Jules Verne Trophy: Checkpoint

by Vincent Borde and Caroline Muller

After eight days at sea, Groupama 3 is currently in a transition phase, which is causing her to lose part of her lead over the reference time in the Jules Verne Trophy. However, this passage across a ridge of high pressure is only set to last a little less than 24 hours and Franck Cammas and his crew are still managing an average speed in excess of 23 knots...

Getting around the Saint Helena High is always a key moment during the Jules Verne Trophy as it's not easy to know, just a matter of hours away, how the gusts of hot Brazilian air will transform into a stormy depression system and head off towards South Africa. This is especially true when you have to set out from Ushant, nearly 5,000 miles away! In fact, the weather window heralding the start of this particular record attempt on 5th November, collectively chosen by the onshore weather router Sylvain Mondon from Météo France, Groupama 3's navigator Stan Honey and in the final instance by skipper Franck Cammas, forecast a series of disturbances forming off Brazil. However, there is clearly a margin of error in knowing exactly where the point of impact will be. In reality, this margin of error has proved to be fairly slim since the encounter is due to take place from Saturday morning off Rio de Janeiro...

Beneath the Southern Cross

This Friday lunchtime, Lionel Lemonchois indicated at the radio link-up that this short Brazilian detour wasn't spoiling the atmosphere onboard in the slightest, as it only amounted to a few tens of miles lost, which were going to simply modify the manner in which they sail.

"We have discussions on a daily basis about what's going to happen over the coming hours: in a nutshell, it's already been three or four days that we've known how the weather conditions in the Southern Atlantic are going to pan out. As such we're not surprised that we're losing ground this Friday, even though we're still sailing well this lunchtime. On a circumnavigation of the globe, you can't make up ground everyday. There are transition phases like this one today, but the next stage is shaping up to be pretty good... We also have a little room for manoeuvre in relation to Orange 2! However, we'll soon be getting out our boots and fleeces: we're losing a little heat every night. At the moment, we're carrying all the sail aloft with full mainsail, staysail and large gennaker. We're slipping along nicely with fourteen knots of wind beneath a glorious sun. At night, the canopy of heaven is dotted with stars, while the Southern Cross is getting ever higher in the sky!"

Just minutes later, Groupama 3 was beginning to bend her trajectory southward, and then progressively SE, whilst still maintaining an average speed of over 22 knots. Clearly, in accounting terms, the overall performance figures are less flattering since this course 60° off the direct route since the latitude of Recife, has seen them lose ground: 380 miles VMG over 24 hours along the Jules Verne Trophy course, but still a daily total of 550 miles across the water! In short, the reduction in terms of bankable mileage is going unnoticed on board, it's only in relation to Bruno Peyron's course that there is some discrepancy. Indeed, it is worth noting here that Franck Cammas and his nine crew have been on a route which is virtually parallel to that of Orange 2 since crossing the equator; the latter of which was achieved nearly 5° further out to the West. Between now and Saturday lunchtime, the slow haemorrhage (30 mile deficit in 48 hours or a differential of 0.6 knots) will be totally cauterised by the powerful N'ly winds forecast...

Cammas - Groupama