You are not a professional sailor, can you tell us your story from "your life before"?
I claim an ordinary life. I usually say that I am "Mr. Everyone". I was an employee. I was 35 years old when I started this project. I have a wife, two children, a house... I live in Lille, I work all day. I have a classic life. But on the last edition of the Route du Rhum, I saw veterinarians, company directors, municipal officials, men and women who were taking the start.
Before I didn't look in detail, I only followed the favorites. But for the 2014 edition, I took the time to look around. I realized they had put together some great projects. They end up at the beginning when they are people like me. I asked myself, "Why not me?" The idea began to take root. I had already had sabbatical leave phases, proven that it is compatible with a professional career. I didn't have much doubt that we could reconcile two projects at the same time. In my job, I am the manager of an "energy" portfolio. I buy gas, energy. I have a big team, big budgets, so I'm used to big projects.
I started it. The walking is high, because I have no experience in ocean racing (I just had experience in D120, I did convoys, charter...) I don't know anyone in the business. I'm starting from a blank sheet of paper. I go ahead without any answer to my questions. I had never sailed a Class40 before, I didn't even know there were ballasts. I don't know how much it costs, I don't know where to buy it. I don't even know there's a gauge.
All I know is that we need money and we have to do this seriously. I start the pump by injecting a little money, time. I have a computer graphics designer, a web designer. I see an accountant, a tax expert... who help me build an offer. I do a real market research by looking at what's going on next door. I'm checking out what the skippers are selling. The level of canvassing is not very high. So I'm preparing a "top-of-the-range" dossier. And even if I get great feedback on what I offer, nothing really takes. I broadcast, I try to rake it wide, but for 18 months nothing more than appointments. I'm tired, no one around me believes it's possible.
I realize that the question I am asked the most is: "Why are you doing this? Why are you challenging yourself like that?" In the end, I still don't know why. But I realize that it may indeed be a little too big for me. I say to myself that I will not only do it for myself, I will go beyond this personal dimension and give meaning to what I do.
I completely changed my economic model and switched to the patronage model. Nothing took because I was "ordinary gentleman", but especially "average gentleman" in ocean racing, without notoriety. I have nothing more to sell than the others. I have agreed with the Digestscience Foundation to bring it notoriety. It is a little known foundation, because Crohn's disease is little known. I finally found partners, precisely because I had something else to sell. For having broken my teeth at the beginning, I also sell my entrepreneurial approach: that I am tenacious, that I will never give up and that I will go through with my adventure.
My partners are abandoning the display in the sails, but are associating themselves with the commitment I have with the Digestscience Foundation. I have found my partners one after the other and am starting to have enough money to get started.
At that time, in December 2017, I didn't have a boat yet, but just over half of my budget. I realise that there are already 30 people registered for the Route du Rhum. There are only 40 places. So I go to the boat show, fill out my registration and write my cheque for 10,000 euros personally. I didn't have any money in my accounts yet.
And I'm looking for a boat. There was only one available on the market (put on sale by Damien Seguin) that was not Vintage. There were still some very recent ones, but at more than 400,000 euros, too expensive for my budget. I signed a promise to purchase, given 28,000 euros. I find a lease, I insure the boat... I thought I had done the hardest thing by finding the money, but not at all. It's a real obstacle course.
My wife is starting to understand that I'm going to do my project. She wouldn't have bet a dime on my project in the first place. This is a factor I underestimated: the family aspect. I'm starting to have everything to manage: a beginning of life as a skipper, as a company manager, managing family life..
In March I have the boat. The first time I climbed on it I really panicked. I let the guys take inventory, I was depressed. After two hours, alone in the boat, following the pipes and wires, I start to realize that I will have to get help. I'm looking for service providers: I find two technical trainers and Sylvain as boat captain. I will then continue to grow the team with a mental, physical, naturopathic coach, communication manager, team manager... I couldn't have had all the hats. Especially since I live in Lille, I have my life as a father there. We made a pact with my wife to make sure we could find a balance for the year.
At that time, I am still an employee. Between May and mid-July, I took all my holidays and RTTs for the year. They hardly saw me at all. I took advantage of an economic layoff that was looming in the company to negotiate my departure at the end of August 2018. Today, I no longer have a job and I am entirely dedicated to my project.
I started the season by crewing to learn the boat and set foot in the stirrup. Then I raced the Normandy Chanel Race at the end of May in doubles with Sylvain - he had already done a Jacques Vabre with this boat. He taught me to sail with this Class40, to choose the sails, to operate the electronics... I qualified on the Drheam cup in July. I was playing big because it qualifies for the Route du Rhum. In the calendar I had with my wife, it was the only time I could qualify. After that I had a month off in the mountains on holiday, then I had to take the boat back to the yard in September. On Sunday morning, on the starting line, all the electronics broke down. No more NKE. All the boats are leaving, I'm alone in the harbour. There were my parents who were freaking out. Everyone's under a lot of stress. I couldn't get anything done. I call the guys at NKE who can't come before 1:30 - when the departure was in less than 30 minutes. I asked everyone to leave; the guys arrive in 1:30, I'll go to sleep. If they fix it, I'll leave and at least I'd have slept an hour more than my competitors. I left 31 e after 6 hours I had caught up with the tail of the race. I'm coming 23 e on a two-week race is not bad.
Today I'm here: I'm a skipper of Class40. I have proven that an ordinary person who has confidence and will can succeed. The project could have failed dozens of times.
Now I have to put it in my bubble. I didn't realize it was going to be so intense and strong to be here. Every time I arrive on the pontoons, I realize that it is MY boat that is at the start of the Route du Rhum.
When the skippers' presentation took place, I was in the middle of these incredible guys while just 3 months ago I was at work behind my computer. I can't believe it.
What is your objective on this Route du Rhum?
My goal is to cross over. I'm not lying to myself, I'm a newcomer, this is my first solo race, my first transatlantic race. I know what I'm worth. I'm not going to make a result. I want to sail clean, manage my fitness and energy and arrive in Pointe-à-Pitre with my boat.
How did your family welcome the project?
They don't know the world of ocean racing at all. I'm not from a family of sailors. It's my project of the year, but if it's next year I'll be in real estate. It'll be a new world. Even my family hasn't had time to understand what ocean racing is all about. My mother thinks I'm going to make a podium for example. She doesn't imagine there's a different boat potential. They experience it as a spectator. Those who follow me the most are the business and sports environment, the microcosm that has been created around me.
For example, I am part of the "sport business club", a group of entrepreneurs who train like top athletes in their life as business leaders. It is a program in which you manage your business life, but also your fitness to sleep well, eat well, manage your teams and your stress. This kind of group with whom I have been hanging out a lot this year and who understand the dimension of this project well: the entrepreneurship and sports aspect, the difficulties it represents. When I talk about insurance, they understand me, when I talk about administration, they understand me, when I talk about liquidity problems and the problems I have with my bank, they understand me... These are conversations I can't have with my family. If my wife had known how much trouble I had gotten myself into financially, she would have hallucinated. I knew it would pass, but when you see my accounts at -60,000 euros, it's scary.
It's not a family project, it's really an entrepreneurial Route du Rhum.
My wife also lives a Route du Rhum in her own way. She's the one who watches the children. She's the one who runs the house. She is the one who is preparing the trip to come here and to Guadeloupe. She suffers from everything you can't see. On the other hand, she forced me to sign a contract. We took an au pair for the year even if it is not conclusive because it is not going well. We reserved the month of August for ourselves. We have fixed weekends where I have to be there. As far as my schedule was concerned, I didn't have much flexibility. I had planned to go to Lorient for 6 days at the beginning of September and 6 days at the end of September and 15 days in October, I couldn't tell him a week before "I'm changing weeks". I couldn't sail when the wind was blowing. But it's great, I was able to see my children this year. My wife is Zen because she can see that she can manage on her own. It's programmed, so she knows when it's going to happen. When I go to Lorient alone, I feel serene because I know that things are going well in Lorient. I'm going to leave, I don't have any apprehension.
My relationship didn't explode. There are a lot of skippers who have become single this year.
What is your history with the Route du Rhum? How did you discover it?
I've always known him, like everyone else. I wanted to do it because I don't have 4 years of my life to put in brackets to do an errand. If you want to race offshore, you might as well do the Route du Rhum directly. It's easier to find partners. The challenge is bigger, more beautiful.
How would you describe the Route du Rhum in two words?
For me it is a mythical race, but above all a great human adventure.
I don't race the Ultimates. I'm going to do a race in Class40, it's a minimum of 20 days at sea. I'm going to race, try to gain places, but above all the goal is to cross the Atlantic alone. This is my adventure, I'm not going to focus on the fleet.
I will race with those around me, but given the conditions they are announcing, I will not refuse to go somewhere to take shelter. If they all leave, it doesn't matter, I'll leave last like at the Drheam Cup. We sailed in mild conditions this year, I've never sailed in more than 30 knots - even though a 40-knot gust put me in bulk 3 miles from the finish of the Drheam Cup. I've never encountered any big conditions.
What will be the difficulties on the race?
The race strategy will be an ultra careful exit from the Channel, there are lots of boats, wind, rocks. Then the Bay of Biscay in security mode. Then if we can accelerate when everything is going well... It's a matter of self-esteem: I have to get there. That I arrive 23 e or 38 e people will already have forgotten before the New Year. They'll just remember that you did the Route du Rhum.
What will your program be after the race?
I'm going to take a break. At the entrepreneurial level it is very difficult. 90% of my time I have a business manager cap and 10% of the time I have a skipper cap. When you prepare a Route du Rhum, people imagine you in a raincoat tucking in under the spray. "Oh no, now I'm in Paris with my partner to negotiate contracts." I had to renegotiate the lease... it's just that. I can't keep the boat either, it's too expensive.
So I close the 2017-2018 parenthesis on arrival.
