Vendée Globe

October 17. 2008 at 13:34Let the celebrations begin

In the Vendée Globe village, dances and music from around the world will be bringing to life the pontoons and the bar: the organisers of this sixth edition really wanted to make this Vendée Globe village a place of celebration at the heart of Les Sables d’Olonne. Music and dance events from countries with a maritime tradition (Ireland, South Africa, Mexico, Colombia), will be taking place throughout the day and evening in the village.

18th-19th October: Ireland
The village will open to the sound of the « Clasac » band from Dublin, Ireland, on Saturday 18th and Sunday 19th October. Made up of more than 300 young men and women simply bursting with energy, the most enthusiastic of whom will be heading for Les Sables d’Olonne to excite the visitors with their tap dancing. The 26 best dancers and musicians from the Company will be taking the stage with the charming delights from Irish bards and traditional dances.
« Clasac » will be bringing along the Gaelic touch from that country with its mild oceanic climate and green pastures, which is known for its highly distinctive music.

25th-26th October: South Africa
The blood of those Swazi warriors that overcame the powerful colonial and military strength of Victorian England still runs through their veins. Dressed in sumptuous costumes, the 25 artists belonging to the «Matsamo cultural group» take us back in time. With the rhythm of their drums and their melodic and poetic songs, they will be offering visitors to Vendée some moments from the daily life of a people, who used to be the most powerful in Africa.

29th Oct-2nd November: Mexico
The «Mariachi Cocula» Group was formed in 1993 by four fans of Mexican music, who wanted to make it more widely known through their regular performances. For the Vendée Globe Village, the group will be made up of twelve dancers and musicians (guitar, vihuela, guitarrón , violin and trumpet) and they will be playing some popular music from some of Mexico´s top composers and musicians: José Alfredo Jimenez, Agustin Lara, Javier Solis, Vicente Fernandez, Consuelo Velasquez…
3rd - 8th November: Colombia
Colombia is to America what Greece is to Europe, the motherland of the Arts with its culture dating back over several millennia. The traditional ballet troupe « Antioquia », founded in 1989, has the aim of spreading Colombian traditions in Europe and around the world. Proud of their triple heritage (Indian, Spanish and African), the 26 dancers in the Antioquia troupe, will be creating a magical atmosphere in the Vendée Globe Village with a ballet worthy of the world´s top ballet companies.
Each day, dancers, singers and musicians will be inviting the visitors to discover the wealth of musical and dance traditions from these maritime regions from around the globe:
Noon – 5 p.m.: Parade and procession with shows being performed on three stages spread around the Vendée Globe village
3.30 p.m.: World dance and music classes
An opportunity for the general public to try for themselves some of the dances and instruments from the guest country in the bar. A show bringing together the public and the artists will be the climax of this introductory session.
9 p.m.: Show open to the general public in the bar-restaurant "Le Vog."

October 17. 2008 at 12:3618 moored up

With the exception of Alex Thomson's Hugo Boss, which is moored in the commercial harbour following the collision this morning with a fishing boat, sixteen Vendée Globe monohulls are now in place in Port Olona. The latest arrival was Armel Le Cléac’h's BritAir, which made her way through the entrance channel in Les Sables d’Olonne this Friday morning at around eight, just before her draught of 4.50 metres would have limited her in these spring tides. As for Derek Hatfield (Algimouss-Spirit of Canada), he has gone out for the day in order to test his new sails. He wil be returning to port this afternoon with some other skippers, who are on their way to the port for the start of the Vendée Globe. Currently in Les Sables d’Olonne are: Kito de Pavant (Groupe Bel) Raphaël Dinelli (Fondation Océan Vital) Arnaud Boissières (Akena Vérandas) Rich Wilson (Great America III) Derek Hatfield (Algimouss-Spirit of Canada) Norbert Sedlacek (Nauticsport-Kapsch) Dee Caffari (Aviva) Vincent Riou (PRB) Mike Golding (Ecover 2) Jean-Pierre Dick (Paprec-Virbac) Yann Eliès (Generali) Jonny Malbon (Artemis) Samantha Davies (Roxy) Jérémie Beyou (Delta Dore) Michel Desjoyeaux (Foncia) Jean Le Cam (VM Matériaux) Armel Le Cléac’h (Brit Air) Alex Thomson (Hugo Boss)

October 17. 2008 at 12:30Light show

Based on a scenario Bruno Seillier, set up by the « Spectaculaires, les allumeurs d’images » company, the multi-tech show using video and laser projection will light up the monohulls moored in Port Olona as they are about to set sail around the world. Entitled « Vendée Globe, the Everest of the Seas », this light show will begin on Saturday 18th October at 19h15 to celebrate the opening of the Vendée Globe village. Lasting eleven minutes, using 34 4.5 kW skytracers, six 20,000 to 30,000 video projectors, two 40W lasers, a Line Array sound system and sixty LED projection lights fed using more than 50 kilometres of cable, this show will be repeated every evening until the eve of the start at 19h15, 19h45, 20h15 and 20h45, and will be visible throughout the marina in Les Sables d’Olonne.

October 17. 2008 at 08:56Dawn arrivals

It was at five this morning that four monohulls entered Port Olona to moor up after arriving on a very light breeze. Jean-Pierre Dick (Paprec-Virbac) was the first to turn up in les Sables d’Olonne, followed by Yann Eliès (Generali), Jonny Malbon (Artemis) and Samantha Davies (Roxy). Then at around 6h30, it was the turn of Jérémie Beyou (Delta Dore), Michel Desjoyeaux (Foncia) and Jean Le Cam (VM Matériaux) to come ashore. Other skippers are expected on the tide this evening (between four and ten o´clock) such as Marc Guillemot (Safran), Loïck Peyron (Gitana Eighty), Armel Le Cléac’h (Brit Air), Roland Jourdain (Veolia Environnement), Bernard Stamm (Cheminées Poujoulat)... The boats must all be moored up in Les Sables d’Olonne by the tide on Saturday morning.

October 17. 2008 at 08:52A fine day

For the arrival of the majority of the boats in Les Sables d´Olonne, it looks like being a sunny day. A few clouds are expected in the afternoon, but the temperature remains mild (around 18°C) and there is a pleasant north-easterly breeze resulting from a high pressure area over France. The wind will remain fairly light, around ten knots this morning and easing off this afternoon. This weekend, the temperatures will once again be very pleasant and the forecast is for sunny weather with a light to moderate easterly wind. Tide times in Les Sables d’OlonneFriday 17th October: coefficient 101 - 98High tide: 6h39 – 19h04Low tide: 0h32 – 12h56Saturday 18th October: coefficient 93 - 88High tide: 7h20 – 19h51Low tide: 1h15 – 13h42

October 16. 2008 at 12:23PRB has reached Les Sables

The winner of the last edition of the Vendée Globe moored up this Thursday at the pontoon in Port Olona: She was the ninth Imoca monohull to reach Les Sables d’Olonne. Vincent Riou delivered his new PRB, a Farr design from the latest generation, with the help of his shore team, from Port la Forêt. We can add that all of the boats and their skippers will be present at the latest on Saturday morning for the inauguration of the Vendée Globe Village by Philippe de Villiers at ten. Many yachtsmen plan to leave their home port this evening (Thursday), to arrive in Vendée on Friday morning. That is the case for Michel Desjoyeaux, who is expected around breakfast time tomorrow morning…

October 16. 2008 at 12:18Weather for Thursday 16th October

With the passage of a front over France, the skies are slightly cloudy this morning in Les Sables d’Olonne, with the temperature remaining mild (17°C this afternoon). The light northwesterly wind this morning will veer northerly for a time around lunchtime and strengthen to around ten knots before backing northwesterly in mid-afternoon, while remaining below twelve knots. For Friday and Saturday, the weather looks like it is going to be pleasant, although there will be some cloud, but on Sunday we can look forward to some sunshine with temperatures nudging 20°C. Tide times in Les Sables d’Olonne Thurs 16th October: coefficient 104 - 103 High tide: 6h00 – 18h22 Low tide: 12h14 Friday 17th October: coefficient 103 - 101 High tide: 6h39 – 19h04 Low tide: 0h32 – 12h56

October 15. 2008 at 14:42A little rain

The weather forecast this Wednesday is not too hopeful for the rest of the day, but it is looking brighter for the weekend: a little rain this afternoon and a slight fall in the temperature to around 18°C… The weather is likely to remain variable and overcast with some damp conditions for Thursday and Friday, but a major improvement is expected this weekend, and indeed particularly on Sunday for the opening of the Vendée Globe Village. The light southwesterly to westerly wind this morning will strengthen to around fifteen knots this afternoon as a rainy front passes over. A ten-knot westerly breeze will continue throughout the evening with overcast skies tonight.

Local tide times for Les Sables d’Olonne

Wed 15th October:
coefficient 100 - 102
High tide: 5h23 – 17h42
Low tide: 11h33 – 23h50

Thurs 17 October:
coefficient 104 - 103
High tide: 6h00 – 18h22
Low tide: 12h14

October 14. 2008 at 17:01A Village befitting the round the world race

The Village is certainly quite impressive covering a huge area, as huge as the challenge facing the thirty contenders, who will be setting sail on Sunday 9th November... A ground surface area of more than 10,000 square metres on one, two and even three floors will be host to the stands of the exhibitors, the partners´ area, the VIP saloon, a hall, offering a presentation of the race with educational displays and fun events, the Cape Horn centre, looking at the three oceans: the Atlantic, Indian and Pacific… A lot of logistical planning has gone into ensuring access to the Vendée Globe pontoon is easy for the public. The official opening by Philippe de Villiers is planned for ten in the morning (local time) next Saturday (18th October), and this will be followed an hour later by the official photo and then an initial briefing to welcome the competitors at lunchtime.

October 14. 2008 at 16:14Mild weather in Les Sables

Little or no wind on Tuesday 14th October off Les Sables d’Olonne, but a slight northwesterly breeze blowing between five and eight knots was expected later in the day. The sky remained overcast until the middle of the afternoon, but a few rays of sunshine are expected before sunset… The temperatures remain above the seasonal average, reaching almost 20 degrees this afternoon. For Wednesday 15th October, similar conditions are expected with however some more cloud and maybe a few drops of rain late in the afternoon, while temperatures are forecast to remain very mild for the season. The outlook for the weekend is for cooler conditions, but we are expecting some sunshine particularly on Saturday.

Tide times in Les Sables d’Olonne:
- Tuesday 14th October:
coefficient 92 - 97
High tide: 4h48 – 17h05
Low tide: 10h54 – 23h12

-Wednesday 15th October:
coefficient 100 - 102
High tide: 5h23 – 17h42
Low tide: 11h33 – 23h50