single handing 100 foot multihulls

G4 and Sodebo still on starboard gybe and heading further west towards the savage winds, with G4 on a higher angle than Sodebo, Idec sailing closer (lower because of better wind angle) to rhum line course. Next gybe should be interesting because Sodebo will be closer to G4. Looks like they'll be gybing all the way to finish - unless something else occurs. What's the met forecast?

 

Looks like Groupama will miss the huricane....others may get remnants of the storm which will be below hurricane strength by Sunday.

http://routedurhum-labanquepostale.geovoile.com/2010/?lg=fr

http://www.stormpulse.com/

 

I'm going to use the dreaded m word here but looking at the map it is interesting to see that the multihulls forge their own paths across the ocean with their fast reponses to their individual conditions while the monohulls are running in herds. Are they all using the same router or is it traditional cover tactics ? Thanks for the Oman Air link Doug. If boats are breaking in new places at higher speeds progress is being made.

 

Groupama 3

Your welcome, Cav.
As of 9:28 Eastern today:

Groupama 26.9knots

Sodebo 235m behind 26.6 knots
Idec 238m behind 24.9 knots
=================

From Groupama 3:

The chase is on ...
Route du Rhum - La Banque Postale 2010
With 1,000 miles to the finish, Franck Cammas still boasts a solid lead over his pursuers, though it is worth noting the switch in positions between Coville and Joyon.

Both sailing trimarans designed by the same architect, Nigel Irens, the two solo record hunter specialists aren't giving up in their quest for the Rhum.

On a SSW'ly heading making an average speed in excess of twenty knots, they're battling each other blow for blow, well aware that the time is running out if they are to stand a chance of coming back on Groupama 3.

During this time, Franck Cammas isn't letting himself be taken in. Sailing in a vast zone of squalls in which the ENE'ly wind is oscillating between 25 and 40 knots, the leader in this ninth edition of the Route du Rhum - La Banque Postale is making the most of the power of his maxi trimaran to take the hammering caused by the excess gusts.

Carrying a prudent sail configuration with one reef in the mainsail and staysail, he isn't hesitating to gybe according to the wind shifts so as to find the best possible trajectory for getting to Guadeloupe.

Polled making an average speed of in excess of 28 knots over the past thirty minutes in the 0700 GMT position table this Saturday morning, the skipper of Groupama 3 is maintaining a very high rhythm.

However, ahead of her three bows, the weather situation still isn't very clear with Hurricane Tomas really upsetting the tradewinds. As such vigilance remains even more crucial...
------------
Note: at one point Idec led Sodebo but not as of now.....

Go Groupama!!!

 

Groupama 3

What a great race. Sodebo and Groupama are both doing 26 knots and Sodebo has cut the lead to 200 miles for Groupama-35 miles off since earlier today!

Check out the front page of SA for more on Oman Air's tri and Gavignet:
www.sailinganarchy.com

 

Groupama 3---editorial commentary

Well, it looks like its down to Sodebo and Groupama-Groupama has put about 6 miles on Sodebo since the last report so they are 206 miles apart. I live in Florida and 200 miles is about the distance to Miami so I've come to the conclusion that barring any unforeseen drama Groupama 3 is untouchable-no way with both going even close to the same speed that Sodebo could catch up. I don't think Idec can either.
All these guys are sailing to be best of their ability and doing a tremendous job but it looks to me like Groupama will more than likely win.
Fantastic boat, fantastic routing and a great skipper have combined to give
the boat an extremely good chance of maintaining her lead. Barring any unforeseen tragedy she will win-as predicted in post 17.


Go Groupama!!!


click on image:

 

Groupama 3--Design and Engineering

Quite a team assembled to put this project together:

Architects and engineers having participated in the design
Cabinet Van Peteghem - Lauriot Prévost (VPLP)
design office in collaboration with Martin Fisher, HDS,
Mick Kermarec, Guillaume Verdier, Bernard Pointet,
Yann Roux and Team Groupama

Construction yards
Multiplast, for the platform, daggerboard and rudder on the central hull
Lorima, for the mast
AMCO, for the rudders and floats
Profil Composites, for the foils

 

Groupama 3

From Groupama:


2010/11/06-18h28
Final sprint...

Route du Rhum - La Banque Postale 2010
With less than a thousand miles to go to the finish, Franck Cammas isn't releasing his grip over the head of the race. Making fast headway aboard a trimaran he knows like the back of his hand, the skipper of Groupama 3 isn't sparing of his efforts to constantly hunt down the best course towards Pointe à Pitre; a route which appears to be a little bumpy...


The current conditions on the water are now tending towards being stable, though yesterday was far from restful: "Yesterday was complicated. I passed beneath a line of squalls which took up most of the day, with some big gusts at 45 knots. I wasn't very proud of myself. I put in two gybes last night in a shifting wind of between 23 and 33 knots. Since this morning the skies have been clear and Groupama 3 is slipping along at speed!"

In frequent contact with Jean-Luc Nélias and Charles Caudrelier, his routers, Franck is seeking to position himself as best he can to tackle the winds which promise to be both shifty and light as he approaches the arc of the West Indies. Most of the day will focus on when the best time is to anticipate a gybe; a manoeuvre which is always tricky, not necessarily the action itself but the decision about when it must be carried out. "I have to put in a gybe in the afternoon. I hope conditions will be slightly easier because it's quite tense right now in very big seas. I'm going to try to do the same thing as last night. You have to anticipate it well: choose the moment when the wind isn't too violent, choose the right waves and keep up a lot of speed with Groupama 3 for it to work."

A sailor's life
Naturally feeling a sense of fatigue now, Franck is making the most of his excellent physical condition to continue performing well. The Groupama skipper was able to recharge his batteries a little last night and is awaiting tonight to do the same thing.
Aboard Groupama 3, Franck is living in a highly reduced space since he spends the majority of his time under the trimaran's cuddy where a remote navigation station is set up: "Aboard Groupama 3, the chart table is under the cuddy on deck level. I never go below as I can do the navigation outside and also I'm not far from the sheets if need be!"

A competitor through and through, it's evident that he is more determined than ever aboard a boat which is a true all-rounder in terms of good speed in all types of wind and every point of sail.



Go Groupama!!!

 

Groupama 3

As of 3:12 Eastern Groupama has extended her lead another 6 miles to 212 miles ahead of Sodebo! Going to get interesting as they approach Guadalupe-Cammas needs as much in the bank as possible....

Groupama: 26.2 knots
Sodebo: 23.7 knots


http://routedurhum-labanquepostale.geovoile.com/2010/?lg=fr


Go Groupama!!!

 

===================

At 5:45 Eastern Groupama is 213.8 miles ahead of Sodebo! Extending at a good time.....exciting!

Go Groupama!!!


Thanks, Daniel.

 

Uh Oh!--weather problem?

Go here: http://www.stormpulse.com/ Note the position of "Potential Storm #1 " at 26.6 N and 50.4 West- that is almost exactly halfway between Idec and Groupama moving NW at 15 to 20 mph-20% chance of becoming tropical or subtropical in the next couple of days. Plot those co-ordinates here: http://routedurhum-labanquepostale.geovoile.com/2010/?lg=fr Good news is that they are passing thru it now but systems like that can have nasty surprises.
Good luck to everybody and


Go Groupama!!!

===================
UPDATE:11:12 Eastern-Sodebo has lost another 6 miles to Groupama and now trails by 218miles. Sodebo is making 20.2knots to Groupama's 26.7--the clock is ticking.....(see the route du rhum url above)
It looks like Groupama is going to run into fairly light air for the last two to three hundred miles- that can be an advantage for Sodebo .....

 

From Groupama:

Zigzagging...
Route du Rhum - La Banque Postale 2010
Less than 600 miles from Guadeloupe now, Groupama 3 is making the most of the still favourable weather conditions to slip along at speed towards the finish. The twenty knots or so of NE'ly wind is reminiscent of a classic tradewind. This is true for Franck and for Thomas in any case but, further to the East, Francis Joyon is finding the going tough, now nearly 400 miles astern of the leader.


The game plan for the skipper of Groupama 3 is pretty simple then: to seek to position himself as best as possible in relation to the future S'ly wind whilst constantly remaining between Guadeloupe and his closest rival, Sodebo. In order to achieve this, Franck is zigzagging down towards the goal, unable to make a direct course.

Behind him, a little over 200[193 m behind-see below] miles away, which amounts to a third of the remaining distance to go, Thomas Coville is seeking to follow a slightly different pattern so as to create a slight separation and thus keep the opportunity to attack if ever Groupama 3 falls into a windless zone.

As such exactly the same controlling rules as on an inshore race are at play here, but on a large scale. Suffice to say that this situation is one that appeals to the fine racer that Franck Cammas is, as we can see from his statement during the morning radio session: "Playing cat and mouse with an adversary at the end could be a laugh as we tack around the island".

It now remains to be seen when Groupama's three large bows will arrive on the northern coast of the island at Tête à l'Anglais.

Making an average of 20 knots, it'll take around thirty hours, or daybreak in Guadeloupe on Monday. Making 15 knots, it would take forty hours, which would see an afternoon arrival in the West Indies. In both cases, this would enable Franck to negotiate the last 45 miles around Guadeloupe in daylight. As such he is likely to have the visibility to keep an eye on a possible rival...




===============
As of 10:06 Eastern, Groupama is doing 10 knots and Sodebo 5.4 knots......light wind ahead. Sodebo has caught up some more and is now 193 miles behind.

 

Not yet yielding defeat but it looks like Franck Cammas has everything covered; Groupama always is fast in all conditions .... and Thomas Coville is in a light patch. But that can also be a 2 edged sword ... not over yet, not yet.....?

 

Groupama 3

As of 4:15 Eastern Groupama is doing 12.4 knots, Sodebo 2.2 knots and Idec 16.5 knots. UPDATE:As of 7:11 Eastern, Sodebo is 224m behind-looks like she sailed into a no-air patch. Idec,however appears to be in good pressure but the wind field looks like it may end soon(or fill in-in which case he'll have a better chance).
These are scary looking wind fields with everybody right on the edge of nothing-how the wind fills in over the next 24 hours will tell the tale..

http://routedurhum-labanquepostale.geovoile.com/2010/?lg=fr


Go Groupama!!!


From Groupama:

Transition ...
Route du Rhum - La Banque Postale 2010
You cannot count on anything in the Route du Rhum. Unless you refer to the suspense, which is something that is always guaranteed. With 474 miles to go, Groupama 3 is tackling a zone of light airs as forecast. Speeds have dropped from 20 to 10 knots, which is inversely proportional to the effort put in by Franck Cammas.
For now the sails for strong breeze have been stowed away. The large solent is out of its bag getting some air. The reefs in the mainsail have one by one been shaken out.
On deck the spray is no longer lashing against the face of Groupama 3's skipper. We can imagine the sea which is becoming calmer.

Between the manoeuvres, trimming and weather analysis for the end of this race, Franck hasn't got a lot of time to think about the situation. The position of his rivals is hardly of interest to him now given their sizeable deficits. They aren't irreversible but they are sizeable.
At the last position report, it was Francis Joyon who was sending the speedos into turmoil, making 18 knots in relation to Groupama 3's 10 knots. Suffice to say that at this pace, the 355 mile deficit he has at the moment will quickly shrink away.

However, 474 miles from the finish, the skipper of Groupama 3 isn't surprised. He was expecting it in fact. Put away in the corner of his brain, this distance doesn't overshadow his flawless determination. Indeed Cammas is a competitor through and through. He's a sailor who knows that you can't count on anything until you're across the finish line.

In Pointe à Pitre a moderate S'ly wind is blowing across the land. The sky is overcast and there's a sticky heat. The bookmakers could line their pockets. In reality it's the meteorologists above all who have their noses to the grindstone, cursing Tomas, the powerful tropical depression which is fogging the issue...

Patience is the order of the day then as we await the privilege of witnessing the triumphant arrival of the winner. It is likely to be Monday evening in Pointe à Pitre, which is the early hours of Tuesday back in Europe.

 

50' Class- sad news

From the multihulls list:

Franck-Yves Escoffier will try to finish Route du Rhum-La Banque Postale with an emergency repair. Multi 50 Class leader Cr?pes Whaou! has sustained damage to the bow of the central hull at around 1530hrs (CET) this Sunday afternoon. Skipper Franck-Yves Escoffier has made an emergency repair and will try to finish the course. The bow of the central hull was damaged back to level with the pulpit and solent tack fitting, due to the shock of an impact, either from a floating object, or from pressure of the waves.
Gary