We continue our meetings with the skippers about to take part in the Vendée Globe and today we chat to Yann Eliès. Having already clocked up three round the world voyages, the skipper of Generali is hardly a newcomer, but there is nevertheless a huge difference between a crewed race and a single-handed Vendée Globe… The yachtsman from Saint-Brieuc told us how he feels with ajust a few weeks to go before the start in Les Sables d’Olonne.
Time is slipping by and it will soon be the big day?
«Things are looking good: I have never been so relaxed befoere the start of a round the world voyage! Although this is about to be the hardest I´ve ever tackled, as it is a solo race… That´s particularly due to the fact that I managed to get a great shore team behind me and I can rely on them and trust them completely. I´m setting sail, if not free of worries, at least serenely, knowing that my team has perfectly prepared the boat.»
You´ve already done three circumnavigations with The Race and the Jules Verne Trophy?
«Yes, but it´s much harder to do it alone: when there are thirteen or fourteen on board, you can always count on someone else and there is always someone, who has a particular skill to get you out of any difficult situation you may find yourself in. This time, there´s just me! I know that I´m not good at certain things… The truth will out.»
What attracts yachtsmen to the hostile environment of the deep south?
«The sights! There´s not only the sea and the sky: there are the icebergs, the waves, the marine creatures, birds, light all around you… Dawn in the southern seas is magical! It´s a sight you don´t find anywhere else. Then there is the surfing! Even if I´m not really a surfer myself, you reach these great peak speeds all the time. There are no limits, nothing to hold you back: you can really go for it! However, you do have to respect the environment in which you are sailing… »
It is nevertheless difficult to deal with?
«It´s freezing cold, but you end up getting used to it. After a fortnight in the deep south, you start to feel more at home: gradually you take off the fleeces… »
How are you organising the final weeks before the gun is fired?
«It´s a mixture of contact with the media, sail training, going through the check-list, some time with the family, because I shan´t be seeing my friends and family for some time. Above all, I have to keep cool, relaxed and stay with it for as long as possible! Right up to the day before the start… I´ll be taking off for a week: I´ll be at home doing the kids´ homework, making chocolate cakes and doing some drawing to have some memories to take with me before going around the world!»
«Things are looking good: I have never been so relaxed befoere the start of a round the world voyage! Although this is about to be the hardest I´ve ever tackled, as it is a solo race… That´s particularly due to the fact that I managed to get a great shore team behind me and I can rely on them and trust them completely. I´m setting sail, if not free of worries, at least serenely, knowing that my team has perfectly prepared the boat.»
You´ve already done three circumnavigations with The Race and the Jules Verne Trophy?
«Yes, but it´s much harder to do it alone: when there are thirteen or fourteen on board, you can always count on someone else and there is always someone, who has a particular skill to get you out of any difficult situation you may find yourself in. This time, there´s just me! I know that I´m not good at certain things… The truth will out.»
What attracts yachtsmen to the hostile environment of the deep south?
«The sights! There´s not only the sea and the sky: there are the icebergs, the waves, the marine creatures, birds, light all around you… Dawn in the southern seas is magical! It´s a sight you don´t find anywhere else. Then there is the surfing! Even if I´m not really a surfer myself, you reach these great peak speeds all the time. There are no limits, nothing to hold you back: you can really go for it! However, you do have to respect the environment in which you are sailing… »
It is nevertheless difficult to deal with?
«It´s freezing cold, but you end up getting used to it. After a fortnight in the deep south, you start to feel more at home: gradually you take off the fleeces… »
How are you organising the final weeks before the gun is fired?
«It´s a mixture of contact with the media, sail training, going through the check-list, some time with the family, because I shan´t be seeing my friends and family for some time. Above all, I have to keep cool, relaxed and stay with it for as long as possible! Right up to the day before the start… I´ll be taking off for a week: I´ll be at home doing the kids´ homework, making chocolate cakes and doing some drawing to have some memories to take with me before going around the world!»
