LLes Sables-d’Olonne Vendée Globe. PHOTO: Skipper Sébastien Simon on Groupe Dubreuil at the start in the bay
Philippe Brossard-Lotz
The Sablais Reporter
Les Sables-d’Olonne Vendée Globe. Patrick BRUEL meeting Sébastien Simon on the Imoca Groupe Dubreuil
Photo of A – From left to right: Paul-Henri Dubreuil, Patrick Bruel, Sébastien Simon, Loïck Peyron, François Dubreuil © Martin Viezzer / Groupe Dubreuil Sailing Team
On the eve of the start of the Vendée Globe, Sébastien Simon aspires to begin his world tour without neglecting to fully experience the great popular festival expected during the passage through the Sables-d'Olonne channel.
He gives his last impressions.
An incredible challenge. « The Vendée Globe is both the simplest challenge – going around the world without stopping and without assistance – and at the same time the most complex because we are on board very technical machines and it is You have to be able to manage on your own. It's an extraordinary challenge: there are six times more people who have been to space than people who have successfully completed this loop. »
The challenge of a lifetime. « This race has made me dream since I was little, I saw it growing up, it allowed me to experience so many emotions… I am a native of the country, a Sablais.
I have always known this Vendée Globe race: the race is 35 years old, I am 34. That's a lot in common. This Vendée Globe pontoon, where there are the forty Imoca boats, I walked around it dozens and dozens of times when I was little. »
The achievements of the past. « I don't know if this world tour will change me. On the other hand, I know that I have changed a lot throughout my journey. I have experienced a lot of things, painful and beneficial human experiences, moments of joy and accidents. I'm in the best part of my life because I can still challenge myself. And when you go around the world, the adventure cannot be planned, it must be experienced. »
The atmosphere at the start. « The Vendée Globe showed exploits, beautiful finishes, completely crazy scenarios. But seeing the skippers leave the pontoon, the IMOCAs crossing the channel, it's gut-wrenching and it's always enlivened me. It's a public event, there is no ticket office, everything is free and the crowd comes from 4 a.m. to find their place and cheer the skippers. I am convinced that there will be hundreds of thousands of spectators. It's both simple and incredible. There are many sporting events in France but this one has something special. »
My sources of motivation. « I obviously have a taste of unfinished business following my first participation in 2020 (4th before being forced to abandon due to an OFNI). As soon as I set foot on land, I only had one goal, that of leaving again four years later. Luckily, the Dubreuil group decided to offer me a second chance. I am keen to go to the end, to have fun and to prove to all those who accompanied me that they were right to trust me. I am also here to explore my limits and give the best of myself ».
The excitement building. « Since Friday November 8, 2024 – Editor's note: yesterday -, I almost want to teleport, to finally be in the race. All the work upstream – project management, boat preparation, public relations – was done as it should be. It’s already a great victory to be here today in such good spirits. Now, I want to enter my bubble and fully experience the race. I have an incredible boat, versatile, well prepared, which will give me every chance of having fun. The next reward will be to be at the finish. »
Mild conditions at the start. « The weather conditions will change the approach to departure because it will be calmer than usual, the risk of collision being reduced. I always dread the starts, the fact of having to place myself well; The light conditions forecast for tomorrow's departure will help us get into the swing of things. On the other hand, it is possible that it is nervous with an erratic wind, therefore random. »
The descent of the Atlantic. « I will do everything to be concentrated, get into my race well and be well placed in the Atlantic. Even if there is no wind, it will be very intense and very demanding. The first to catch the North-East wind will have a small advantage as will also be the case for the first to cross the transition zone in the Azores anticyclone. It's a long race, of course, but being well positioned at the end of the Atlantic really gives you confidence for the future. Because in the South Seas, as soon as the gaps are created, the race is no longer quite the same. »
Philippe Brossard-Lotz
The Sablais Reporter
(with communication)
Les Sables-d’Olonne Vendée Globe. SKIPPERS based in Les Sables: united like the 6 fingers of a hand…
© Photo: Le Reporter sablais
Video :
Sébastien Simon and Paul-Henri Dubreuil speak, one after the other, about the partnership between the Dubreuil Group and the skipper.
They met during a tennis tournament in Vendéspace. The opportunity to think about a possible partnership which materialized after Covid.
A great opportunity for Sébastien who wanted at all costs to make his childhood dream come true, to go around the world in the famous Vendée Globe offshore race.
Paul-Henri Dubreuil now heads the Vendée and family Dubreuil group developed by his father Jean-Paul Dubreuil – whose entrepreneurial history is fascinating, from grandfather Henri's grocery store to the aviation company Air Caraibes -.
Paul-Henri Dubreuil decided to embark on the magnificent adventure of the Vendée Globe, with the agreement of the rest of the family, in order to write a beautiful new page in the sands.
Paul-Henri Dubreuil suggests, at the end of the video, that the partnership could continue after the 2024 Vendée Globe.
Philippe Brossard-Lotz
The Sablais Reporter
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