Macif, François Gabart
The trimaran Macif returned to Port-La-Foret in mid-July after his participation in The Bridge (and his return). It is now under construction to be reconfigured in single-handed mode, to stick to the objective of François Gabart's solo round the world record attempt. The trimaran hasn't left the water, as the aim is not to improve the multihull, but rather to make it more reliable. " The boat will remain in the water all summer because there is no intervention to be made on the platform. On the other hand, all the parts have been dismantled and we will carry out a complete check of each of them. The boat met our expectations in terms of performance. So we're going to keep the basis of what we've had up to now and make sure that technically everything runs smoothly around the world explains Fred Berat, boat captain.
François Gabart will resume training at the end of August to get back into "solitary" mode before the start of his stand-by which will begin on 22 October 2017.
Sodebo Ultim', Thomas Coville
After The Bridge and the North Atlantic Record, Sodebo Ultim' left the sea on 19th July in Vannes for a summer refit at Multiplast until 4th September, in order to get the trimaran back in shape for the Transat Jacques Vabre. This was an opportunity for the Sodebo team to check the boat from top to bottom and to assess the appendages of the floats that had been damaged, or the elements below the waterline. " These maintenance routines are almost the same as those for rally cars or aeronautics " explains Thomas Coville. The start of the Transat Jacques Vabre will be given on November 5, 2017. Thomas Coville will be accompanied by Jean-Luc Nélias.
Actual, Yves le Blévec
On a delivery trip with his team after The Bridge, Yves le Blévec encountered changing and slightly difficult conditions. The result of the races: a botched gybe, collisions with cetaceans... And so a bit of work to get the trimaran back in shape before the round the world record attempt upside down next October.
Maxi Solo Banque Populaire XI, Armel le Cléac'h
Armel le Cléac'h's maxi trimaran, whose launch has been postponed, is in the finishing phase at the CDK yard in Lorient. Initially planned for the summer of 2017, with the aim of the Transat Jacques Vabre 2017, the multihull will finally be launched in the autumn of 2017. Indeed, the team is working hard to make the boat more reliable and prefers to "bring out" a complete boat, capable of flying sustainably from the very first time. Armel le Cléac'h will therefore devote himself to numerous sea training sessions following the launch before taking part in his first Nice Ultimed race (28th April to 6th May 2018), which will take place with a crew.
Maxi Edmond de Rothschild, Sébastien Josse
The first ocean-going trimaran designed to fly offshore was launched on July 17 and sailed for the first time on July 28. Since then, the trimaran has been in "running-in" as the yard suggests. "The sensations are very good and our first outings always make us want to see more! After our first five sailings, we can say that the platform of the Maxi Edmond de Rothschild perfectly meets our specifications. It's a stiff, safe boat, you can really feel that she can really take it and is powerful. Up until now we've had fairly mediocre conditions to test her, but we can immediately feel that there are quite a few reserves underfoot, which is very positive" explains Sébastien Josse.
The first sailings were crewed, but the next ones will be double-handed, as the skipper (accompanied by Thomas Rouxel) will have the Transat Jacques Vabre in his sights. "A month after the launch, we are halfway between the discovery phase of this giant fresh from the yard and our preparation phase for the Jacques Vabre with Thomas (Rouxel, editor's note). The timing is great and the whole team has worked hard to make sure we're on schedule. It's still too early to make a real assessment, we'll have to wait for the Jacques Vabre and the precious miles of an Atlantic crossing in the race for that, but it's certain that it has a lot of potential, which we'll discover as we go along" adds Sébastien Josse.
Spindrift 2, Yann Guichard
Spindrift 2 is currently under construction at Multiplast and will be relaunched in early September. Yann Guichard will then undertake a series of offshore training sessions over the September/October period to prepare for the Jules Verne Trophy Record attempt (preparation of the boat, physical preparation of the crew, provisioning, weather safety...). The skipper and his crew will enter stand-by at the beginning of November and will attempt to set off before the beginning of February 2018 (end of stand-by).
