Samuel Tual, CEO of the Actual Group, and Yves le Blévec unveiled the rest of the 2017 programme for Ultime Actual, which will take part in The Bridge from 25 June 2017. This first race from the yard that the trimaran has just undergone will enable the work carried out to be checked out.
For the rest of the season, several hypotheses have been put forward, including several record-breaking courses. The skipper also wondered about his participation in the Transat Jacques Vabre, which he has already taken part in 4 times and won in 2011.
But Yves le Blévec and Samuel Tual, CEO of the Actual Group, took a completely different route: the round-the-world trip in reverse. The skipper of the red and black trimaran will set off as early as next October against the prevailing winds and currents.
"The goal is to go far and long to bring back a complete joblist for the 2019 round-the-world tour. The idea is to work well during these three months, I'll be in contact with the technical team. And, at the end of this course, I should know the boat well..." said the skipper.
Around the world upside down in a multihull
For three months, Yves le Blévec, on the trimaran Actual, will be sailing against the wind and swell in all the oceans of the globe between the 47th North and as far as the 60th South. "Crazy Sailing" in Yves Le Blevec's own words, which he hopes to complete in 80 to 90 days and on which he will have to manage the length of his boat and sail carefully. "And then, of course, there are some tricky course points to grasp, starting with Cape Horn. You'll no doubt have to opt for a strategy of avoidance or waiting at times. It's a question of opening up a route, of finding the best compromise between performance and preservation of the equipment" says Yves le Blévec.
For its preparation, the sailor works in collaboration with Christian Dumard (router and weather expert editor). "Each sequence of the course is analyzed. We prepare a precise sequence with the different possible hypotheses. The idea being to avoid risky situations while tracing the shortest route." he explains.
Concerning the boat, Yves le Blévec explains "He's cut out for it. It's a boat capable of tackling big conditions and relatively comfortable for me. She's certainly not built for tacking, but for sailing far, long and fast."
Finally, when asked about sailing single-handed for so long, the sailor replied that spending time at sea single-handed was fine for him and that going away for a long time really attracted him.
An undeniable record since 2004
To date, and since 2004, the Round the World Inverted Record, also called "Global Challenge" is in the hands of Jean-Luc Van den Heede in 122 d 14 h 3 min 49 s on his monohull Adrien. (Read our article Round the world sailing "upside down", an unbeaten record since 2004! )
This challenge is perfectly in line with the sporting and human ambitions of Actual and its skipper. It is also adapted to the technical potential of their Ultim, which has recently been made more reliable and optimised for single-handed sailing by Yves Le Blevec. This record attempt will finally represent excellent technical preparation for the solo round the world Ultim race in 2019.
Yves Le Blevec, skipper Actual : "The idea is to explore spaces that others won't go looking for. It's a challenge that I like, because it's a crazy navigation! And because I've got something to write... It's going to be hard technically and humanly: you have to find the right rhythm."
