the arrival of a powerful low, which may spice things up a bit. “I’m beginning to look at my passage of the Kerguelen Islands. A large low is on its way and is set to hit late this week. If things pan out in this manner, we’ll also have to watch how we position ourselves quite early on before it hits, and then it will be imperative that we avoid having to sail close-hauled.”
**********
Vidéo of the day: A shy appearance by the sun and a marked acceleration
www.dominiquewavre.com/p/fr/multimedia/video/091208/index.php
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Ranking 16:00
Rang |
Skipper |
Bateau |
Ecart / 1er |
Depuis 1h / |
|
Vitesse |
Cap |
||||
Rk |
Skipper |
Boat |
Dist. to leader (NM) |
Speed |
Course (Deg) |
| 1 | Dick Jean-Pierre | Paprec-Virbac 2 | 0 | 11 | 78 |
| 2 | Jourdain Roland | Veolia Environnement | 30,7 | 13,5 | 88 |
| 3 | Josse Sébastien | BT | 31,3 | 12,6 | 144 |
| 4 | Peyron Loïck | Gitana Eighty | 50,4 | 13,3 | 84 |
| 5 | Golding Mike | Ecover | 75,9 | 13,8 | 94 |
| 6 | Desjoyeaux Michel | Foncia | 88,1 | 14,6 | 93 |
| 7 | Le Cam Jean | VM Matériaux | 134 | 15,3 | 107 |
| 8 | Riou Vincent | PRB | 134 | 14,9 | 94 |
| 9 | Eliès Yann | Generali | 155,3 | 13,3 | 96 |
| 10 | Le Cléac’h Armel | Brit Air | 160,8 | 15 | 86 |
| 11 | Guillemot Marc | Safran | 229,1 | 17 | 95 |
12 |
Wavre Dominique |
Temenos II |
308,9 |
18,5 |
100 |
| 13 | Thompson Brian | Bahrain Team Pindar | 548,7 | 16,7 | 91 |
| 14 | Stamm Bernard | Cheminées Poujoulat | 588,3 | 17 | 117 |
| 15 | Davies Samantha | Roxy | 597,8 | 14,6 | 114 |
| 16 | Caffari Dee | Aviva | 758 | 15 | 120 |
| 17 | Boissières Arnaud | Akena Vérandas | 778,5 | 14,1 | 108 |
| 18 | White Steve | Toe in the Water | 929,8 | 9,5 | 113 |
| 19 | Malbon Jonny | Artemis | 1039,8 | 11,3 | 131 |
| 20 | Wilson Rich | Great American III | 1258,6 | 10,8 | 76 |
| 21 | Dejeanty Jean-Baptiste | Groupe Maisonneuve | 1620,6 | 10,5 | 150 |
| 22 | Hatfield Derek | Algimouss Spirit of Canada | 1751,6 | 10,7 | 158 |
| 23 | Dinelli Raphaël | Fondation Océan Vital | 2189,3 | 9,1 | 145 |
| 24 | Sedlacek Norbert | Nauticsport-Kapsch | 2234 | 9,3 | 151 |
**********
08.12.08
The calm, a racer’s nightmare
TEMENOS II |
As forecast, since yesterday the ridge of high pressure has put in an appearance on the racetrack again, but this high pressure isn’t likely to affect all the boats in the same way. For today, the advantage has clearly gone to the head of the race. As it gains easting, the zone of high pressure is becoming less active, and although the first boats won’t escape completely scot-free, they should be able to ‘limit the damage’. Aboard Temenos II, the results of the past 24 hours have been particularly hard to bear, which isn’t surprising given that she was clocked as making just 2 knots at the first ranking of the day, whilst those at the head of the race were racking up in excess of 18 knots. It doesn’t come as a shock then to see that the monohull has lost 124 miles in a day on leader Paprec Virbac.
Even though Dominique was prepared for this particularly calm night, you could imagine from the skipper’s words when contacted midway through the afternoon, that there were easier pills to swallow.
“I came to a standstill for 5 hours solid, my sails flogging. The core of the zone of high pressure passed over the top of me. I found myself in no wind at all, rolling from left to right, trying to get the most out of the slightest zephyr in a bid to make headway. It feels as if the fact that I was managing to make headway at 1 knot had little to do with all my efforts, but rather the residual swell and the surface current. I’ve really slept very little, and when I do try to rest for a few minutes, your mind doesn’t switch off. It’s a lot easier to fall asleep in 40 knots.”
In these types of conditions nobody’s spared and paradoxically the gear is under as much pressure as the skipper. “The mainsail flogs endlessly, which is very bad for the battens and the material. The headsail rubs against the stays and the spreaders and you really feel as if the gear is being massively fatigued with no gains at the end of it.”
Nevertheless, after these hours of flat calm which have been particularly wearing on the body as much as the nerves, and what may well be the “worse thing for a racer” according to Dominique, the skipper of Temenos II wasn’t going to let frustration get the upper hand. In place of bitterness Dominique preferred fighting spirits, accompanied as per usual by a good cup of coffee…
“This type of situation is always hard on the nerves. You think about the others who are in the process of making good their escape at high speed, which is even more trying than the fatigue. In this case you make yourself a coffee, you tell yourself there’s still a long way to go, and you get back to work on deck. Fortunately, if you can use such a word in this situation, at times like these, there is always a lot of work required to get the boat making headway. That stops any negative thoughts creeping in and when the wind kicks back in again, you are fiercely determined to try to make up your deficit.”
Earlier Dominique was striving to get the very most out of the gentle fifteen knots or so of wind he’d finally located. The particularly lively, cross seas were thwarting any vague desires by the monohull to get going again and required increased monitoring from the skipper as regards the trimming. Not the most relaxing atmosphere for the skipper then who, despite lack of sleep was doing fine. “I’ve eaten well, I feel good. In the early morning, the wind kicked back in to 13 or 14 knots. The sea is still knocking us about all over the place so the boat is rolling and pitching. That requires you to be on deck pretty much all the time to balance it. If you’re not there you quickly drop below 10 knots of boat speed with seas like this. The wind is set to fill in gradually though and tonight I should have between 20 and 25 knots of wind.”
As a result the future promises to be rosier for Dominique and even though he didn’t think there was much chance of making up the lost miles very quickly, the effort the skipper was putting into making 14 knots at the last ranking, has prevented any further loss in ground over the past 24 hours.
**********
Ranking 16:00
Rang |
Skipper |
Bateau |
Ecart / 1er |
Depuis 1h / |
|
Vitesse |
Cap |
||||
Rk |
Skipper |
Boat |
Dist. to leader (NM) |
Speed |
Course (Deg) |
| 1 | Dick Jean-Pierre | Paprec-Virbac 2 | 0 | 15,3 | 101 |
| 2 | Jourdain Roland | Veolia Environnement | 35 | 15,6 | 95 |
| 3 | Peyron Loïck | Gitana Eighty | 52,9 | 14,4 | 95 |
| 4 | Josse Sébastien | BT | 57,3 | 16,1 | 91 |
| 5 | Golding Mike | Ecover | 73,9 | 14,7 | 102 |
| 6 | Desjoyeaux Michel | Foncia | 88,5 | 14,6 | 109 |
| 7 | Eliès Yann | Generali | 117,3 | 14,3 | 104 |
| 8 | Riou Vincent | PRB | 140,2 | 10,3 | 108 |
| 9 | Le Cam Jean | VM Matériaux | 160,3 | 10,5 | 117 |
| 10 | Le Cléac’h Armel | Brit Air | 219,8 | 10,3 | 77 |
| 11 | Guillemot Marc | Safran | 329,1 | 13,7 | 98 |
12 |
Wavre Dominique |
Temenos II |
404,1 |
14,2 |
100 |
| 13 | Thompson Brian | Bahrain Team Pindar | 637,6 | 11,9 | 73 |
| 14 | Davies Samantha | Roxy | 678,4 | 12,8 | 128 |
| 15 | Stamm Bernard | Cheminées Poujoulat | 717,4 | 12,7 | 63 |
| 16 | Caffari Dee | Aviva | 825,7 | 14,7 | 117 |
| 17 | Boissières Arnaud | Akena Vérandas | 832 | 13,1 | 124 |
| 18 | White Steve | Toe in the Water | 938 | 10,2 | 147 |
| 19 | Malbon Jonny | Artemis | 1036,2 | 11,9 | 105 |
| 20 | Wilson Rich | Great American III | 1205,4 | 8,3 | 101 |
| 21 | Dejeanty Jean-Baptiste | Groupe Maisonneuve | 1594,8 | 13,1 | 158 |
| 22 | Hatfield Derek | Algimouss Spirit of Canada | 1640,1 | 8,7 | 120 |
| 23 | Dinelli Raphaël | Fondation Océan Vital | 2065,9 | 7,3 | 160 |
| 24 | Sedlacek Norbert | Nauticsport-Kapsch | 2088,1 | 7,2 | 166 |
**********
07.12.08
Stalling in view
DOMINIQUE |
Today it’s Paprec Virbac 2’s turn to make its mark at the head of the ranking. With no less than 22 changes of leader in what is now 28 days of racing, the Vendée Globe is living up to expectations.
Whilst at midday the leaders were making headway in a good thirty knots or so of breeze, at the rear of the fleet, the arrival of a ridge of high pressure was depriving the boats of wind. As the fleet make easting, this high pressure is likely to affect the frontrunners too, but they aren’t set to be slowed before tomorrow. In the meantime, the important speed differentials between the boats are likely to see the deficits increase between the head and the tail of the fleet.
280 miles from the leader, Dominique was beginning to see the first signs of the calm spell early this morning. After spending several days in the hubbub of a boat surfing in 25 to 35 knots of wind, Dominique was savouring the drop in decibels.
“The wind kept on easing this morning; I had around just fifteen knots which I was still pretty well managing to make the most of with all the sail aloft. It feels good to have a little silence aboard again. I made the most of it to cook up a nice little beef bourguignon with pasta; a real Sunday lunch! We’ve had a few rain showers, which wasn’t such a bad thing as it rinses the foulies off!”
Aboard Temenos II, Dominique was anticipating a difficult night, caught up by the calm spells. However, the most worrying thing for the skipper was doubtless imagining the leaders escaping this high pressure; a scenario which has fortunately been contradicted in the latest weather forecasts.
“The high pressure has already joined up with the tail end of the fleet and it is likely to gobble up Safran and I from this evening, then it will start having an effect on the leaders tomorrow morning. Everyone is likely to be slowed as the zone of high pressure is so big; it runs from north to south, that is from 40°S as far as the latitude where ice is indicated. According to the grib files, it was unrealistic to imagine we could escape it, other than maybe dropping right down to the south, but that would involve a high risk of encountering ice.”
To Dominique’s surprise, the Sunday rest only lasted a short while aboard the monohull. Smack bang in the middle of the afternoon, in what should have been a last jolt before the night’s calm spells, the wind filled Temenos II’s sails once again, enabling her to rack up 17 knots of boat speed over the past hour at the 1600 hour ranking.
“I was completely taken by surprise. I was carrying full mainsail and large gennaker when the wind increased sharply to nearly 30 knots. I dashed forward to reduce the sail area. It’s a nice surprise, I really wasn’t expecting this wind here.”
This acceleration is unlikely to protect Temenos II from the arrival of the high pressure, though it has enabled Dominique to put off this fate for a while as he gains easting…
**********
Ranking 16:00
Rang |
Skipper |
Bateau |
Ecart / 1er |
Depuis 1h / |
|
Vitesse |
Cap |
||||
Rk |
Skipper |
Boat |
Dist. to leader (NM) |
Speed |
Course (Deg) |
| 1 | Dick Jean-Pierre | Paprec-Virbac 2 | 0 | 10,3 | 85 |
| 2 | Josse Sébastien | BT | 25,2 | 17,8 | 116 |
| 3 | Jourdain Roland | Veolia Environnement | 38,3 | 20,4 | 112 |
| 4 | Peyron Loïck | Gitana Eighty | 50,8 | 20,1 | 112 |
| 5 | Golding Mike | Ecover | 56,5 | 17,8 | 104 |
| 6 | Le Cam Jean | VM Matériaux | 76,3 | 15,8 | 99 |
| 7 | Desjoyeaux Michel | Foncia | 94,7 | 17,8 | 104 |
| 8 | Eliès Yann | Generali | 96,6 | 17,5 | 127 |
| 9 | Riou Vincent | PRB | 97,3 | 16,2 | 107 |
| 10 | Le Cléac’h Armel | Brit Air | 140,3 | 15,9 | 105 |
| 11 | Guillemot Marc | Safran | 214 | 14,6 | 112 |
12 |
Wavre Dominique |
Temenos II |
280 |
17 |
116 |
| 13 | Thompson Brian | Bahrain Team Pindar | 510,6 | 13,7 | 148 |
| 14 | Davies Samantha | Roxy | 560,8 | 13 | 81 |
| 15 | Stamm Bernard | Cheminées Poujoulat | 625,6 | 10,4 | 92 |
| 16 | Caffari Dee | Aviva | 707,5 | 13,8 | 80 |
| 17 | Boissières Arnaud | Akena Vérandas | 717,7 | 12,9 | 69 |
| 18 | White Steve | Toe in the Water | 796,5 | 14 | 79 |
| 19 | Malbon Jonny | Artemis | 912,9 | 12,8 | 71 |
| 20 | Wilson Rich | Great American III | 1056 | 10,3 | 147 |
| 21 | Dejeanty Jean-Baptiste | Groupe Maisonneuve | 1382,2 | 9 | 143 |
| 22 | Hatfield Derek | Algimouss Spirit of Canada | 1433,3 | 7,7 | 124 |
| 23 | Dinelli Raphaël | Fondation Océan Vital | 1828 | 9,3 | 115 |
| 24 | Sedlacek Norbert | Nauticsport-Kapsch | 1883,1 | 8,7 | 119 |
**********
05.12.08
In search of fresh wind
TEMENOS II |
Since midday there’s been a reversal in the situation at the head of the fleet. Gitana Eighty is leading the way once more. Positioned to the north of the leading group, Loick Peyron has managed to make headway along a narrow corridor of wind, whilst the boats further south have been slowed by a zone of high pressure. The front has gone through overnight, and the speeds racked up in the first rankings of the day remind us that high pressure and calms are also part of the package served up by the southern seas. Indeed it was disconcerting to hear the skippers evoke speeds of 27, 28, 29 and even 30 knots reached last night and then see the slowest of them barely making 3 knots at the midday ranking.
Contacted at 1530 hours, between manoeuvres, trimming and DIY, Dominique was keeping busy aboard Temenos II today. You couldn’t make out any fatigue in the skipper’s voice who, despite some hellish "runs" last night, had managed to rest. You could sense a slight nervousness amongst those entering the austral seas for the first time, but aboard Temenos II, experience does the talking and the crazy nocturnal speeds hadn’t upset the skipper’s serenity.
35.3 knots on the GPS during the Barcelona World Race |
“Between manœuvres and small repairs to be done aboard the boat, it feels like I haven’t stopped this morning. I’ve still got around twenty knots and I have all the sails aloft. Overnight the speed picked up a touch and I was surfing at 27 knots. We’re still a long way off Temenos II’s record (35.3 knots on the GPS during the Barcelona World Race). I adjusted the sail area as a result because with this wind it’s out of the question to risk those kinds of moves. As soon as you feel the boat power up in the surf and plough violently into the waves, you know the rig is suffering and that it’s time to reduce the sail area a bit. It’s still as noisy as ever when the boat accelerates at these speeds and just as spectacular. You never tire of it.”
Positioned to the north, away from the high pressure, Dominique benefited from a good vein of wind throughout the day, and was managing to keep Temenos II on a good point of sail. The skipper was making the most of this golden opportunity to try to shift southwards without losing too much ground on the leaders, who were being slowed by the high pressure at that time.
“The zone of high pressure is shifting away to the east so the plan is to dive just behind it and try to attack the front with the best possible wind angle, which is set to meet up with us in the south tomorrow. There is still some wind and that will enable me to position myself in the south without losing too much ground.”
The frontrunners are set to pass the longitude of the Cape of Good Hope from tomorrow but sights are essentially fixed on the next ice gate.
“Our whole strategy is centred around the gate at the moment. We’re running the routing with various hypotheses; with a passage to the east, west and the middle of the gate, but for the time being the weather models agree and all of the routing is urging us to plunge southwards.”
As a result we can expect to see Temenos II continue on the same tack for the next few hours, on the hunt for the stronger wind expected to the south of the fleet.
**********
Ranking 16:00
Rang |
Skipper |
Bateau |
Ecart / 1er |
Depuis 1h / |
|
Vitesse |
Cap |
||||
Rk |
Skipper |
Boat |
Dist. to leader (NM) |
Speed |
Course (Deg) |
| 1 | Peyron Loïck | Gitana Eighty | 0 | 8,5 | 143 |
| 2 | Josse Sébastien | BT | 44,9 | 8,4 | 137 |
| 3 | Eliès Yann | Generali | 58,2 | 8,8 | 143 |
| 4 | Le Cléac’h Armel | Brit Air | 68 | 14,5 | 128 |
| 5 | Dick Jean-Pierre | Paprec-Virbac 2 | 87,8 | 11,7 | 96 |
| 6 | Riou Vincent | PRB | 123,2 | 10,3 | 134 |
| 7 | Le Cam Jean | VM Matériaux | 127,3 | 9,8 | 118 |
| 8 | Golding Mike | Ecover | 128 | 12,6 | 112 |
| 9 | Jourdain Roland | Veolia Environnement | 128,1 | 10,3 | 101 |
| 10 | Desjoyeaux Michel | Foncia | 171,8 | 10,9 | 139 |
| 11 | Guillemot Marc | Safran | 191,3 | 15,6 | 81 |
12 |
Wavre Dominique |
Temenos II |
260,2 |
13,6 |
157 |
| 13 | Thompson Brian | Bahrain Team Pindar | 445,6 | 16 | 159 |
| 14 | Davies Samantha | Roxy | 506,6 | 15,4 | 92 |
| 15 | Stamm Bernard | Cheminées Poujoulat | 631 | 16,8 | 104 |
| 16 | Caffari Dee | Aviva | 663 | 14,8 | 107 |
| 17 | Boissières Arnaud | Akena Vérandas | 695,8 | 14,4 | 102 |
| 18 | White Steve | Toe in the Water | 725,1 | 14,7 | 110 |
| 19 | Malbon Jonny | Artemis | 793,7 | 13,6 | 106 |
| 20 | Wilson Rich | Great American III | 941,9 | 12,5 | 113 |
| 21 | Basurko Unai | Pakea Bizkaia | 1339,3 | 6,5 | 68 |
| 22 | Dejeanty Jean-Baptiste | Groupe Maisonneuve | 1349,5 | 16,6 | 114 |
| 23 | Hatfield Derek | Algimouss Spirit of Canada | 1384,8 | 16,3 | 118 |
| 24 | Dinelli Raphaël | Fondation Océan Vital | 1528,2 | 10,1 | 105 |
| 25 | Sedlacek Norbert | Nauticsport-Kapsch | 1617 | 12,3 | 125 |
**********
04.12.08
The almost perfect gale!
First big gear shift in the 40s |
With a strong wind settling over the fleet sending the speedos into turmoil, waves building and breaking beneath an azure blue sky, the setting could be worse for this first austral gale. On the 25th day of racing, the southern ocean is sporting all her finery. Yesterday’s greyness has given way to a fabulous blend of blues, and bright sun is shining down on the fleet again and heating things up inside. For the time being the skippers aren’t yet complaining about the cold, but it has to be said that the rhythm of the manœuvres for the past few days has been enough to warm the cockles of even the most sensitive to the cold.
With such a menu it wasn’t surprising to hear those who love the austral latitudes, like Dominique, marvelling at the beauty of the spectacle. “It’s fabulous. There’s glorious sunshine, the sea is deep blue and is breaking slightly. It’s superb. There’s an albatross following me in the sky; it’s really a sight for sore eyes out there today!”
At midday the skipper was passing through the first ice gate of the course. And though the skippers questioned at today’s link-up were still welcoming the decision taken by the race committee to shift the next gate further north, the element of danger remains etched on their minds. “The water is 8 or 9° but you have to be wary of this as, during the last Vendée Globe, there was ice present at 6 or 7°, so the water temperature isn’t always a great indicator. Trusting the satellite observations is by far the most pertinent solution.”
White foarm, deep blue sea, welcome to the roaring forties |
Contacted late today, Dominique was continuing with his gybing waltz. An southward tack, an eastward tack, the fleet’s trajectory is anything but rectilinear given the difficulty of making the descent along this SE’ly course when the wind is not your side… “I had to shift over at the end of the night. I headed south and I put the sails under a bit of stress so as not to lose too much ground. When the wind is right on your tail you don’t go very quickly. It was a bit full-on; I had to helm a lot. Late morning I gybed east again and since the wind has lifted it’s not great for the course. It made me climb a little too far north. I’m going to see how the dust settles before I decide whether to gybe or not.”
At the front of the fleet, the leaders must be asking the same questions but when you look at the difference in the headings of the top boats, you can guess that the answers are far from unanimous. As we wait to see if Dominique is going to have to opt for a S’ly tack despite himself, the skipper is continuing on his trajectory, trying to bear away as much as possible. The skipper has seemingly escaped the worst of the gale however. “The wind has filled in considerably over the course of the day, but it hasn’t exceeded 33 knots. I still have around thirty knots. I’ve reduced the sail area as I felt the boat was forcing too hard. The sea is beginning to get big, with 4 to 5 metre waves. It’s fairly well organised. The wind is a little too far aft. The boat accelerates and then decelerates. It’s rolling a bit which isn’t ideal for speed but we often make some good bursts of speed at over 20 knots. Aside from the wind angle which isn’t ideal; there’s really nothing to complain about for our first gale.”
**********
Ranking 20:00
Rang |
Skipper |
Bateau |
Ecart / 1er |
Depuis 1h / |
|
Vitesse |
Cap |
||||
Rk |
Skipper |
Boat |
Dist. to leader (NM) |
Speed |
Course (Deg) |
| 1 | Josse Sébastien | BT | 0 | 16,1 | 94 |
| 2 | Eliès Yann | Generali | 2,5 | 17,6 | 86 |
| 3 | Peyron Loïck | Gitana Eighty | 27,5 | 16,2 | 90 |
| 4 | Jourdain Roland | Veolia Environnement | 46,1 | 15,4 | 91 |
| 5 | Le Cam Jean | VM Matériaux | 48,2 | 17,4 | 100 |
| 6 | Dick Jean-Pierre | Paprec-Virbac 2 | 48,8 | 16,9 | 152 |
| 7 | Golding Mike | Ecover | 72,9 | 12,9 | 142 |
| 8 | Riou Vincent | PRB | 74,9 | 15,1 | 91 |
| 9 | Le Cléac’h Armel | Brit Air | 82,1 | 17,1 | 89 |
| 10 | Desjoyeaux Michel | Foncia | 136,4 | 17 | 81 |
| 11 | Guillemot Marc | Safran | 190,7 | 16,6 | 87 |
12 |
Wavre Dominique |
Temenos II |
259,3 |
16,3 |
90 |
| 13 | Thompson Brian | Bahrain Team Pindar | 443,1 | 15,9 | 91 |
| 14 | Davies Samantha | Roxy | 548 | 16 | 87 |
| 15 | Stamm Bernard | Cheminées Poujoulat | 671,9 | 15 | 92 |
| 16 | Caffari Dee | Aviva | 675,2 | 12,4 | 102 |
| 17 | Boissières Arnaud | Akena Vérandas | 709,3 | 15 | 99 |
| 18 | White Steve | Toe in the Water | 757,9 | 11,5 | 94 |
| 19 | Malbon Jonny | Artemis | 805,3 | 12,5 | 99 |
| 20 | Wilson Rich | Great American III | 950 | 12,7 | 112 |
| 21 | Basurko Unai | Pakea Bizkaia | 1182 | 8 | 67 |
| 22 | Dejeanty Jean-Baptiste | Groupe Maisonneuve | 1440,6 | 17,8 | 121 |
| 23 | Hatfield Derek | Algimouss Spirit of Canada | 1447,9 | 15,1 | 118 |
| 24 | Dinelli Raphaël | Fondation Océan Vital | 1535,7 | 11,7 | 124 |
| 25 | Sedlacek Norbert | Nauticsport-Kapsch | 1617,3 | 11,9 | 135 |
**********
03.12.08
Snow on deck, coffee in the bilges
The sun rises in front of Temenos II |
The miles are being ticked off as the fleet make towards the first ice gate, which the frontrunners are likely to pass this evening. The passage of a front livened up proceedings last night, but by the early hours the wind had eased, leaving the sailors to recuperate over recent hours in what are some real “rock’n’ roll” conditions according to Roland Jourdain.
When you ask a skipper on land to talk about the roaring forties, he will instantly refer to the magic of the long sessions of slipping along, the interminable surfing, the beauty of the albatross… The human being is such that with time the bad memories fade and the good ones remain. However, if you ask the same question to the same skipper, alone aboard a boat measuring over 18 metres at 40° south, the conversation will revert again to the magic of this austral sailing, but the stress which accompanies them everywhere will not be forgotten. At this morning’s radio session Jean Le Cam described how difficult it was to get off to sleep in a boat which was “borderline red”. Let’s not forget the all pervading sound which attacks the eardrums to create a “living hell” for Roland Jourdain, who nevertheless knows this part of the world well.
A few hours earlier, Dominique shared this “noisy universe” with us in a message:
"It’s a strange atmosphere this evening. It’s pitch black and we’re in a noisy universe. The gennaker halyard is grating against the foot of the mast and the sharp whistling of the rudders at high speeds makes my eardrums vibrate. The hull roars as it surfs. There is a din as the waves smash across the deck. All this racket has a supernatural aspect to it at night. You have to reason with it and tell yourself it’s normal… normal but not banal! Goodnight landlubbers, Dom".
We learnt today that as a result of several large, drifting icebergs positioned very far north, the second ice gate off the Kerguelen islands has been shifted higher up. Contacted at 1600 hours Dominique welcomed this decision. “Of course it’s an excellent decision to have adapted their position according to the satellite observations at the time. It’s reassuring to see that the race management is taking care of us!”
Like the leaders, Temenos II had to endure the passage of the front over the course of the night, accompanied by a few snowflakes. Since this morning though, conditions have become calmer and steadier. “Last night I experienced a snow squall just behind the front. There wasn’t enough to build a snowman but mid manoeuvre I could see the snowflakes falling in the light of my head torch. The wind shifted round 90° and I made the most of it to put in a bit of southing again. With conditions being fairly shifty, I spent a lot of the night trimming the boat. The wind shifted back round this morning and I gybed back onto an E’ly course. The wind eased considerably, dropping to 14 or 15 knots. The seas had slightly more influence than the wind so I spent a while at the helm to get the boat well balanced in the waves. For the past few hours the wind has filled in a little and the pilot’s managing to hold its course well…”
In this NW’ly air flow, the skipper is continuing to put in a series of gybes so as to make the most of the slightest wind shift. For the time being conditions seem steady and relatively calm but with the arrival of a low forecast tomorrow, it’ll be quite another scene. “You can sense that the weather’s going to change thanks to the appearance of the sky. Yesterday there were some cirrus clouds really high up and today we’re surrounded by low cloud. When the lows hit in this part of the world, it’s always preceded by this type of sky. For the moment, we’re still feeling the effects of the high pressure to our left, but this will give way to a fine low. We should get a good thirty knots or so tomorrow, and that’ll be just the beginning. After that there are likely to be several others.”
The skipper is not anxious though as this will be his 8th time in the southern ocean. Dominique is making the most of the conditions to perform a last thorough inspection of his boat. This hunt for wear is sometimes accompanied by some strange findings which aren’t always easy to identify.
“Whilst performing a check of the boat, I saw some very brown water around the aft ballast tanks to leeward. I wondered what it was and then I saw 5 or 6 coffee sachets lingering around there, which had burst. I’ve no idea what they were doing there. It has to be said that the boats move about all over the place at times. Things waltz around down below and you don’t necessarily find things where you left them.” This spillage won’t have eaten too much into the imposing stock of coffee embarked at the start to ensure Dominique his daily dose of coffee however. “I think I’ve still got enough, even if the race lasts 100 days. I may be lacking a number of things if this is the case but I’ll have enough coffee!”
**********
Ranking 16:00
Rang |
Skipper |
Bateau |
Ecart / 1er |
Depuis 1h / |
|
Vitesse |
Cap |
||||
Rk |
Skipper |
Boat |
Dist. to leader (NM) |
Speed |
Course (Deg) |
| 1 | Josse Sébastien | BT | 0 | 13,7 | 121 |
| 2 | Eliès Yann | Generali | 11,4 | 16,1 | 122 |
| 3 | Dick Jean-Pierre | Paprec-Virbac 2 | 43,2 | 15,4 | 123 |
| 4 | Peyron Loïck | Gitana Eighty | 67,5 | 13,6 | 140 |
| 5 | Jourdain Roland | Veolia Environnement | 83 | 13,6 | 134 |
| 6 | Riou Vincent | PRB | 85,7 | 13,6 | 64 |
| 7 | Le Cam Jean | VM Matériaux | 92,1 | 14,5 | 75 |
| 8 | Le Cléac’h Armel | Brit Air | 102,5 | 12,5 | 143 |
| 9 | Golding Mike | Ecover | 110,5 | 13,7 | 71 |
| 10 | Desjoyeaux Michel | Foncia | 193,3 | 16,6 | 93 |
| 11 | Guillemot Marc | Safran | 235,1 | 14 | 77 |
12 |
Wavre Dominique |
Temenos II |
260,1 |
14 |
87 |
| 13 | Thompson Brian | Bahrain Team Pindar | 499 | 13,8 | 72 |
| 14 | Davies Samantha | Roxy | 607,3 | 12,5 | 96 |
| 15 | Caffari Dee | Aviva | 676,7 | 15,5 | 98 |
| 16 | Stamm Bernard | Cheminées Poujoulat | 765,9 | 17,8 | 122 |
| 17 | Boissières Arnaud | Akena Vérandas | 767,7 | 14,2 | 106 |
| 18 | White Steve | Toe in the Water | 790,9 | 15,2 | 111 |
| 19 | Malbon Jonny | Artemis | 803,3 | 13,9 | 122 |
| 20 | Wilson Rich | Great American III | 932,6 | 14,3 | 130 |
| 21 | Basurko Unai | Pakea Bizkaia | 1032,4 | 13,4 | 125 |
| 22 | Hatfield Derek | Algimouss Spirit of Canada | 1505,1 | 14,9 | 143 |
| 23 | Dinelli Raphaël | Fondation Océan Vital | 1510,2 | 13,2 | 134 |
| 24 | Dejeanty Jean-Baptiste | Groupe Maisonneuve | 1516,8 | 16 | 151 |
| 25 | Sedlacek Norbert | Nauticsport-Kapsch | 1555,4 | 11,1 | 136 |
**********
02.12.2008
Still relishing being at the helm
Dominique in his favorite exercise |
Still downwind in a NW’ly wind, the first half of the fleet is continuing to make headway to the east in similar conditions to yesterday. With a steady wind of around 25 knots, and despite slightly more difficult seas, it was an enthusiastic Dominique who was contacted by Race HQ late this morning: “We’re slipping along beautifully”.
The skippers were continuing with a succession of trimming and hours spent at the helm, and the crazy series of gybes of recent days has eased at the heart of the leading group. The frontrunners were hoping to be able to continue their course towards the ice gate to the south of the Cape of Good Hope, but this wasn’t yet the case for Temenos II, Safran or Foncia. At the tail end of the leading pack, these three boats looked to be suffering from a wind which was tending to head more, thus preventing them from maintaining the same course as the frontrunners.
In the meantime, Dominique, who was doubtless going to have to gybe again soon, was analysing the grib files in detail. Unfortunately for the skipper, the coming scenario varies depending on which model you refer to. In order to escape the meteorological uncertainty which skippers are regularly confronted with, you very often have to simply close the computers, leave the chart table, and find the solution in the cockpit. Observations made at sea enable conclusions to be drawn as regards the reliability of one model or another, so as a strategy can be decided upon. “The first model sees us caught up by a period of calm, whilst the other gives 20 knots pretty much uniformly across the zone. If we’re to believe the first it would be better for me to continue eastwards as quickly as possible so as to avoid being snapped up by the calm conditions. I’ll make a decision according to what the wind’s doing in the next few hours, depending on if it lifts or heads, whether or not it eases…”
This morning the skipper was once again emphasizing the importance of enjoying helming his boat and described the little ritual that went with it. “With steering wheels it’s really nice to be able to guide the boat through the waves, and guide your bow over the surf. Furthermore, when you’re sailing downwind it isn’t too wet on deck, which makes things even more pleasant. In general, as soon as conditions allow, I put my coffee in the cup holder next to the helm. That way, the minute I get a chance to take my hand off the wheel, I can drink a mouthful of coffee; all that to the sound of some good rock n’ roll in my ears to further heighten my enjoyment.”
Although this morning he acknowledged that he could “leave the pilot to its own devices”, under large gennaker in a strengthening breeze the skipper had to take over the reins again this afternoon. “I’ve just spent 3 to 4 hours at the helm as the wind was strong and I got the feeling the pilot was at its limit. With the waves Temenos II was almost led into an involuntary gybe and occasionally we were surfing along on our side. The wind has eased a touch so it’s a little bit calmer. It’s more like 20 knots again rather than 25. The pilot holds better in these conditions so I’m going to make the most of it and get myself something to eat.
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Last video of Dominique at the helm
www.dominiquewavre.com/p/fr/multimedia/video/021208/index.php
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Ranking 16:00
Rang |
Skipper |
Bateau |
Ecart / 1er |
Depuis 1h / |
|
Vitesse |
Cap |
||||
Rk |
Skipper |
Boat |
Dist. to leader (NM) |
Speed |
Course (Deg) |
| 1 | Josse Sébastien | BT | 0 | 16 | 97 |
| 2 | Eliès Yann | Generali | 37,7 | 16,7 | 94 |
| 3 | Dick Jean-Pierre | Paprec-Virbac 2 | 56,4 | 17 | 93 |
| 4 | Peyron Loïck | Gitana Eighty | 64 | 15,2 | 95 |
| 5 | Jourdain Roland | Veolia Environnement | 65,2 | 18,3 | 91 |
| 6 | Riou Vincent | PRB | 72 | 15,2 | 101 |
| 7 | Le Cléac’h Armel | Brit Air | 80,3 | 16,4 | 93 |
| 8 | Le Cam Jean | VM Matériaux | 93,3 | 16,8 | 98 |
| 9 | Golding Mike | Ecover | 94 | 15,7 | 100 |
| 10 | Guillemot Marc | Safran | 164,5 | 15,8 | 74 |
| 11 | Desjoyeaux Michel | Foncia | 186,3 | 17,7 | 81 |
12 |
Wavre Dominique |
Temenos II |
223,3 |
15,9 |
82 |
| 13 | Thompson Brian | Bahrain Team Pindar | 413 | 9,3 | 119 |
| 14 | Davies Samantha | Roxy | 479,5 | 3,9 | 142 |
| 15 | Caffari Dee | Aviva | 637,8 | 10 | 80 |
| 16 | Boissières Arnaud | Akena Vérandas | 727,2 | 10,1 | 108 |
| 17 | Stamm Bernard | Cheminées Poujoulat | 754,6 | 11 | 129 |
| 18 | Malbon Jonny | Artemis | 763,5 | 11,2 | 122 |
| 19 | White Steve | Toe in the Water | 775,5 | 11,4 | 106 |
| 20 | Wilson Rich | Great American III | 877,2 | 11,5 | 150 |
| 21 | Basurko Unai | Pakea Bizkaia | 977,2 | 9,6 | 127 |
| 22 | Dinelli Raphaël | Fondation Océan Vital | 1478,4 | 12,8 | 150 |
| 23 | Sedlacek Norbert | Nauticsport-Kapsch | 1486,6 | 11,3 | 176 |
| 24 | Dejeanty Jean-Baptiste | Groupe Maisonneuve | 1529,5 | 15 | 157 |
| 25 | Hatfield Derek | Algimouss Spirit of Canada | 1532,2 | 14,1 | 167 |
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01.12.2008
A gentle entry into the ‘roaring’ forties
TEMENOS II |
Not too cold, not too much wind and not too big a sea yet, the entry into the ‘roaring’ forties is proving rather gentle. The fleet has made its way into the southern seas and the pace is picking up. With the downwind conditions dishing up in excess of 25 knots of breeze, the speedos are rising again, with the surf pushing them along at top speeds of over 20 knots.
Even though the first boats have escaped the high pressure of Saint Helena, its shadow still looms. As such, whilst the first half of the fleet is now making headway along 40 degrees south, just a shade further north the zone of high pressure is shifting eastwards with the boats, forcing them to plunge southwards to escape the windless latitudes. Naturally this is proving to be a real dilemma for the skippers as this tack to the south into stronger wind, is taking them away from the course which leads to the ice gate beneath the Cape of Good Hope.
Contacted at 1630 hours, the skipper had just put in a gybe which was “fairly sporty in 23 knots of wind”. As the wind fills, Dominique admitted that he was having to secure manoeuvres now. “A big swell has kicked up and there’s no doubt you can feel the presence of the south now”. Another distinctive sign of the southern seas which is very familiar to sailors is the “heavier, denser” wind. This is a sensation substantiated by Dominique: “The air is denser; the wind speed that the instruments are indicating is a little above the reality, which can be explained by the density of the air, the pressure per square millimetre of the air mass being higher in these very cold zones.”
In the skies above the boats, the birds, which are numerous along these latitudes, have put in an appearance again. “I’ve seen a fair amount of small petrels and three albatross, which haven’t attached themselves to the boat, so I don’t yet have my appointed companions for the time being.”
Since yesterday, the boats have been putting in a series of gybes, benefiting from the slight rotations in the wind to try to make gains along the course. “The small band of air in which we’re sailing at the moment, is evacuating northwards. I’m going to try to follow it for a little while to avoid getting caught by the large, windless centre of the low further south. From tomorrow onwards we should have less wind, but those out the front should hang onto it for longer. A low is forecast mid-week, which is likely to enable us to make up a bit of ground. We can also expect a series of concertinaing of the fleet as each of the lows home in on us. It’s forecast to be quite blowy so I’ve opted to be fairly north so I don’t get trapped beneath the ice gate as the wind drops down.”
Late this afternoon, Dominique was able to contact Thomas Coville who is currently attempting a round the world record aboard his multihull. Skippers sailing in the same zone passed within around twenty miles without seeing each other. And for those who wonder what two skippers can say to each other in the forties: “it was nice to hear Thomas. He sounded in good shape and we talked about the Saint Helena High which has caused him to lose quite a lot of time too…”
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Ranking 16:00
Rang |
Skipper |
Bateau |
Ecart / 1er |
Depuis 1h / |
|
Vitesse |
Cap |
||||
Rk |
Skipper |
Boat |
Dist. to leader (NM) |
Speed |
Course (Deg) |
| 1 | Josse Sébastien | BT | 0 | 15 | 79 |
| 2 | Peyron Loïck | Gitana Eighty | 43,2 | 14,8 | 139 |
| 3 | Eliès Yann | Generali | 60,7 | 17,3 | 148 |
| 4 | Jourdain Roland | Veolia Environnement | 70,6 | 15,1 | 80 |
| 5 | Riou Vincent | PRB | 73,1 | 14,9 | 77 |
| 6 | Le Cléac’h Armel | Brit Air | 75,4 | 15,2 | 80 |
| 7 | Dick Jean-Pierre | Paprec-Virbac 2 | 77,7 | 15 | 143 |
| 8 | Golding Mike | Ecover | 94,7 | 16 | 78 |
| 9 | Le Cam Jean | VM Matériaux | 125,5 | 15 | 139 |
| 10 | Guillemot Marc | Safran | 184,5 | 14,7 | 147 |
| 11 | Desjoyeaux Michel | Foncia | 221,7 | 18,3 | 85 |
12 |
Wavre Dominique |
Temenos II |
247,3 |
14,6 |
155 |
| 13 | Thompson Brian | Bahrain Team Pindar | 342,9 | 9,3 | 98 |
| 14 | Davies Samantha | Roxy | 416,2 | 13,5 | 94 |
| 15 | Caffari Dee | Aviva | 505 | 8,7 | 176 |
| 16 | Boissières Arnaud | Akena Vérandas | 629,3 | 6,8 | 95 |
| 17 | White Steve | Toe in the Water | 657,7 | 10,6 | 144 |
| 18 | Malbon Jonny | Artemis | 697,8 | 11,8 | 169 |
| 19 | Stamm Bernard | Cheminées Poujoulat | 716,7 | 13,5 | 152 |
| 20 | Wilson Rich | Great American III | 810,3 | 12,9 | 153 |
| 21 | Basurko Unai | Pakea Bizkaia | 881,5 | 11,1 | 143 |
| 22 | Dinelli Raphaël | Fondation Océan Vital | 1432,3 | 12,1 | 156 |
| 23 | Dejeanty Jean-Baptiste | Groupe Maisonneuve | 1501,4 | 9,9 | 183 |
| 24 | Hatfield Derek | Algimouss Spirit of Canada | 1505,6 | 13 | 164 |
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