After a few years working with different teams, you are back with your own project and a new generation boat. How was this partnership born?
The first meeting took place in 2019 as part of a search for a sponsor, where Biotherm became a partner of Initiatives Océanes. As an ambassador for Surfrider Foundation, I was present. We got in touch again in the summer of 2021 to work on a Vendée Globe 2024 project.
Can you introduce us to Biotherm and explain its main characteristics? Why did you choose Guillaume Verdier to design your boat?
Last summer, we set up this project with the objective and opportunity to be at the start of the Route du Rhum. I have always wanted to build a boat with Guillaume Verdier, ever since I started with SMA. We had the opportunity to build Biotherm in the LinkedOut molds at Persico Marine. It was a very complicated challenge. We put the first carbon plies at the end of December 2021. Knowing that there are 8 months of construction behind.
We had to make a simple boat to fit in the time frame, which I really liked. The result is quite successful. Architects always want to innovate, but in this case, we had to slow down.
We still managed to change the bow, the foils, the foil well, the rudders and the cap. It remains a sistership boat of LinkedOut, quite close to Apivia. The hull shapes are very similar, and we have made some modifications.
What is your assessment of your first navigations and in particular of the Azimuth Challenge?
We didn't cross the line because the course for the crew was complicated, with a lot of maneuvers. But without a winch, it was difficult. It was very positive. I did my qualification. Setting up a new boat takes a lot of time. There are only 15 days left before the start of the race. You have to make compromises.
The first sensations are really good. It's a light boat, well balanced, in line with our expectations. I have already managed to make some good points during my qualification.
You put your boat in the water rather late. How are you compensating and training for the Route du Rhum?
Don't dream! You can't do the same thing in two months that you could do in four years. Experience helps a lot in these situations, and I benefit from my sailing experiences with Sam Davies and Charlie Dalin.
How do you position yourself in this Route du Rhum, especially as the title holder?
It's the opposite of the last time. My boat wasn't performing well, but it was accomplished and I knew it by heart. With Biotherm, we don't know each other.
It's funny. Last time I was a rookie and at the end of my partnership, now I'm not a rookie anymore and at the beginning of my project. I have a lot of fun. The emotion is not the same. In 2018, I had the maturity and now the excitement of a child. It's been four years since I've done an ocean race.
Did you choose to participate in The Ocean Race? Why did you do it? Did it decide your choice of boat?
In the choice of boat, no. This boat is not really modified for the crew. Sailing with 4 people or alone doesn't change much.
I really wanted to do The Ocean Race. It's a great race that gets us out of France and will do us a lot of good in terms of opening up. Doing this race in the Volvo 65 became a considerable task, with one-design boats and the best sailors in the world. In IMOCA, we have this expertise that allows us to perform without having prepared too much. That's the idea of integrating it into our program.
What are the differences between an IMOCA designed for crewed and solo sailing?
We didn't make that choice, because the rules of the game are the same. Especially if we stay on offshore courses. It would be different in coastal sailing. We are not going to optimize a boat to gain 15 seconds on a reef.
After the Route du Rhum, will the preparation only concern sailing with a crew?
After the Rhum, there is no program, because the boat goes back to the yard in Spain and until the start. The training is the race. This is also the IMOCA program. Taking these boats out for two hours of sailing, we may do it in two years, just before the Vendée Globe. At the beginning, each sail is very precious.
