Defending champion Yannick Bestaven led a flotilla of 40 yachts into the Atlantic Ocean on Sunday as the 10th edition of the solo, non-stop around-the-world Vendee Globe race got under way.
The yacht race started from Les Sables-d’Olonne, with tens of thousands of people lining the docks and shore to wave goodbye to Bestaven and the other intrepid sailors.
Bestaven won the last edition of the race, completing the 24,300 nautical mile-course — that’s 45,000 kilometres for the land-lubbers — like a seaborne Phileas Fogg in 80 days, three hours and 44 minutes in 2021.
All 40 skippers that will start this tenth edition will be eager to outwit and outsail their opponents and snag the 200,000-euro ($214,000) winner’s cheque. They know, however, that the main challenge will be a communal one — the sea.
Occasionally she lends a helpful hand allowing the 60-foot Imoca monohulls to glide on their foils at near 40 knots; at other times she will rise like a ferocious monster the size of a mountain ready to crash down and crush the boats below.
“I’m in great shape. I haven’t slept too much, but you know what it’s like on the eve of the start!” said Bestaven.
“I’m really happy to be here. The weather conditions are pretty good. We’re going to get off to a gentle start. It’s a change from some of the Vendee Globe’s we’ve experienced. I’m delighted to see all these beautiful boats and this fine line-up here in Les Sables d’Olonne.”
Bestaven was in no doubt about what lay ahead.
“It’s going to be a great adventure and a great race,” he predicted. “For the start, there’ll be plenty to get on with.
“We know that the wind will strengthen in the Bay of Biscay. We should get out to the wind fairly quickly and have it downwind, so we’re not going to complain.
“There’s always a bit of stress. You never know how things are going to turn out. It’s a new story to write. Of course there’s the stress of saying goodbye to our life on land, to all our friends and family, but there’s also the stress of the departure itself.”
Everest of the Seas
Every skipper is well aware of the dangers that lie in wait in the ‘Everest of the Seas’.
One skipper, Nigel Burgess, died in the second edition in 1992-93 while Mike Plant perished while crossing the Atlantic to reach the French start point for that race. Four years later the Canadian Gerry Roufs disappeared, his boat turning up on the coast of Chile six months later.
Four years ago Kevin Escoffier came within a whisker of joining them, his boat snapped in two. He was lucky, picked up by veteran Jean Le Cam who at 64 will be the oldest of this year’s competitors.
“The excitement is building now, but it’s going to be especially strong in the canal,” said Le Cam.
“We’re here for the public and the public are here for us: it makes a great team! I’m pretty calm. The weather forecast for this start will require a degree of ‘zenitude’.”
British skipper Sam Davies is one of six women entering the race, each of them looking to emulate Ellen MacArthur who remains the only woman ever to make the Vendee podium when she came second in 2000-01.
Another is first-timer Violette Dorange who, at 23, is the youngest skipper in the race.
“I’m so happy to be here,” said Dorange. “There are lots of emotions and I just want to enjoy it.
“D-Day is always a bit stressful, but I’m storing up all the energy here for the difficult times ahead.”
She is one of 15 skippers making their Vendee debuts. The others include 35-year-old Jingkun Xu, who only saw the sea for the first time at the age of 12 and is now the first Chinese sailor to take on the Vendee Globe.
The race started life in 1989, set up by French yachtsman Philippe Jeantot. Of the 13 boats that started only seven finished with another Frenchman Titouan Lamazou winnings in 109 days.
The French influence remains as strong as ever with the race still waiting its first ‘foreign’ winner.
“I hope that in the future there will be more skippers from my country taking part in the incredible event that is the Vendée Globe!” said Xu.