ATLANTIC ‘DOOR’ CLOSED

LA TRINITE-SUR-MER, FRANCE, OCTOBER 17TH 2017: Spindrift racing (Maxi Spindrift 2) skippered by Yann Guichard from France, training for the Jules Verne Trophy 2017 attempt.

Yann Guichard and the crew of Spindrift 2 have been waiting since the 5 november for a favourable weather window to start the Jules Verne Trophy. Despite november being windy and the Atlantic experiencing a series of lows, the conditions have not been favourable enough for the team to reach the equator in good time. This first reference point in a world tours is also the only part of the course where the 7/8 day weather projection makes it possible calculate exactly how long it would take to reach it.

Jean-Yves Bernot, the maxi trimaran’s weather router, comments: “The situation is currently blocked by a low pressure system coming from the US coast to northern Europe. This creates strong southwesterly to westerly winds that remove any chance of reaching the equator within an interesting timeframe.  In addition the sea state is very unsettled – conditions synonymous with damage to the boat.   We therefore have to wait for the weather to develop and anticipate that, once the winds shift to the north-west or north-east and the weather pattern evolves, we can leave.

Without these conditions no start is envisaged for Spindrift 2, however the crew is ready to take advantage of any change in the situation.

SPINDRIFT 2 MOVES STANDBY FORWARD

November was originally planned as the month for Spindrift racing to complete their inshore racing season and then move to standby mode for the team’s attempt on the Jules Verne Trophy. However with the M32 championship event, originally scheduled to be held in Shenzhen, China from 8-12 November, now not taking place, Spindrift racing has taken advantage of this change in the calendar to bring forward the start of standby period for the Jules Verne Trophy.The 12-man crew of the maxi trimaran will now be on standby from 5 November, waiting for a favourable weather window to start the non-stop round the world record attempt.  The current record, set by Francis Joyon in 2017, stands at 40 days, 23 hours, 30 mins and 30 seconds.

LA TRINITE-SUR-MER, FRANCE, OCTOBER 17TH 2017: Spindrift racing (Maxi Spindrift 2) skippered by Yann Guichard from France, training for the Jules Verne Trophy 2017 attempt.

Skipper Yann Guichard has brought together a squad of 14 sailors to make up the 12-man crew.  The sailors, drawn from the worlds of multihull, Olympics, match racing as well as offshore racing, include the core of the Spindrift racing team who regularly race with team founders Dona Bertarelli and Yann Guichard: Christophe Espagnon, François Morvan, Xavier Revil, Jacques Guichard and Erwan Israël.  Guichard has added to this core group the solo racing specialists Thierry Chabagny, Sam Goodchild and Erwan Le Roux, who are hugely experienced offshore onboard their respective Figaro, Class 40 and Multi 50 boats.  This formidable group will be joined by three under-30 sailors: the Frenchman Benjamin Schwartz, the Australian Jackson Bouttell and Duncan Späth from Switzerland.  The first two were part of the successful Dongfeng Race Team: Benjamin was in charge of electronics onshore while Jackson was an onboard bowman.  Duncan is the rookie in the team who, having followed the adventures of his mother, Dona Bertarelli, and the Spindrift team in 2015-16, then cut his teeth onboard Spindrift 2 as part of the winning crew for the 2015 Rolex Fastnet Race and the 2016 Quebec-St Malo.Thierry Duprey Du Vorsent and Morgan Lagravière join the squad as reserve crew, while Jean Yves Bernot completes the team as the onshore router.
The maxi trimaran will be based in Brest from November 5th, waiting for the right weather window to start the team’s attempt on the round the world record.

LOWRES IMAGE - Guide

Spindrift 2 – Jules Verne Trophy Squad
Yann Guichard – skipper, see profile
Erwan Israël – navigator, see profile
Jacques Guichard – watch leader / helm, see profile
Christophe Espagnon – watch leader / helm, see profile
Xavier Revil – watch leader / helm, see profile
François Morvan – helm, see profile
Thierry Chabagny – helm, see profile
Sam Goodchild – helm / bow, see profile
Erwan Le Roux – helm, see profile
Duncan Späth – helm, see profile
Benjamin Schwartz – helm / bow, see profile
Jackson Bouttell – helm / bow, see profile
Thierry Duprey Du Vorsent -helm / bow, see profile
Morgan Lagravière – helm, see profile

Jean-Yves Bernot – router