From eleven this morning, the guests on the "Live from the Pontoons" programme will be in order, Isabelle Autissier, Bernard Stamm and Arnaud Boissières.  However, Pierre-Louis Castelli and Frédéric Ottenhof will also be talking to Gérard Faugeron, a Councillor in Vendée about the Vendée Globe educational project. "Live from the Pontoons", the Vendée Globe radio show can be heard every morning live on the website from 11h00.

Still under the influence of a thundery low-pressure area, which is hardly moving now over the Bay of Biscay, today's weather (Monday) will tend to be overcast with some outbreaks of light rain and showers around midday. The temperatures will be slightly above the seasonal average with ten degrees this morning and around twelve this afternoon. The easterly wind around twelve knots off Les Sables d’Olonne will gradually ease off during the evening.

Tide times
Monday 3rd November: coefficient 56 - 51
High tide: 6h58 – 19h11
Low tide: 1h10 – 13h33

Tuesday 4th November: coefficient 46 - 42
High tide: 7h43 – 20h03
Low tide: 1h50 – 14h17

 

To ensure that the rules laid down by ISAF (the world sailing authority) are respected, an international jury has been appointed:  It will make judgements as quickly as possible contacting the competitor(s) by e-mail, if required.  This protest committee is presided over by Bernard Bonneau (FRA), assisted by the vice-President, Christian Peyras (FRA) aided by Ion Echave (ESP), Trevor Lewis (GBR) and Jean Vermant (BEL).

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.

 

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."

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!»