After their
return from a week’s training at Port-Le-Forêt along with the Oman Sail MOD70, Anne
Hinton caught up with Gitana XV’s (MOD70) skipper, Seb Josse, just before the
team-debrief session in Lorient. The interview was held in French with audio available here.
Gitana Team
have both a MOD70 (Gitana XV) and the large multihull Gitana 11 at present. Seb
Josse explains his choice of Gitana 11 for the Tour de Belle-Ile as due to its
being a day race, and, moreover, a speed race. The previous year he sailed the
MOD70, Gitana XV, in the Tour de Belle-Ile, and won. The year before that it
was Gitana 11, with which he not only won the race, but also set the speed
record. He admits changing boats from year to year – and it may be the MOD70,
Gitana XV again next year!
Asked about
the competition, which comes in the large form of Lionel Lemonchois’ Prince de
Bretagne 80 this year, Seb Josse says that this is interesting. The boats are
similar (Gitana 11 and Prince de Bretagne 80) so it will be interesting to see
how they go against each other. There is also the MOD70 Spindrift in the Tour
de Belle-Ile this year. “That’s three multihulls that may break the [course] record,”
said Josse.
The crew
will stay the same as the MOD70 for Gitana 11 and the Tour de Belle-Ile, except
for Seb Col, who has a prior commitment, racing a Wally, with a crew of more
than twenty people to organize for that. [Seb Col won the largest class, the
J80, at Spi OuestFrance – Intermarché, this year, and is also sailing in the
Tour de France à la Voile 2013 with Sodebo. He won the Tour de France à la Voile on
board the M34 TPM-COYCH in 2012.]
This past
week the MOD70 Gitana XV and Oman Sail’s MOD70, Musandam, have been training
together at Port-Le-Forêt. “It is always
very close as the class is a one design,” says Josse. “It is the beginning of
the season, so good to bring the crew work together.” Gitana XV will keep the
same crew until the tour of Europe, the Route des Princes. The ArMen Race and
the Route des Princes are all that are on the agenda for the full Gitana XV MOD70 crew this year.
After
this,
Josse is doing the double-handed Transat Jacques Vabre, on board Gitana
XV. [Jean-Pierre Dick has also entered, with the Virbac Paprec MOD70.]
And next
year – the Gitana MOD again? “We will see how everything turns out,” said
Josse.
Gitana Team
Gitana Team
