Barcelona Word Race, Groupe Bel si ritira e Virbac Paprec 3 se ne va
Barcelona World RaceEnglishIMOCA 60IncidentiLevel ClassOceanoVela 11 Marzo 2011 Zerogradinord 0
Video courtesy Barcelona World Race.
Ushuaia – A distanza di due giorni dall’arrivo a Ushuaia, località nella terra del fuoco scelta come punto di approdo per verificare lo stato della chiglia di Groupe Bel, che nelle ore passate aveva iniziato a emettere forti rumori provenienti dal fondo dello scafo, Kito de Pavant e Sébastien Audigane hanno comunicato al quartier generale della Barcelona World Race l’intenzione di ritirarsi dalla regata. L’ispezione, effettuata sulla barca una volta tirata a secco, ha permesso di accertare la delaminazione della chiglia e dello scafo in corrispondenza dell’attacco della lama di deriva: un danno troppo esteso e troppo importante per poter essere riparato in tempi brevi.
“Il nostro giro del mondo si è concluso proprio qui, dove Capo Horn segna il confine del profondo sud – ha spiegato Kito de Pavant, che solo pochi giorni fa aveva doppiato il grande Capo per la prima volta – E’ una conclusione sfortunata, giunta dopo aver attraversato tre Oceani e doppiato tre capi. La decisione di ritirarsi, per quanto inevitabile, è stata presa in accordo con il management del team e ci lascia davvero con l’amaro in bocca”.
Mentre lo shore team di Groupe Bel si sta adoperando per caricare la barca su un cargo che la riporterà in Europa, dove verrà sottoposta ai necessari lavori di riparazione, molte miglia più a nord Virbac Paprec 3 sembra aver messo a segno un break forse decisivo.
Tra ieri e oggi, infatti, l’equipaggio composto da Jean Pierre Dick e Loick Peyron ha allungato sensibilmente il passo su Iker Martinez e Xavier Fernandez, portando il vantaggio da poco più di cento miglia a oltre cinquecento. In pratica, nel corso delle ultime due giornate, Mapfre si è avvicinato troppo al centro dell’alta pressione che da qualche giorno minacciava con la sua presenza i due battistrada, e si è quasi fermato in mezzo all’Oceano Atlantico perdendo il contatto con Virbac Paprec 3, uscito indenne dalla complicata situazione e ormai giunto al traverso di Rio de Janeiro.
Se l’inseguimento a Virbac Paprec 3 pare aver subito un’inatteso stop, Mapfre non dovrebbe avere problemi nel difendere la seconda posizione. Renault Z.E., salito in terza posizione sin dal passaggio dello Stretto di Cook, è staccato da Martinez-Fernandez di oltre 800 miglia e deve guardarsi dall’attacco di Neutrogena.
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BARCELONA WORLD RACE, GROUPE BEL FORCED TO ABANDON THE RACE
[Barcelona World Race Press Release] After arriving in Ushuaia on Wednesday evening Kito de Pavant and Sébastien Audigane and their team completed the full assessment of Groupe Bel’s keel damage. The appendage itself and surrounding areas inside the hull are reported to be too damaged to allow any safe chance to repair them on site and resume racing. And so the duo has decided to abandon the Barcelona World Race and officially informed the race management this Friday at 1736hrs UTC.
The Groupe Bel Team is now organizing the return of the IMOCA Open 60 to Europe by cargo ship.
“Our round-the-world ends at the far end of the world”, said De Pavant, “an unfortunate end after two months of racing, three oceans crossed and the rounding of three capes. Stopping the race is obviously as heartbreaking for us sailors, as it is for those who share their adventures every day through what they have written and their pictures. This difficult decision was made with the support of Bel Group, which puts the safety of its men first”.
The great adventure since Barcelona
The duo’s resolution and motivation has held out to the end. They were in third position before their required 48-hour stopover in Wellington to repair their sails (gennaker and medium spinnaker), Groupe Bel then had to deal with the wrath of Atu a tropical low which the emerged from in good shape leaving Estrella Damm astern.
Just under 300 miles from Cape Horn, Groupe Bel was up to fifth place with the serious ambition of giving her all in the Atlantic battle. Only on Monday afternoon, abnormal noises coming from the keel-head alerted the dup, who noticed that it was moving forward and backward in a worrying manner.
The two following days were particularly stressful as they tried to get to Ushuaia harbor as quickly as possible, since the keel threatened to come away from the hull at any moment. Rounding Cape Horn on Tuesday, was nonetheless a poor but real consolation for the sailors, punctuating the effective crossing of three of the world’s oceans.
Bringing Groupe Bel back from Ushuaia
In Ushuaia, everything has been organized to take Groupe Bel out of the water. This operation could be carried out tomorrow during the day if the weather should permit (note that it was snowing in Ushuaia this morning). It is now a question of finding a cargo ship as quickly as possible to bring the boat back to Europe.
This is a complicated operation from the southernmost town in the world! Kito de Pavant’s aim is to get Groupe Bel back sailing as quickly as possible and to continue the IMOCA season with the European Pro Tour with crew in sight, which will leave from Istanbul on the 3rd of July.
Groupe Bel is the third IMOCA Open 60 to retire from the Barcelona World Race, after President and Foncia which both sustained broken masts.
Quotes
Kito de Pavant: “This is a difficult decision to make. We are leaving most of the Barcelona World Race course behind us. Obviously, it is frustrating, since all that was left was the Atlantic and we had hopes of really continuing the fight to win the podium. However, we are also happy to be here, safe and sound. This whole story could have turned nasty! What’s important now is to find a cargo ship quickly to return the boat to Europe, so that she can be ready for the start of the European Pro Tour in Istanbul on 3 July”.
Sébastien Audigane: “It’s not easy to abandon a race, and particularly a round-the-world! Sailing is a mechanical sport, so this kind of damage does happen. It’s part of our job. The main thing is that we are now safe! Nearly 70 days at sea, is no small thing, particularly after crossing 3 oceans. This Barcelona World Race with Kito was a magnificent experience for me. Despite these last difficult days, there is only one thing I want to do. I want to set off again and take part in the Vendée Globe. I must be a bit crazy! For the moment, we are still in Ushuaia so I can’t plan towards the future, but there are many other races I’m interested in for the rest of the season”.
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