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2007/11/14 - 19h18
Victory in Bahia
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Transat Jacques Vabre
From Le Havre to Salvador de Bahia |
| Job done: Franck Cammas and Stève Ravussin have brilliantly led Groupama 2 to victory in this Transat Jacques Vabre after
ten days of intense sailing, enabling them to improve on their previous record by nearly 48 hours, a record originally held
by... Franck Cammas and Franck Proffit since 2003.
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Presented as the favourite at the start in Le Havre, the crew of Groupama 2 didn't let the side down. Authors of the best
start, the two men continued to stamp their mark throughout this transatlantic race. Leading as they rounded the Western tip
of Brittany, they greatly reduced their sail area during the brief but intense gale encountered off Cape Finisterre. Though
their direct rivals made the most of the situation to steal ahead, Franck and Stève opted instead to spare both the equipment
and themselves: "As we passed Spain, we eased right off the pace" confirmed Stève in Bahia.
Still in
downwind conditions during the descent towards the Canaries archipelago, Groupama 2 regained control of operations, despite
a very fine W'ly option by Gitana 11.
Next, it was en route to Cape Verde that the outcome of the race was decided. Tactically
better positioned, the future winners were marked by the fact that the one of their hottest contenders would have to make
a few hours' pitstop to replace a foil (Gitana 11) or a rudder on one of the floats (Banque Populaire). From then on, Groupama
2 continued to extend their lead, quickly stretching from a 50 mile advantage to over 300 miles: "Groupama 2 is a solid,
well prepared and validated boat. We certainly worked it hard though in order to get the lead we needed" adds Stève,
who hasn't always had the opportunity to race on such high performance trimarans.
Like other champions, Cammas and
Ravussin are hard to dethrone once they're in the lead: "It wasn't easy to manage our lead as we don't necessarily know
what rhythm to adopt. To keep attacking with the risk of breaking the boat would have been stupid. At the same time, these
trimarans are fantastic machines which require the utmost concentration. When crossing through the doldrums, we were surprised
by a squall in which the wind increased from 10 to 35 knots. It was pretty dicey" recalls the skipper of Groupama
2, a thought which was soon confirmed by his accomplice: "The nights were very dark without any moon at all. We had
no idea when the squalls were going to kick in".
Whilst some of the former multihull skippers have now opted for
monohull sailing, Franck and Stève appreciate the true value of this victory, after a disastrous Jacques Vabre in 2005 (dislocated
boat for Stève and a capsize for Franck): "This victory clearly makes us feel good" analyses Franck simply. Stève echoes
this: "It's a great revenge and it will enable us to move on with our spirits raised".
Eyes sparkling, a
smile on the lips and talking nineteen to the dozen, our two winners didn't tire in sharing their enthusiasm, both with the
spectators and, perhaps more surprisingly, between themselves too. "We didn't cross paths a single time below, other
than when we were changing over helm, we didn't get the opportunity to speak to each other much. We're making up for it now
though" jokes Stève who went on to say: "In 1999, during our first double-handed transatlantic aboard the first
Groupama, Franck woke up readily and often came up on deck. This year, I had trouble waking him up on several occasions. For
me, it's proof that he has total confidence in me".
Numerous interviews are now in store. Between two meetings
with the Swiss and French media, the winners add: "Marcel Van Triest, our weather advisor, did a really great job, as
did our shore crew. We thank them all very much".
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