Vendée Globe

November 02. 2008 at 13:45Bahrain Team Pindar being named

It is at 2.30 this afternoon that the Juan K designed boat skippered by Brian Thompson will be officially named, in the presence of his Excellency, the Minister of Labour of Bahrain, Dr. Majeed Bin Muhsin Al Alawi, Andrew Pindar – the CEO of  the Pindar Group, as well as Ian Williams, the world match racing champion.
Brian Thompson: “Today is a very important day. We're expecting a lot of people from Bahrain and Paris to come and see the boat. It's great that the people from  Bahrain see what the Vendée Globe looks like and how big an event it is. You really need to be here to appreciate that. I imagine they can compare it to a Formula 1 GP event (a circuit has been in place in Bahrain since 2004). It's the same level. The project came about thanks to a professional contact that Andrew Pindar had out there.  However, the people involved have become increasingly involved in the Vendée Globe project. We've been on the front page of the papers a few times and there have been a lot of press articles, which is amazing."
We can add that Bahrain is a kingdom in the Arab Emirates located on the Persian Gulf, near Saudi Arabia.  Bahrain is an island with a surface area of 665 km², with 700,000 inhabitants.

 

November 02. 2008 at 13:33Why 35?

Jérémie Beyou: "It's quite simply the number of the French department, where Delta Dore has its headquarters. The firm is based in Combourg in Brittany, and so it is a way to take my hat off to them, after they have supported me for so long."

November 02. 2008 at 11:58Why a seven?

This is the number seen on Cheminées Poujoulat, which was in fact chosen by Bernard Stamm eight years ago. The Swiss skipper explains this choice: «In 2000, few people believed in my project, and thought I would make it to the start or complete the construction of my boat. Poker players will understand why I chose seven: if you play well, with a pair of sevens, you can beat four aces!»

November 02. 2008 at 10:51Guests this Sunday

This morning at eleven (CET),the guests on today's "Live from the Pontoons" programme will be Jérémie Beyou, Kito de Pavant, Rich Wilson and Raphael Dinelli (in order of appearance). Moreover, Pierre-Louis Castelli and Frédéric Ottenhof will be joined by Denis Horeau, the Vendée Globe Race director, who will talk about the line-up of this year's race. "Live from the Pontoons", the Vendée Globe radio show, every morning live on the website at 11h00.

November 02. 2008 at 10:31Northerly winds

The weather in Les Sables is fairly dull today with rain forecast this afternoon. The 15-20 knot northerly wind (force 4 to 5) will veer north-easterly this afternoon with gusts around 30 knots expected this evening.
The sea is slight becoming moderate this evening.

Sea temp: 15 degrees.

Tide times
Morning: coefficient 66 - Low tide 0h35 1.66m High tide 6h22 4.77m
Evening: coefficient 61 - Low tide 12h56 1.68m  High tide 18h35 4.48m

November 02. 2008 at 08:56It's thirty

Spirit of Weymouth and Hugo Boss returned to the fold last night, back at their rightful places at the pontoons in Port Olona. Hugo Boss sailed for just over two hours through a chilly evening in winds around 15kts and assumed her place back in the lineup just after 1930h. Steve White's boat looks resplendent with her new paint job although it will be next week before their sposnor is announced.Bahrain Team Pindar, which is skippered by Brian Thompson, is being officially named today. Hugo Boss is sailing again this morning.

November 01. 2008 at 16:53Why the number 101?

All of the boats have a number on the hull and on their mainsail. This "number plate" is not a number that is handed out automatically. In most cases, it has been chosen by the skipper and therefore becomes a symbolic figure, which in this case hides a little tale. 101, the number displayed by Foncia, is Alain Gautier's lucky number. He, of course, was also sponsored by Foncia and indeed won the 1992 Vendée Globe. Michel Desjoyeaux, the skipper of the Farr-designed boat, simply wished to keep the same number.

November 01. 2008 at 16:42Peace in the Basque Country

Pakea means peace in the Basque language and Bizkaia is simply the name of the area around Bilbao. Through his project, Unai Basurko, the only yachtsman financed by a local authority, is aiming to change the image of the Basque country, which has suffered so much, because of what has been going on in this part of Spain. At the age of 35, Unai is preparing to set sail on his second round the world voyage (after finishing third in the Velux 5 Oceans in 2007). For him, taking part in the Vendée Globe is a dream, which is about to come true and a way to follow in the footsteps of the Spanish yachtsman, José Luis de Ugarte, who took part in the 1992 race and died earlier this year.

November 01. 2008 at 15:44The Vendée Globe shop is online

If you are a fan of the ocean race and everything to do with the Vendée Globe, you will find all sorts of articles relating to the Everest of sailing in the online Vendée Globe shop . Items for the whole family: sportswear, caps, tee-shirts, bags, gadgets, books, DVDs,... all branded Vendée Globe.
For more info, log on to: http://boutique.vendeeglobe.org/

November 01. 2008 at 15:17Special train from Nantes

If you are travelling to the start of the Vendée Globe, it may be useful to know that a special train is being put in place from Nantes on Sunday 9th November at 07h17 , which will arrive in Les Sables d'Olonne at 8h30 (Tickets cost 10€).  The return journey will leave Les Sables d'Olonne the same day at 18h20 and arrive in Nantes at 19h33.