The greatest double-handed ocean challenge Barcelona World Race 2014/2015The greatest double-handed ocean challenge 55 Two crew members, 24,000 nautical miles, non-stop, without assistance and in extreme conditions “Participating in the Barcelona World Race is a privilege, an adventure and an enormous challenge. A great lesson for life.” Jean-Pierre Dick A GREAT CHALLENGE wo crew members, one boat and 24,000 nautical miles across Tthe world’s three great oceans. On 31 December in Barcelona the greatest double-handed sailing challenge will begin: the non- stop, around the world race without external assistance. Sailing over 24,000 nautical miles is in itself a challenge. Double- handed, the challenge becomes even greater. On board a boat 18 metres long, there is no escape. You share happy moments, but also have to endure stressful times together. You have to learn to manage your emotions and deal not only with your ups and downs but also those of the other crew member. You have to do this in an environment where there is no room for home comforts. On board an IMOCA 60, sailors have to be completely self-sufficient. They have only freeze-dried food, a bunk bed to sleep on, and a few changes of clothes for a three-month, non-stop sailing trip. They are totally dependent on themselves and their vessel, on a journey that takes them to the most inhospitable reaches of the Earth. Moreover, they have to deal with the harshest conditions nature can throw at them. From the notorious equatorial doldrums and the suffocating heat of the tropics, to the intense cold and dangers of the icy regions. In the Great South, you come across one squall after another, terrifying rogue waves pose a constant threat to boats and crews, and the damp seeps right through to your bones. These exhausting conditions mean that your body and mind never have time to rest. The Barcelona World Race is one of the greatest tests of physical and psychological endurance in the world. If that were not enough, this is a race, a competition in which everyone is out to win. They push their boats to the very limit, trying to go as fast as possible at all times. The IMOCA 60 is a high-tech racing yacht, designed to sail at top speed. And being a double- handed challenge, the pace is more intense than ever. Three months of non-stop extreme sailing. Yvan Zedda This is why taking part in the Barcelona World Race, part of the © IMOCA Ocean Masters World Championship, is a unique sporting, human and technological achievement. Two crew members, non- stop, pushing all the boundaries under extreme conditions. This is what is so appealing about the Barcelona World Race and why it attracts the best sailors in the world, race specialists used to sailing solo or with a crew. Two crew members, 24,000 nautical miles, non-stop, without assistance and in extreme conditions The greatest double-handed ocean challenge 3 4 The greatest double-handed ocean challenge Produced by Guilian Grenier © Distributed by CONTENTS 6 Sixteen sailors with one dream 22 Armed with the same weapons? 32 A couple with no place to escape to 42 Linked via satellite 8 The boat and the route 24 What happens if everything goes wrong? 34 Diet: it’s got to be tasty 44 Two regattas for history 10 The crews 26 All hands on deck 36 Telemedicine: unlimited cover 48 Scientific programme 18 Living inside a washing machine 28 Alone and accompanied 38 Meteorology: the strategic key 50 Educational programme 20 An endurance regatta 30 How do they sleep? 40 The chart table: the third crew member 52 The Game BARCELONA WORLD RACE MAGAZINE. Management: Neus Jordi · Editorial coordination: German de Soler · Photographs: Barcelona World Race archive · Cover photograph: Michèle Paret · Translation: Sheila Hardie-Mallol Traductors Associats · Design and layout: Cèlia Mínguez · Advertising: Barcelona World Race · Edited by Barcelona World Race in collaboration with the IMOCA Complete programme and more information available at: Ocean Masters World Championship · Produced by La Factoría Náutica · Printed by Litografía Rosés S.A. FUNDACIÓ NAVEGACIÓ OCEÀNICA BARCELONA. Edifici Consorci el Far, c/ Escar, 6-8 · www.barcelonaworldrace.org 08039 Barcelona · Tel: +34 93 557 9700 · Fax: +34 93 557 9701 · [email protected] The greatest double-handed ocean challenge 5 Gerard Marín José Muñoz Jörg Riechers Conrad Dídac Costa Colman Anna Corbella Aleix Gelabert 16 SAILORS WITH ONE DREAM Alex Thomson Guillermo Altadill Pepe Ribes 6 The greatest double-handed ocean challenge Nandor Fa To win the Barcelona World Race “The Barcelona World Race is an epic test of endurance and a great illustration of collaboration and trust between the two sailors on each yacht. It will be compelling to follow.” Elaine Bunting, Editor of Yachting World “De entre todos los “Es ist eine der valores humanos que encarna la härtesten Prüfungen Barcelona World Race, el más für Profisegler. Wir fascinante es la capacidad de werden jede Stunde estos navegantes para enfrentarse des Rennens verfolgen, a lo imprevisible.” jeden Tag.” Germán de Soler, Editor of Náutica y Yates Magazine Jochen Rieker, Editor-in-chief of Yacht “Of all the human values the Barcelona World Race “It is one of the hardest tests for represents, the most fascinating one is these sailors’ ability professional sailors. We shall be following to deal with the unexpected.” the race daily, around the clock.” “La Barcelona World Race, “Sedici velisti, otto barche, Jorge Andreu c’est le Vendée Globe à 24.000 miglia di regata intorno © deux... et donc la plus belle al mondo, zero scali. Fare Vela course du monde!” sarà sempre con voi.” Didier Ravon, Editor-in-chief of Voiles et Voiliers Michele Tognozzi, Editor of Fare Vela Photomontage: “The Barcelona World Race is the double- “Sixteen sailors, eight boats, a non-stop 24,000-mile, Sébastien handed Vendée Globe... and thus the most round-the-world race. Fare Vela will be with you all Audigane beautiful race in the world!” the way.” Bruno García Bernard Stamm Jean Le Cam Willy García The greatest double-handedEl mayor reto ocean oceánico challenge a dos 7 THE BOAT MADE-TO-MEASURE LIKE A SUIT he same but different. Each IMOCA 60 is customised to meet the requirements Tof a specific project. From architecture to engineering, and not forgetting the design of the cockpit or the interior, each yacht is different, although all comply with the essential IMOCA class rules, the maximum measurements being: 60 feet (18.29 metres) length, 4.5 metres draught and a maximum mast height of 29 metres above the waterline. With these parameters, and complying with stability regulations, each designer is free to create the boat in accordance with the crew members’ beliefs about the optimum combination of power, speed, ergonomics and reliability. The objective of the design is to achieve the best compromise between maximum speed, stability and safety. And that’s why the technology is essential: the boat is constructed from the lightest and toughest materials possible such as carbon fibre and Kevlar. However, not all crews are lucky enough to have a new boat for each regatta. Chart table An IMOCA 60 has a long life and quite a few of the teams will be competing in the Barcelona World Race in veteran boats, which have already sailed around the with bunk seat globe a few times. However, they will have been checked over thoroughly from masthead to keel, modified, adapted and fitted out with the latest technology in order to ensure they achieve the goals they were designed for: to get the sailors home safely after racing around the world. Pedestal winch PRESENTING THE IMOCA 60 WATERTIGHT BULKHEADS: prevent the boat from sinking. This watertight crash box, filled with high-density PVC is located in the bow of the yacht and can act as a bumper, absorbing any impact in the event of a collision with a floating object. BALLAST TANKS: can be filled with up to five tonnes of water, and move when tacking or in accordance with requirements. They act as mobile ballast. CANTING KEEL: its maximum canting angle is 40º on either side of the boat, using a hydraulic piston that moves the 3.5-tonne keel bulb. ASYMMETRIC DAGGERBOARDS: on the sides, Emergency hatch straight or curved, they rise and fall like a sabre. Some Canting keel boats also have vertical daggerboards on the bow. Life raft TWO RUDDER BLADES: with a wheel or tiller trans- Bulb mission, the blades can either be fixed or capable of being raised and lowered. Central Rudder blades and stern 8 El mayor reto oceánico a dos ballast tanks THE ROUTE THREE MONTHS AROUND Bowsprit THE WORLD he participants will cover approximately 24,000 nautical miles (44,448 Tkilometres) and must respect the exclusion zone established in the southernmost latitudes, which depends on the position of the icebergs on the Antarctic ice sheet. This is in order to limit the descent of the yachts and minimise risks of boats hittig ice ending up beyond the reach of rescue services. They are allowed a maximum of three technical stops, and each must last a minimum of 24 hours for repairs or medical emergencies when it is essential in order to enable the crew to complete the course safely. The winners of the first edition of the race (2007/08), Jean-Pierre Dick and Damian Foxall, on board the Paprec Virbac 2, needed 92 days, 9 hours, 49 minutes and 49 seconds, at an average speed of 11.13 knots, to complete the course.