It is clear that after more than 66 days at sea, our solo sailors in the tenth edition of the Vendée Globe have turned into real chatterboxes, who never stop telling us little stories! But the funniest thing in the story is that very often he apologizes, realizing at the end of the recorded message that they expressed themselves a little too much, but at least, what do you want, the the bag is empty… and we must admit, we love hearing them confess!
There was obviously some in stock in the bag of the day of Romain Attanasio (Fortinet-Best Western, 14th), who managed to extricate himself along the Brazilian coast to finally leave company with this large group of adversaries returned from the devil Vauvert! Be careful, he does not claim victory, “for me the justice of the peace will be the Doldrums”, tells us the person concerned, who knows something about it as a well-experienced sailor:
“It's already happened to me to pass it without stopping, and the last Vendée Globe, on the way back up, I was stuck for three days! So I don't get excited! But I'm happy! It started from a somewhat alone strategy, the others did something else… When you see Jean Le Cam going to the right and you going to the left, you need a little confidence, but it's over! Now once again, the trade winds are so disturbed that anything can happen, we'll see! » Romain Attanasio, FORTINET – BEST WESTERN.
Photo sent from the Fortinet – Best Western boat during the Vendée Globe sailing race on January 16, 2025© Photo by skipper Romain Attanasio / Vendée Globe
“I was screaming with joy on the boat”Still, it's a double relief for the skipper of Fortinet-Best Western, who in addition to having escaped, managed to resolve his hook problems which had earned him a little climb… Come on, we can't resist sharing with you some 100% authentic sailor's moaning, as pure as we get it:
“Hooking is a nightmare! In fact I sent the big gennak and I couldn't lower it, I spent three days with it, I went up the mast for the first time and I couldn't find what was wrong because everything was clear up there, in fact the big gennak is at the very top and when you go up with the J0 halyard you are 30 cm lower, so you can't see over the hook, I tried again, tried again, it didn't work, so I tried again with the big gennak and it was good because in any case I needed it in the soft, so I told myself that in the front, I would go back up, but obviously it was bullshit because in the front the sea was getting horrible, so I was really starting to freak out and tell myself that I was such an idiot for not having done it before… And then I tried again once, twice, three times, a little twisted, and then it came loose. There, you can't know the happiness I felt, I was screaming with joy on the boat, it was crazy! So I put everything down, I've never had so much fun putting away a sail! And in fact, it's not the hook that's the problem, it's one of the little pieces above the protection that got stuck in the hook. It's not the hook's fault! So I was very reverent! So yes, I have a boat again 100%! » Romain Attanasio, FORTINET – BEST WESTERN. So, are you enjoying yourself as much as we are, imagining this little guy completely atomized with fatigue who screams with happiness in the middle of nowhere, with at best a few fish as his only witnesses? But don't think that the worries end there, since a few hours later, at the front, there was literally fire on board! It's the fault of the engine start button wiring which, by rubbing on the carbon, caused a short circuit! “Fortunately, everything works, but I was in the front, putting tape to insulate each wire, it was rubbish,” tells us the sailor from Haute-Savoie, who still found this third round of the “particularly committed” world! “There are times when we have to slow down just to go to the toilet, that’s where we are! “, he finally blurted out, while his routings ended at the same time as his message… “That tells me 14 days but an arrival with 50 knots of wind is not attractive at the moment, come on, we'll see! », concludes Romain!“That was really tough on morale! »Honestly, we're taking it again, right? That’s good, we have plenty to spare, since Benjamin Dutreux (Guyot Environnement – Water Family, 11th) had also kept some under the pedal, he who has just come out of the Doldrums neck and neck with Clarisse Crémer (L 'Occitane en Provence, 12th) and closely followed by Samantha Davies (Initiatives-Cœur, 13th). An escort that he would have done well without before entering the trade winds highway, he who had hoped for a moment to take a break in this always thorny passage:
“With my shift in the East, I managed to have more room to slalom between the clouds and I had good visibility of the thing, I was quite happy! Until one last cloud which I underestimated a little, I thought I was almost out and finally I was stopped for 5 hours, so it was really hard for morale! And as a result we left almost tied…” Benjamin Dutreux, GUYOT ENVIRONNEMENT – WATER FAMILY.What will next look like for the Ogien skipper, who has just seen his friend Sébastien Simon (Groupe Dubreuil, 3rd) sail up the Sables d'Olonne channel in the early morning? Good question, especially since there are a few parameters that can change everything…
Sometimes, you see, boating is a bit like trying to be on time for a playdate with a stubborn toddler. However, for this trio a little behind the leading group now led by Sam Goodchild (VULNERABLE, 4th), timing will be essential: will they manage to be fast enough to sneak behind the big depression and take a shortcut on along Portugal, upwind and in the sea, certainly, but almost on a direct route? Or will they have to struggle to put on socks, change the kid's menu three times, and negotiate the color of the hat along the way? Clearly for those who are not (or no longer) young parents: if they are too late, they will have to wait for the next train, and in this case make a big tour of the parish from the West while waiting to getting pushed by the next depression. Morality? “I don’t really know what sauce we’re going to be eaten with! For now I'm focusing on going fast! », Tells us Benjamin Dutreux, who still had some additional activities:
-“I had to tinker with something on my starboard rudder recently, and today I did a lot of sewing! I dropped the J3 into the water, I sewed a good part of the scrap braid, because there is a good chance that we will need it, so I preferred to ensure my gluing with a few stitches! Nothing that really slows me down, other than algae! Sargassum!” Benjamin Dutreux, GUYOT ENVIRONNEMENT – WATER FAMILY. Because yes, the offshore sailor has many hobbies! And when there really, definitely is nothing left to do while waiting for the wind, then we can do like Louis Duc (Fives Group – Lantana Environnement, 26th), who also had a lot on his plate:
“During the three days that have just passed, I found the time a little long because we saw the others leave and put four or five days in our faces. And that’s a bit tough on morale! But hey, it's accepted. So I started my library, which I hadn't opened since the beginning, and I just read two great books! » Louis Duc, Fives Group – Lantana Environnement. So your predictions, what does a loner with low morale read? A little Seneca to philosophize? A Tolkien to escape to other Counties? Rimbaldian poetry to reconnect with beauty? But no, you're not there: “The first is Aurélien Ducroz who shares his journey from ski champion to skipper, the other is the ascent of Maxime Sorel to Everest, which I just just finished! Stories of the sea and the mountains! »
We hope in any case that this will have boosted the morale of the Normandy skipper, who the South Atlantic seems to have turned away like a nightclub bouncer! Blocked by the anticyclone with Sébastien Marsset (Foussier, 24th) Kojiro Shiraishi (DMG Mori Global One, 25th), Violette Dorange (Devenir, 27th) and Arnaud Boissières (La Mie Câline, 28th), the rookie was unable to follow his little comrades in front, the fault in particular of a wardrobe which is fading:
“We were perhaps a little cautious in the depression where Conrad Colman was very quick and managed to position himself well for the future. When I had to send back the canvas, the problem was that I didn't have any left. Out of eight sails at the start, I only have four valid! So I was forced to sail at very low speed, at a crucial moment to pass this anticyclone. » Louis Duc, Fives Group – Lantana Environnement.
Photo sent from the Freelance.com boat during the Vendée Globe sailing race on January 4, 2025.© Photo by skipper Guirec Soudée
And now all we have to do is wait to see the barrier rise… But even if there is reason to be angry, the advantage of our sailors is that they do not hold grudges. With the ocean at least. And once their bag is completely emptied, they find their eternal positivity. “I think I will quickly find my feet again, there are still three good weeks at sea, and I fully intend to make the most of it,” concludes Louis Duc. At the same time I want to arrive quickly, and at the same time we are still experiencing something great and I almost dread the return to reality! » Do you mean that at one point everything stops and there will be nothing more to tell? So we send back a few messages to enjoy it even more, and continue to share it with you. Find our weather analysis of the race every day with METEO CONSULT Marine in our special report Vendée Globe.
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