So what exactly are the Vendée Globe skippers doing with fourteen months to go to the big event that they are all focusing on? Carrying out repairs, making fine adjustments, minor improvements and of course, they are out there sailing. “Our goal for the Vendée Globe is to ensure we have the most reliable boat possible, where everything has been checked over. This is a very complicated job, as it is tricky sailing huge distances with such fast and extreme racing boats. You have to get the balance just right, but we’re doing all we can to make progress,” explained Kito de Pavant (Groupe Bel), who just like his friends in the Class, has not yet finished all the work they have been given. The Mediterranean skipper went out sailing in a strong Mistral wind for much of the summer with Yann Régniau, his co-skipper for the Transat Jacques Vabre, before carrying out a quick refit in the yard, which in particular involved modifying the coach roof and ensuring better protection for the helmsman.

Summer in the yards
Bernard Stamm (Cheminées Poujoulat) has been through a similar experience, and is busy fine-tuning his new powerful-looking boat. After initail sea trials during the delivery trip and in a few races (Artemis Challenge and Fastnet Race), the work continued this summer with the boat out of the water, with the main goal being to offer greater comfort aboard his ocean racer. “Fine-tuning such a new and technically advanced boat is always rather tricky. Since her launch, I have been trying to check that the theoretical data, which guided us during the design and construction phases, were correct. I feel reassured, as she sails very well and her performance lives up to expectations, even if we do have to make some improvements to make her that bit more comfortable and overcome at the same time some of her teething problems,” explained the Swiss skipper, whose boat like Armel Le Cléac’h’s (Banque Populaire) has just been put back in the water. We should add that the latter had to go back in the yard for a quick repair after a crack was found this summer in her hull.

The autumn timetable with exams coming up
As for the newest boat in the class, the end of the summer means it is time to take the plunge. In both meanings of the expression, as François Gabart (Macif) enjoyed a first sail in order to get into a pattern with Sébastien Col and sail the 850-mile qualifier for the Transat Jacques Vabre. As for Dominique Wavre (Mirabaud), he is now back in La Rochelle, where his monohull has just been put back in the water and is about to have her new mast stepped. His boat was in fact dismasted during the double-handed round the world race. Later in the week, he is due to set sail again, as he looks forward to the next race on the class calendar. Indeed, all of these sailors, from Vincent Riou (PRB), who had a number of successes in Britain this summer to Marc Guillemot (Safran) and including Jean-Pierre Dick (Virbac-Paprec 3) and Arnaud Boissières (Akena Vérandas), while not forgetting the British skippers Alex Thomson (Hugo Boss) and Mike Golding (Gamesa), are now all focusing on their main race goal with the big event of the autumn drawing near. This will involve 4730 miles of double-handed sailing as they make their way to Costa Rica. This race is going to be the big exam of the year... The majority of them have in fact already made their way to the French Ocean Racing Training Centre in Port-la-Forêt, where from today (Tuesday 13th September) the first of three training courses is being organised. This is clear proof that they are now having to settle back down at work and that the summer holidays are now behind them.