Vendée Globe

After four months of work, Roland Jourdain's red monohull was put back in the water yesterday. In spite of some windy conditions and the rain in Concarneau, the launch ran to schedule. It was with a new keel exactly like the previous one and a new satellite antenna that Veolia Environnement returned to the water.

In ten days time, the boat will be taken around to St-Nazaire to get ready for the start  of the SNSM Record on 21st June. Before that a few days of adjustments and trials are planned. Roland Jourdain: "Seeing her back in the water, I just want to get out there now! I don't care if it's just off the shore, further out or out on the ocean. We didn't make any major modifications during this refit. We worked on some of the systems and tried to make her easier to handle. But in general, anyone can see the boat is the same as the one we had for the start of the Vendée Globe. We have the same mast, but we'll be able to use the top halyard, which wasn't the case very much during the Vendée Globe, because I didn't really want to hoist too much sail. We shan't be having any new sails for the SNSM record, but we'll be receiving a new mainsail for the European Pro Tour. The keel from a hydro-dynamic perspective is the same. The internal structure was repaired to its original state, as fortunately the vital elements were not affected. We also took advantage of the winter refit to modify the hydraulic system and the rudder kick-up system. Tomorrow, we shall be taking the sails on board to be able to take her out to get her ready and train. I can't wait for the next fight against the new boats, as they too are making progress from season to season and that will allow us to see whether we have really made progress or whether we still have a lot of work to consider."

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