“It was an infernal cauldron”
It was only in 1968, during the Golden Globe Challenge, the first non-stop round the world trip, that skippers ventured there during a race. For Vendée Globe sailors, it has become a necessary step. This is the third milestone to be crossed (after Bonne Espérance and Leeuwin). For newbies, it's a curiosity, the assurance of a thrill that forces them to surpass themselves and resist. Jean-Luc Van den Heedecompetitor of the first edition in 1989, recounts, in one of his books*: “ I must admit that I shook. It was an infernal cauldron, I don't put anything above being a sailor ».
In 1997, it was near Cape Horn that Gerry Roufs disappears. In his last communication with the race organization, he explained: “ the waves are not waves, they are higher than the Alps! » At the same time, Isabelle Autissier described gusts reaching 97 knots! The navigator and Marc Thiercelin tried to look for it for a while but the depths of ten meters and the freezing cold pushed them to quickly abandon the search. It was only a year later that the Chilean army managed to find pieces of hull off the island of Atalaya, more than 300 miles north of Cape Horn.
“Fright” and relief
Four years ago, Jean Le Cam mentioned “ a frontier “. He can testify to the harshness of Cape Horn: it was there that he capsized in January 2009. Vincent Riou et Armel Le Cléac'h were diverted. The boat had turned over, Vincent had managed to hoist Jean aboard his IMOCA PRB. “ When Jean got out of his boat off Cape Horn, he was hanging on to his rudder, I was passing by, remembers Vincent*. It was a very strong emotion, complicated to manage, something rare. All my life, I will remember Jean's look “. 24 hours later, a port outrigger damage led to the dismasting of PRB. Recovered by the Chilean army, the two sailors were then disembarked in Patagonia.
A handful of years later, Cape Horn once again stands on the route of Vendée Globe skippers. During the last edition, Yannick Bestaven recognized “ to be scared “. He explained: “ it's Nazaré continuously, you have the impression of being towed surfing with 8 to 10 meters of waves “. Some had to hang on like Maxime Sorel whose boat was lying horizontally and Boris Herrmann who had torn his mainsail.
Crossing Cape Horn offers an incredible relief that all the skippers report. “ I cried all the tears in my body, it's so much effort to get there » confided Damien Seguin four years ago. There is a before and especially an after that we learn to savor. “ Suddenly, you feel less tension, you feel lighter » recounted Armel Tripon. Et Thomas Ruyant to conclude: “ It’s crazy how brutal the transition is. Morally, I felt completely reboosted to head home “. All these sailors, like their elders, therefore cultivate a certain pride: they will forever be part of the very exclusive group of ‘cap-horniers’.
*Excerpt from 'A globe with the force of the wrist' (Filipacchi, 1990)
*Extract from “Vendée Globe, adventurers of the great South (Hugo Sport, 2024)
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