He crossed the Atlantic alone. Without even a skipper at the helm. A trimaran that capsized off Portugal during the Jacques-Vabre Transat in 2017 was found in the Bahamas two years later. Eric Defert, his skipper, plans to repatriate him to Brest (Finistère) to retype it. The Breton navigator, still sponsored by the Drekan group which gave the boat its name, is looking for funds to offer his boat a new crossing of the Atlantic. In cargo this time.
"When I was told he was in the Bahamas I didn't believe it. For me, it sank. " Eric Defert still can't believe it. In 2017, with his teammate Christopher Pratt, he was forced to abandon his Multi50 Drekan Group after capsizing in the middle of the night between the Azores and Portugal. Due to a faulty beacon, the track of his 15-meter-long trimaran was quickly lost.
"In February 2019, a friend called me and said he saw my boat on a friend's Facebook thread," reports the skipper. I didn't believe it at first, but I immediately recognized it. He stood upside down a few meters from the reefs. "
"He has sores but it's only bodywork"
Five months later, the skipper leaves for the Bahamas to return it to the place, "with the means at hand", and assess its condition. "He has sores but there are no structural parts to redo, it's just the bodywork in a way". The navigator would now like to bring it back to Brest to restore it. The cost of its restoration is estimated at 500,000 euros, against 650,000 euros for the purchase of a similar second-hand trimaran.
Still supported by the Drekan group, which specializes in the maintenance of industrial rotating machinery, Eric Defert is looking for one or more partners to finance the return of the Mutli50 during the summer. "The flagship objective will be the Transat Jacques-Vabre 2021 in order to complete this story," says the Breton, holder of the record in 2011 for the solo crossing of the North Atlantic in a 40-foot (12 m) monohull.
Sport
Sailing: "Not traumatized", Christopher Pratt tells his post-sinking life, before setting sail again
Culture
Brittany: Sea photographer nailed to the ground, Pierre Bouras had a good time during confinement
- Brest
- Reindeer
- Ocean
- Sea
- Portugal
- Deckchair
- Jacques vabre deckchair
- Boat
- Sport
- Sail
- Bahamas