how Côtes-d’Armor skipper Guirec Soudée plans the start

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In the village of Vendée Globe for three weeks, the skipper of Plougrescant Guirec Soudée is now focusing on the first hours of racing, which should take place in mild conditions. In Sables d'Olonne, he continues to precisely analyze the weather in the company of Corentin Douguet, who has supported him since his beginnings.

Departure of the most famous world tour scheduled for this Sunday at 1:02 p.m. And until then, the helmsman Freelance.com knows his program: “Rest well, put fresh food on board, monitor the weather, put on my raincoat, give kisses and head out to sea!” »

And he sleeps well, more than usual:

I can sleep until 8 o'clock, it's been a long time since that happened to me!

“I can’t wait to leave!” »

Guirec Soudée wants to be calm despite the buzz of intense days where tens of thousands of spectators were able to discover his Imoca.

The atmosphere here is completely crazy. People are curious, happy to talk with us. The hardest part is not being able to share with everyone, having to go home to preserve yourself. I can't wait to leave.

The skipper knows that the discharge of emotion will be strong, on Sunday, at the time of the “goodbyes” and then afterwards, in the channel which will be transformed into an open-air stadium: “The closer the departure gets, the more intense it will be emotionally and the more pressure there will be. They tell me that I'm going to leave everyone I love but I only want to go quickly to find them! »

“Ideal” conditions for a successful start

.At 1:02 p.m. therefore, the sailor will be one of the forty competitors to rush off. He will quickly have to focus on the race.

The departure will also be a moment of extreme tension. It is important to be vigilant, take some space and take care to avoid collisions.

Fortunately, the conditions look rather mild. Forgotten the eventful starts like at the Rolex Fastnet Race or staggered (Route du Rhum-Destination Guadeloupe 2022, Transat Jacques Vabre 2023) during which Guirec Soudée did his skills. “We shouldn’t have any big gusts of wind,” underlines the thirty-year-old. The wind direction is not yet established but it should be pretty calm on the body of water. It’s ideal for getting off to a good start and getting into the swing of things peacefully.”

Engaged in research with UNESCO

Please note: at the start of the Vendée Globe 2024, 25 volunteer sailors will board their sailboats and will deploy during the competition scientific instruments provided by UNESCO and its partners in order to advance oceanographic research and weather forecast models (buoys surface, meteorological stations, thermosalinographs, etc.).

Like 9 other skippers, Guirec Soudée will take on board an Argo profiler float (20 kg, 1.70 m long), which measures the temperature and salinity of the sea up to 2,000 m deep, making it possible to predict changes in the ocean and their impacts on the climate and marine biodiversity.

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