Ultimate. The Finistere Sebastien Josse, skipper of the maxi-trimaran Edmond de Rothschild, is the favorite of this Route du Rhum. But the skipper of Team Gitana, based in Lorient, apprehends with humility the task he has to accomplish.
Sébastien Josse, in April, you were wondering about the day when you would go alone on your Ultimate. Six months later, a week from the start of the Route du Rhum, do you feel ready to go?
I have not had 40 knots yet, but I'm more ready than in April, that's for sure. We had several months of navigation, development, and a lot of focus even ... We accumulated hours of flight, but, alone, in all, I have sailed only five days! My qualification and two or three days of sailing. There has been a little awareness of the dimension of what we are doing.
You reassured yourself?
There is still some work to do. But, at the same time, I am reassured that under certain conditions I have a certain control of the boat, and I have the capacity to go fast. After, take 40 knots, I've never done it on this boat, and if that happens, I'll take it in good sailor ... and it will allow me to pass a course.
So you think you start to know what to do, what six months ago, nobody could do ...
Yes, and I said "we", including the other Ultimate skippers. Because I was talking about the Ultimate flying alone. And as I speak, no one has ever run on Ultimate flying alone! It will be a first! François Gabart, even if he did not really fly, still has a lot of baggage alone with his world tour.
You even said that, given their mastery of their boat, Francis Joyon and Thomas Coville were the favorites ... You caught up with them?
Yes, I am more reassured on this transatlantic. I know that today we have taken important steps and we are fighting more with François Gabart and Macif.
Where is the red zone in the use of your flying trimaran?
It's hard to locate. You can be in the comfort zone at 40 knots, limit to drink your tea peacefully, if there are 20 knots of flat sea wind ... The boat lives its life. And it can be in 2.50 m of swell, 25 knots of wind, to advance to 35 knots and to be hyper stressed ... It is more the state of the sea which determines the danger. Even if, beyond 35 knots, it is necessarily tense. On the Transat Jacques Vabre, with Thomas Rouxel, we had 38 knots, once, out of Manche. It's the only time I've seen bad weather with this boat.
How are you going to handle these gales?
On these boats, when we go to bad weather, we choose its sailing configuration and it is not when we are inside that we change, in the middle. You make your choice and you live with it. Basically it goes, or it does not. You must never do kakous in bad weather.
Four years ago, on your customized MOD 70, it was already an adventure to do this Route du Rhum ...
Yes, but the big difference is that on this MOD 70, we had already sailed for three years. We had already participated in six chairs, it was pushed to 110%, we knew it on the fingertips. There was certainly the aspect of solo navigation to manage, but I did not go into the unknown. There, on this boat, we do not have enough navigation yet to reach this mastery. On the MOD, at no time did I feel overwhelmed by the machine ...
You are not a daredevil, anyway ...
No it's not my kind to put the handle in the corner to tell me: go we'll see how it goes. I do not like it…
What are your eyes on your four opponents, Armel Le Cléac'h, Francois Gabart, Thomas Coville, Francis Joyon?
Armel had a difficult season, with his four months without sailing. When you do not sail, with the boats, you have no confidence, the technique does not follow, it's difficult for him and his team ... François is different, he went around the world this winter, he has made some big changes since, which seem to be interesting in terms of performance, we still do not know about reliability. But he is formidable, he has cold blood, he likes to go fast. Thomas, technically, his boat took a slap with the arrival of the last Ultimate. We, in terms of performance and technique, there is something to do ... If all goes well, we can win the Route du Rhum. But if you fart a saffron, a foil ... Well Thomas, or Francis finish before you. I have already lived on the Transat Jacques Vabre.
Yes, but things have changed since ...
Yes, we are not at the same level of preparation. There, I think we ate our black bread over the last few months. But there is worse. I think the worst is for Banque Populaire.
A few months ago, it was François Gabart who was the favorite, today, most observers say it's you ...
All because we did two training regattas in Port-la-Forêt where it went well. It is true that we have passed a course in the performance of the boat ... but the Route du Rhum is not two regattas of 24 hours, at the cleat, where everyone shows their testosterone to show that is the strongest. Go fast, everyone knows how to do it. Attack, get on the wire, everyone can do ... But manage the course is something else ... Look at the stories of Franck Cammas, Thomas Coville, and Steve Ravussin who was to win the Route du Rhum 2002, and who capsize 500 miles from the finish ... But yes, over the last few weeks, I recognize that our team has a hyper-positive dynamic. We do not hide. If there is no damage, we make a good strategy, we have a good speed, we do what we have to do, it will run and there will necessarily be beautiful things at the arrival.
Do you imagine an arrival with a knife with Macif, or Banque Populaire near the Guadeloupean coast?
It will not happen. We can imagine everything, but I do not see that. If François is 20 miles ahead or behind, which is very little, he will just manage his boat. The worst we can do is to get out of the boat. The only thing you can do is do well what you can do. Stay lucid, make the best compromises. We can not on these boats, put in the red with the cleat, to try to come back. Unroll and adjust a gennaker is 30 minutes! If it's too late ... it's too late.
Where will the key zones be played?
It's too early to say. On Gitana 17, when you're upwind in 20 knots of wind, you're faster than Macif. If we have this for three days, we'll be 80 miles ahead of Macif. If we go downwind in the air, it will be 10 miles ahead. And after, the wind will turn again and we will take a little land etc ... Macif is light, it passes in all conditions, François knows his boat on the fingertips ... We are more typed medium-plus ... I think that, on the course it will smooth, and we will choose our routes according to the conditions where each boat is favored. And it will be played at the last transfer and the last jibe.
A victory on the Route du Rhum is not it also the victory of the router?
The router is super important. In recent times, the media has largely obscured the importance of routing by talking about foils, technique, speed ... The victory in the Route du Rhum what is it? First, a powerful, reliable boat to sail 7 days not 15, but 7 days. That's the job of your technical team and your architects. Then you need a router that gives you the best trajectory. And you skipper, you turn the cranks. We operate! We know that during X hours we have to take this road at such a speed. It is a sporting role, and behind it there is a strategic role that is not negligible. Everyone has a share in success. You should know that the routing cell operates 24 hours a day, that the guys do not sleep either, at night.
Who composes your routing cell?
Nicolas Lunven, Thomas Rouxel, Jeff Cuzon, and Olivier Douillard. Two old and two young. Some guys we know well