Spindrift 2 - the giant trimaran of the Spindrift Racing team - had been waiting in Brest since 5 November 2018 for a weather window that did not come. After switching to code orange (start within 4 days) then code green immediately (immediate start), the multihull left Brest this morning to join the start line in front of Ushant.
Yann Guichard and his crew launched the Jules Verne Trophy time on 16 January 2019 at 12 hours 47 minutes 27 seconds. The record to be broken is 40 days and 23 hours, the 12 sailors on board and their router (Jean-Yves Bernot remained ashore) must complete their crewed round the world race before 26 February at 12 hours 16 minutes and 57 seconds.
"The weather conditions were favourable in front of the Créac'h lighthouse, the starting (and finishing) line of the Jules Verne Trophy (...) A 20-knot south-westerly breeze and rather calm seas allowed the giant black and gold trimaran to set off towards a front off Ushant to catch a good NW'ly flow. It was this strong wind that Spindrift 2 picked up in the middle of the day and then went down very quickly to Madeira, the Canaries and the Cape Verde archipelago." communicates the team.
On the way to a record?
According to Jean-Yves Bernot's routing, the black trimaran could cross the Equator during the night from Sunday to Monday 21 January, i.e. after less than five days at sea. The sailors then hope to pass the longitude of the Cape of Good Hope in about 12 days. This is not impossible since Francis Joyon and his crew had taken exactly 12 days 21 hours and 22 minutes to round the African cape. Nothing impossible, so for the moment.
Still according to the router, this round the world trip could be done in 38 jours?! But nothing is less certain and ideal conditions are needed, as indicated by the racing team: "The first section towards the equator looks very favourable, but it is still too early to anticipate what will happen next: if a low "comes out" of Brazil as the big trimaran passes off Salvador de Bahia, the weather pattern could make it possible to "cut the cheese", to go more directly towards the Deep South without having to go around the St Helena high.
To see if Spindrift can do better than Idec Sport, namely cross the Indian Ocean in less than 5 d 21 h 8' and the Pacific in less than 7 d 21 h 13' 31" (IDEC Sport WSSRC reference time in 2017) on this Jules Verne Trophy..
"To the equator, it looks like bien?! The trade winds are well established: it should take less than five days to get to the equator. Then there are still unknowns in the South Atlantic, but we hope to reach South Africa around twelve days, twelve and a half days
This round the world trip is also a passage of seasons at high speed "V"?! We're going to the North-West with drizzle, in the Canaries we'll be in the trade wind with 30°C, at the equator it'll be 40°C and three days later we're in the Forties, in the Great South with three fairly steady and fresh weeks. It's a beautiful trip...
One of the difficulties is the St. Helena high in the South Atlantic, which sometimes blocks the way. After that, it's not a problem to take the big tour if there's wind because the current boats are going fast. But the Great South is still at least fifteen days of extreme cold and humidité?! They are also magical landscapes, incredible places to live with a crew..
We are a little lighter than last time and that's also why there are only twelve of us. Potentially, below twenty knots, we have a very slight deficit, but above Spindrift 2 is faster than avant?! We can hold averages above 35 knots if the sea remains manageable..." said Yann Guichard before the start.
Follow the Jules Verne Trophy
You can follow the evolution around the globe of Yann Guichard and his crew on the dedicated website (at the bottom of the page). There is a map to follow the evolution of the maxi trimaran Spindrift 2 around the world and interactive dashboards. Onboard information will be available (weather information, sail, watch system, daily menu, etc.) to be as close as possible to the adventure. The mapping will be updated every 30 minutes.
