Vendée Globe sailors experience their offshore race in extreme conditions. To the point that a team of researchers from Caen is interested in their physiological capacities, similar to those of astronauts.
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The videos posted by Vendée Globe skippers attest to this: daily life on racing boats remains extraordinary. The sailors grab a micro-nap amid the noise of the waves, the wind and the beeps of electronic equipment, to cope after a difficult night. The freeze-dried dishes serve as a balanced meal, before returning to the deck for a delicate maneuver.
“Offshore racing is an environment of extreme stress with perpetual motion, noise, high humidity to manager”, explains Gaelle Quark, researcher at the University of Caen, “it is a very interesting model to study because it is extreme“. She is working on the project Sailors, led by a team of multidisciplinary researchers, on Vendée Globe sailors. Bérénice Charrez, postdoctoral fellow and navigator, is at the origin of this research on the physiology of extreme sailors.
The video of Benjamin Dutreux (above) allows us to clearly imagine the sound environment surrounding the sailors in the race. The red light lit here promotes better sleep. A blue light will be used when you wake up, to stimulate the body. Sleep is one of the factors studied by Caen researchers.
15 Vendée Globe skippers are participating in a study on their physiology (that is to say on the functioning of their body). Yoann Richome, Sam Goodchild, Clarisse Cremer, Justine Mettraux, Boris Herrmann, Sebastien Simon, Damien Séguin, Tanguy Le Turquais, Romain Attanasio, Benjamin Ferré, Oliver Heer, Conrad Colman, Kojiro Shiraishi, Éric Bellion and Szabolcs Weores responded first to sleep questionnaires. They then carried out a battery of pre-race tests, between 24 and 48 hours before departure.
“These are balance tests, walking tests, gripping strength tests, spatial orientation tests” specifies Gaelle Quark, “A second phase will take place after arrival to compare this data..
Thirteen skippers agreed to be equipped with various sensors during the race. In their gear: heart rate sensors, connected watches, an “exoskin” (a piece of clothing filled with sensors), a sleep analyzer and glucose control patches.
“Sailors face hydration and nutrition problems” explains Gaelle Quark, researcher at the University of Caen.” The inactivity of the lower limbs coupled with phases of intense activity in the event of a maneuver is a particular feature of this sport..”
Just like the duration of the competition. “Psychologically and mentally, racing is a sort of confinement with crisis situations to manage and decisions to make. This is an interesting study model because the environment is extreme. We would like to be able to draw a parallel with the astronauts by bringing our data together.”
Sailors use split sleep in increments of 20 minutes in nap mode and 2 hours for long phases, with the aim of a complete cycle of 90 minutes. “It’s very similar to what astronauts experience in space.” note Gaelle Quark, “in the international station, schedules are very tight and time slots are dedicated to sleep.”
If we are tired, we make bad decisions.
At sea, Vendée Globe skippers must maintain their vigilance to stay attentive to the boat and the elements, which, in fact, limits their sleeping range. Samantha Davies explains it:“we can sleep thanks to the autopilot. We don’t slow down. The key to sleeping well is to trim your sails and set the alarms, if there is a problem, they will wake me up.” The skipper has set herself the goal of having at least 5 hours of sleep every 24 hours. “If we are tired, we make bad decisions.”
Can you imagine being a heavy sleeper and a top-level skipper? “There it’s a glue. Perhaps if the person has good adaptability and a good acceptance of deprivation. But it shouldn’t be easy.” We can imagine that these profiles are not heading towards solo racing. In any case, they do not seem to be part of the panel in the study. “Sailors“.
If you need eight hours of sleep, rest assured. You may not win the Vendée Globe but you will live longer. “Studies show that very short sleepers have a reduced life expectancy” recalls Gaelle Quark.
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