Why did you choose this boat to participate in the Route du Rhum?
Originally I hadn't even thought about "history in history". I chose this boat because I like big boats. I really like wooden boats. This is my generation. I skipped this boat about twenty years ago as a professional skipper. I think it's an elegant boat. Even if it's a 40-year-old boat, it's a physical boat.
But finally the story is beautiful: Kriter V, 40 years later. It turns out that this is a plus for us and for the partners.
The boat needed a serious overhaul. It's good to bring boats back to life. We couldn't put so much money into it if there isn't a Route du Rhum project or some kind of race. It allows this boat to find a new life and a new youth.
Can you introduce us to the boat a little bit?
It's a big boat: 21 meters. He was nicknamed the Blue Cigar.
In the front there is nothing. It has two double cabins that no longer serve me as cabins so I take this opportunity to store all my stuff so that it is easily accessible. Whether it's meals or a change of clothes. Then there is a square with a kitchenette, a stove and a table. Then there's a map table, and in the back there's nothing either.
I sleep on the floor on a fatboy pouffe.
It's impressive the length of this boat, it's long. It's a real gut. He is quickly and very quickly lying down. I'm still on the edge.
What did you do again on that boat?
We pulled the boat out of the water, we knocked it out. He hadn't been stripped in 40 years. It is not an easy operation. The keel weighs 7 tons. These are major crane and installation costs. We checked the entire structure of the boat. We dismasted it and checked the mast. We inspected the rudder, did a work on the engine, redone the electricity and all the electronics. All this is a small amount of money.
Are there any things that have been optimized over the past 40 years?
No, at hull and mast level, the boat is as it was 40 years ago. What has evolved over the past 40 years is the quality of the sail fabric, the pilots who are much more precise. At the time it was only windvane gears. Some worn winches have been replaced by Pontos winches. Almost everything else is original. The boat is very close to what it was 40 years ago.
Is it a willingness to leave him as he was?
The boat is classified as of heritage interest. So we don't have much right to transform it. It must be left in its original colour and juice. And then it's a mythical and legendary boat.
What does this boat do when it's not running?
We're gonna keep him here for another year to do public relations operations. Then it will be for sale. But it's not mine, I borrowed it from a Belgian family in exchange for a refit. For a future owner, it's time to buy it, there's been so much work done on it.
What is the objective of this race?
To please me. I'm almost 70 years old. And I wanted to erase my bad experience of 2014 when I sank. But also to cross over, to make my partners and employees live a beautiful adventure. That's the interest of the Route du Rhum. There are some great champions who are setting off on wonderful machines and who will cross in a few days and then inside this Route du Rhum, there are projects, personal challenges, human adventures. I fall into this category of adventurous sailors.
It's your five e Route du Rhum, is this still a challenge for you?
I'm the dean of the race. I would have liked to be the youngest, unfortunately I am the dean. I'm taking on this maturity, and it's a little personal challenge to say to yourself that you can still - if you're careful and on condition that I arrive on the other side - cross at almost 70 years of age on a very physical 21-metre boat. Crossing the Atlantic alone is not necessarily exceptional, but it is always a small adventure.
What will be the difficulty on the course?
We all have a little apprehension of the bad weather in the first week. We can also have problems in the trade winds, but generally it's cooler. It's better and we have strong winds.
Can you tell us about your best memory on a Route du Rhum?
It is a memory that I hope will not happen again, but in 2002 I was lucky enough - at least it was Karine Fauconnier who was especially lucky that I went through it - to save her from the trouble she was in. I took this beautiful young woman aboard. I haven't done anything extraordinary. I was just passing by, but I was happy to have been able to give him a good hand. But since she had stopped smoking and hadn't brought a cigarette, she started smoking my cigars and then... it didn't! So I landed her in Madeira. [Laughs]
Another striking memory, much less brilliant, is my shipwreck in 2014. Especially since it wasn't my boat: it was my children's boat. I had replaced Servane at the last minute three weeks before the start. She had a small illness that kept her from leaving.
How would you describe the Route du Rhum in two words?
Um... I'm a little dry, usually I can always answer. It's a "beautiful celebration" for everyone. For sailors and visitors.
