A “dream start”: An extremely rare event in the Vendée Globe after three days at sea

After more than three days at sea, none of the 40 skippers registered for the 10th Vendée Globe have yet reported any major damage on board their sailboat. A rarity which can be explained as much by the mild weather as by the good preparation of the teams involved.

Since the very first edition of the solo round-the-world race in 1989, abandonments and major breakages frequently occur in the first days of the journey, as the physical and technological challenge facing the bows is great.

“It’s very complicated for sailors to go from the village fair to going solo,” notes specialist journalist Didier Ravon, author of a well-documented book, “The Vendée Globe: 35 years of adventure” (Editions Gallimard Loisirs 2024).

In 1992, a gale mistreated the fleet in the heart of the Bay of Biscay. The Briton Nigel Burgess drowned while Loïck Peyron was forced to throw in the towel after noticing delamination – crumbling of the hull which could cause a leak – on his boat.

This year, with the exception of minor damages – cylinder problem for Boris Herrmann, small leak for Thomas Ruyant… – and the loss during the night from Tuesday to Wednesday of a mainsail for Clarisse Cream, everything is going well for the skippers.

Good weather

“It doesn’t really surprise me, the weather was very favorable, when you set off with the wind behind you it’s easier for everyone because the boats suffer less,” explains Didier Ravon.

Since leaving Les Sables-d’Olonne on Sunday, the sailors have benefited from very mild weather with almost exclusively downwind sailing, pushing them quietly along the North Atlantic. “If they had left with a strong gust of wind in the Bay of Biscay and with upwind tacks, they would have a greater chance of taking masts on their heads,” estimates Didier Ravon.

Like in 2008, where Kito de Pavant, Yannick Bestaven and Marc Thiercelin all three dismasted in the same place, just two days after the gun went off. The future winner Michel Desjoyeaux returned to Les Sables-d’Olonne to leave 48 hours later.

The only downside to this “dream departure” are physical problems reported by several sailors who hope to be able to heal over time: Maxime Sorel and Jingkun Xu both have to deal with an ankle injury.

“Never so well prepared”

“Traumatology becomes central with these new boats: they are so powerful, the shocks are more violent, you cannot navigate in the gas without risking hurting yourself,” says Didier Ravon. If the weather helped the fleet to “withstand the shock” of the start, the preparation of the teams has never been so thorough before a Vendée Globe, which also contributed to this faultless performance.

All entrants had to take part in a grueling qualifying course to get on the line, with three solo transatlantic races in two years. “It was essential in order to feel good on the boat, to test its limits, to know which sails we use in which conditions,” explains Violette Dorange, the youngest of the starters at only 23 years old.

“Boat-skipper couples are more and more ready,” says Didier Ravon. “The first four editions, at 11 p.m. the day before departure, we could still hear guys with chignoles (drills, Editor’s note) working on the boats. This year even the small teams finished everything on Saturday,” he says.

Up to the South Atlantic, the fleet should be relatively spared from the weather, according to the latest forecasts. And if the dreaded Doldrums will probably have its share of hazards, the first big blows are to be expected in the Indian Ocean. “It may be violent, but they will be well marinated,” judges the specialist journalist.

A Vendée Globe without any abandonment would be unheard of. Of the 200 attempts to complete the world tour since the creation of the race, 86 have failed.