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2006/11/07 - 18h35
Fifth position for Groupama 2 in Pointe-à-Pitre
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| Route du Rhum, from St-Malo to Pointe-à-Pitre |
| The 8th edition of the Route du Rhum ended last night for Franck Cammas with a fifth position. It is after many difficulties,
at 6:57 AM (1:57 AM local time), that the skipper of Groupama 2 crossed the line off the Gosier coast.
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At midday, after a few hours of sleep well deserved, Franck accepted to answer a few questions. Quotes from the interview:
Your last racing miles before arriving to Pointe-à-Pitre were rather rock and roll: "It was about time
that I arrived... The round Guadeloupe has been particularly hard due to many technical problems. In addition to my rudder's
problem on the starboard side floater, which already made my boat hard to steer, I had, two days ago, another rudder problem,
but on port side that time. The ram connection started to jam, and I finally had to disconnect it. Therefore, the helm on
port side was extremely hard and the rudder which became difficult to control was not following the central one. All that
gave me the opportunity to give a real freestyle acrobatics show to the spectators off the Basses-Terres coast! People must
have had a good time looking at me... In addition, I had a complete black-out of the electronics. Deprived of autopilot, I
could not leave the helm anymore: hard to gybe with 25 knots in theses conditions! With that breakdown, I could not either
count on my principal computer. Therefore, impossible to know where I was, plus, a bad squall was reducing the visibility
at the same moment. I finally managed to find the finishing line, but not easily! It was rather epic, but this pretty much
summarizes my race..."
How do you feel about your 8 racing days? "Saying that I did not have any success
would be a simplistic way to sum up my race, but it is true that nothing was easy. I had to work hard for things to go right.
Aside from both tactical mistakes I made before The Azores, I have not been able to follow the rhythm of the boats ahead.
And yet, I have the feeling that I have not stopped for a moment. I feel like if I had left yesterday, as well as having had
a watch of 8 days."
Your rhythm during the race: "I spent the whole time outside. Unlike some of my
race mates, I could not go to sleep nor go inside while the boat was going at 25 knots on autopilot. I probably spent a maximum
of three minutes in a row inside the boat for the whole crossing duration. I must hold the speed record to prepare a meal
(laughs)... I also have the feeling that I have not slept much. One hour maximum in a row and always at the helm station,
never inside."
The performances of Groupama 2 on this trans-Atlantic race: "This Route du Rhum was
about calculated risks. On board Groupama 2, I have set my limits according to my feelings and also my experience helming
this boat. One thing is sure, is that we do not have enough opportunities to sail these boats with this kind of configuration.
Due to my capsize last year on the Transat Jacques Vabre, I certainly lacked of confidence in my boat this time. Groupama
2 is the most recent ORMA multihull. It is a very specialized boat, harder to trim to reach an optimal speed. I have not
yet found the good balance to exploit Groupama 2 as it should be. We are facing a great technical challenge. We have to find
solutions to make this great boat more tolerant and serene."
Your fifth position: "It is not the fact
that I finished 5th that leaves me disappointed, but mostly the fact that I did not really enjoy the regatta, aside from the
last few days where I was within contact with Mich and Thomas. It took me a while to tell myself: You have done a good job!
But these moments help to form stronger character and mental for the future... It is at least true in my case."
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