ROUTE DU RHUM destination guadeloupe 2018
Enter the adventure with 4myplanet & Alexia !
www.alexiasailingteam.com www.marineland.fr ©4myplanet EDITORIAL
That's it! This year is the big adventure. The realization of my dream of a little girl. What luck! In reality, it's not luck but a lot of hard work to get to the starting line of this legendary race. The Route du Rhum - Desti- nation Guadeloupe 2018. I would like you all to embark with me in this crazy sea adventure. But as the rules of a solo race forbid it (a little), I created especially for you this webmag. To make you mouth water (salty one), to make you want to follow me, to share my enthusiasm. Some will explore it with their teacher, others with their parents or, just at home alone if you feel like it... I wanted to tell you a little about my job as a skipper and what happens on board. Also, what I see around me. And make you want, one day, to realize your own dreams. Before boarding, one last very important thing, but you already know it I'm sure. The oceans are fragile, even if they are the source of life for all the inhabitants of the Blue Planet. In these few pages, I explain why you must love and preserve them. You too, at your level and like me, can help protect your favorite play- ground whether at sea or on land.
Oh yes, I was going to forget! On the last page of this magazine, you will meet Defibrilathor. Say “Hello!” to it from me.
Happy reading to you, the youth of today and my future heroes! Have fun and send me your drawings and questions to [email protected] ;-)
Alexia Barrier SOMMAIRE
4myplanet, the project, the missions
Biography of Alexia
The Route du Rhum History and race
The race
The different boats of the race
An Imoca with a magnifying glass
Life at sea, live in autonomy what is it?
Megafauna
The riches of Oceans
Marine Pollution
Do you know Defibrilathor 112? 4myplanet, the project, the missions
We all keep in us the memory of the ocean ... And stingy eyes. Hi! You know that the life has appeared in the oceans, it was ... some time ago1. Fed by the water running off the ground, the primordial ocean was less concentrated in salt than it is today. You have kept in your body an indelible memory of your oceanic origin: salt in your blood, your cells, your tears. That's why the sea stings your eyes: it has become, today, a little more concentrated in salt2. Thus, far and so close descendants of the sea, we are all little bits of ocean.
We are all little bits of ocean! Wherever we live, whatever we eat, we depend directly on it. Imagine. Covering 71% of the earth's surface, the oceans generate most of our oxygen and regulate our climate. If they deteriorate or break down, it is scary. Only 230,000 marine species have been documented to date. And we estimate that 2 million species living in water are still unknown to us. In short, we know almost nothing about this immense, infinite world. Having become capable of damaging it (warming, pollution, acidification, overfishing, etc.), the human beings are more than ever responsible for the state of the seas and oceans. Mankind in general and every individual in particular must take care of it today. THE GREATEST CARE. That's why I founded ... 4myplanet.
4myplanet3, for the preservation and knowledge of the oceans. I founded the 4myplanet association in 2009 to make people want to love and protect the oceans. The four pillars of 4myplanet are Sport, Education, Science and Technology. Thus, in 2010, was launched the first boat able to race the Vendée Globe equipped with a scientific laboratory. During five months of solo sailing, the boat’s thermosalinograph4 retrieved millions of data. They have fed scientific laboratory research and have helped to understand our ocean. Meanwhile, the adventures of and samples taken by 4myplanet Tour, have been followed by more than a thousand children on 3 continents.
1 Less than a billion years after the formation of the Earth, exactly 3.8 billion years ago, appeared in the primor- dial ocean the very first unicellular living beings, the prokaryotes (which still exist!). 2 30 grams per liter on average for the ocean, 9 g / l for our tears. 3 The “4” of 4myplanet is a word game in English: for ("for") and 4 ("four") are pronounced almost the same. This "4" also refers to the four pillars of the association. 4 An instrument that takes data on salinity and surface temperature of water
Biography of Alexia dreams.» after my ill go I w « Hello, I am Alexia. I am 38 years old and I was born at the edge of the Mediterranean which is a bit like my second mother.I floated and sailed in its blue waters since the age of 3, thanks to my parents who had a small 6 meters sailing boat. One beautiful day of my 12 years anni- versary that I will never forget, I saw on TV an oceanic sailing race. I had a flash. I suddenly had a clear awareness of what I wanted to do with my life: sail racing around the world. Since then, I have worked happily and tirelessly to achieve this dream of a little girl.
Sailing instructor at 15, I worked in the yachting industry as a co-skipper or a sailor; not to mention conti- nuing my studies in sports management at the UFR-STAPS in Nice. Quickly, I became a professional navigator. After racing at the world level in Match Racing5, I started solo offshore racing. In all, I have already traveled more than 220,000 miles6 around the world, including fourteen transatlantic races including four solo races. My most important racing boats were in the Mini 6.50 (the smallest offshore racing l tm boat), the Figaro 2 (the most demanding single-handed series 4.h 14 r- in the world), the 60-foot (18 meters it starts to be a big toy) ie rr a b in monohull and multihull races. - ia x le a / r f In 2009, I was comfortable enough on my boat to "open / m o c my eyes" to the world around me. So, I created 4mypla- . m a e net and, in the process, I became the first woman to t g in il a attempt a solitary world tour for the benefit of s ia x science. My plan was that combining sailing and le .a commitment to the planet would benefit both. w w
w / And it worked. I sensitized thousands of "little :/ s p t t beings" among the most important for the h :
s t future of the World, you, children, my n e m heroes. And to crown the adventure, I e v ie h had great results like the podium on c a f o the Transat AG2R 2014! t is l y M
5 Format of races around buoys like the America's Cup. 6 Sailors count their distances in nautical miles. 1 nautical mile = 1,852 km. Alexia sailed 354,000 kilometers, almost 9 times around the Earth (40,075 km). In the same way, the speed of a boat is not measured in km / h but in knots. 1 knot = 1 mile / hour = 1.852 km / h. 4myplanet, Alexia's sailboat reaches 11 knots when it rises to the wind and can exceed 20 knots when it is in the open sea. The origin of the phrase "spin 11 knots" comes from the days of the wooden navy when a rope with knots was allowed to slip between the fingers overboard to estimate the speed of the ship.
The Route du Rhum, history and races
History of a mythical race: 40 years of drinks, magic and freedom. Forty years ago, the Route du Rhum was born. The advertiser and impresario Michel Etevenon did not know much about sailing, but he knew how to make the show and do the innovation. While in 1976 the Briti- sh limited the maximum size of the boats for "their" transatlantic races to 17 meters, he imagines in response a transatlantic race without limit. The main motto would be: open to all, pro and amateur, mono and multi- hulls, etc. And the only rule: no motor. This "race of freedom" would connect the Breton city of Saint-Malo to the Guadeloupe city of Pointe-à-Pitre. Just born, the race already becomes a legend. The first edition, which starts in November 1978, is marked by its dramatic intensity. Not only did Mike Birch of Canada win with 98 seconds advantage after 23 days at sea on his tiny trimaran against a large monohull, but it is also during this first edition that the famous sailor Alain Colas disappears at sea on Manureva. The tragedy will inspire Serge Gainsbourg to write a song which live now in our memory. Just born, the race is already a legend. And all subsequent editions will have their share of great deeds and magic. Dante storms that decimate the fleet as in 1986 or 2002. First victory of a woman across all categories in 1990 with Florence Arthaud "the fiancée of the Atlantic". Double victory of the Swiss Laurent Bourgnon in '94 and '98. Gigantism of the trimarans of more than 30 meters in 2010. An incredibly popular success with more than 2 million and a half spectators in 2014 ... But why ... The Route "du Rhum"? Land of sugar cane since the seventeenth century, Guadeloupe is a land of the brown rum, molasses and agricultural. Leaving every four years from the legendary corsair city of St Malo, the race follows precisely the route of the big wooden three masts looking for the precious beverage in the French West Indies. On arrival in Pointe-à-Pitre, the first welcome gift extended to the solo sailor who docks is a glass of white rum flavored with lemon juice and sugar, the ti-punch (to be consumed with moderation of course ... HM hm !). A story of sophisticated prototypes led by sacred characters! Sailing alone, going up the difficult English Channel and crossing the capricious Bay of Biscay in the middle of the autumn, the Route du Rhum imposes having courage and surpassing oneself. The prospect of facing storms, right ahead, is quite likely. In '86, '94 and 2002, less than half of the boats arrived safely. This long sprint stretches overclothed and lightened as much as boats as well as the organisms of the skippers. Slee- ping or even eating alone with such a stress level becomes a challenge, especially in areas where cargo traffic is intense. Doing the Route du Rhum is already an adventure in itself... 2018 a record fortieth anniversary If no one knows if the 7 days and 15 hours of Loïck Peyron in 2014 will be beaten, we know however that the record participation of the previous edition will be erased from the tablets. Initially planned for 100 partici- pants, the number of entries will finally be 124. Already historical. The race Virtually unchanged in 11 editions! After having been admired by several hundred thousand enthusiasts on the Saint Malo pontoons, it is very early in the morning on the day of departure that the boats leave the corsair city through the locks. They do rounds on the sea all morning waiting for the cannon shot to fire. The starting line is located in front of the Pointe du Grouin in Cancale. To allow tens of thousands of spectators perched on the cliffs to enjoy the start of the race, a race mark in front of Cape Fréhel is left to starboard by the sailboats that come brushing against the rocks. For the same reasons, the island of Guadeloupe must be left to the portside that is to say that the boats must go around the north and west before crossing the finish line in front of Pointe-à Pitre. Thanks to the GPS7, you will be able to follow every moment the position of the boats on the cartography of the official site of the race. http://www.routedurhum.com then click on "cartography".
Saint-Malo UNITED France States m 0 k 56 6
Africa Pointe-à-P itre
South America It's still far dad? ... Rum in numbers. To earn a glass of rum on arrival, the skipper must travel a minimum theoretical distance of more than 6,560 kilometers (the orthodrome). In reality, the weather always forces to lengthen this ideal distance. Because the goal is not to elegantly make the shortest way, but to arrive before the others. And in this game, modern carbon machines put a lot of spanking to old aluminum boats. In forty years, the crossing time has been divided several times from 23 to less than 8 days! Thus, to reach a stronger wind, avoid that it is right into the face or slide to a less rough sea, the trajectories followed by the sailors often lengthen several hundreds of kilometers compared to the great loop8!
7 GPS: Global Positioning System is a set of 24 satellites sent and controlled by the North American Army in the mid-1970s. Since 2000, it has been open to the public free of charge. It allows you to position anywhere on the Earth. It is very important for the safety of the sailors, ensured by the organization of the race and sailors’ tracking by the fans on the Internet in real time. 8 The great loop is the shortest line between two points on a SPHERE (like the Earth). On a flattened map of the earth (a "projection" like our road maps), the orthodrome draws a visible curve as soon as the distance is of an important magnitude. The strict straight line (sailboat navigating in the constant direction, for example) between two points on the surface of a sphere (called the loxodrome) is not the shortest distance. To reach St Malo in Pointe à Pitre, it is even 250 km more. The different boats of the race
Prototypes that have class! All sailboats over 39 feet9 are accepted. Forty years ago, before the first edition, we already knew that a bigger boat (longer, wider) was going faster than a boat of a smaller size. But what was discovered in 1978, which even amazed some specialists, is that a boat with two or three hulls with a light drift was faster than a monohull with a heavy keel, even much larger and a lot more “clothed” ... Thus, in 1982 at the second edition, the organizer has created different racing categories so that we do not compare the apples with oranges. From then on there will be one winner per category. 2018 edition: six categories or "classes" of boats compete. IMOCA10: They are 60 feet (18.28 m) long. These ultra-sophisticated prototype monohulls know almost no limit. Sometimes equipped with foils11, they represent the nec-plus ultra of the open sea: it is they who participate in the Vendée Globe. It is to this category that belongs 4myplanet aka the Penguin (his birth name). Built in 1998, it is one of the oldest at the starting line. He is truly a legend of pon- toons. 2018 edition: six categories or "classes" of boats compete.
Class40 : the same idea as IMOCA, but these smaller 40-foot (12.18 m) mono- hulls also have more gauge restrictions: an attempt to limit the budgets and allow more sailors to participate.
Ultimate : the fascinating "monsters" of the offshore races, 24 meters minimum often more than 30 meters. Sailing and driving solo on these huge flying trima- rans with foils is in itself a sweet madness. But the sailors who lead them are among the best ... You find François Gabard and Armel Le Cléac'h, the last two winners of the Vendée Globe.
Multi50 : the same idea as the Ultimate, but these multihulls are limited to 50 feet (15.24 m); light and fast, they are the real dragonflies of the seas
Classe Rhum Mono et Classe Rhum Multi : old racing boats that are no longer competitive but have made the history of this transatlantic. They are having fun fooling around with each other, as in the good old days. Some are historical monuments, true legends of the sailing race.
9 39 feet = 11 m 88: we will not cross the Atlantic on a nutshell anyway! The foot is an English measurement that is used in marine. It is also, with the cubit or the finger, one of the oldest units of measurement used by humanity. 10 International Monohull Open Class Association: "Anything not expressly prohibited is allowed". 11 Foil or hydrofoil. This English term comes from French "leaf": it is a profiled wing that bathes in the water, allows to straighten the boat and take out all or part of it out of the water. The friction and the resistance of the hull being diminished, the speed increases. We are talking about sailboats that "fly". An Imoca w ith a magnifying glass
My "4myplanet" aka "The P enguin" A legendary boat, that’s all "In February 2018, I fell in love with" The Penguin ". Oh yes, before you get confused, I must explain that racing boats often French Republic have two names. First, there is the official birth name for Mari- Name : Le Pingouin time Affairs. The great navigator Catherine Chabaud who had 4myplanet launched the boat in 1998 named it "The Penguin". Then there Nickname : is the stage name, the one given to the boat for the race and 1998 which is usually the name of the main sponsor. For a racer, Born in : aged 20, the Penguin has a very long and very beautiful story IDFRA4MYPLANET<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<0000123456 ... It is one of those extraordinary boats that do not want to 7891011121314LEPINGOUIN< A Homeric history Since I bought it from Romain Attanasio who finished fifteenth of the Vendée Globe 2016-2017, the Penguin is called 4myplanet. In my turn, I intend to live with her the extraordinary adventures: Route du Rhum 2018, Vendée Globe 2020 ... But before that, here is in a few lines the epic of the little Penguin. Hang on, it's an odyssey worthy of Homer! With his first mother, Catherine Chabaud, she wins the entry of the famous Fast- net Race then finishes second in the Transat Jacques-Vabre (in doubles) in 1999. After having dismasted at the Vendée Globe 2000, she succeeds her first world tour in 2003, the Around Alone - she finishes 3rd, under 1 the name of Tiscali. With her next dad, Marc Thiercelin, our valiant 2 Pingouin successfully completes the 2004 English Transat but abandons 3 again halfway on the Vendée Globe. In 2011, although outdated but thanks to the talent of the American skipper Brad Van Liew, she 9 7 managed to win the prestigious race around the world, the Velux 5 6 8 Oceans! For his endearing project, Initiatives Coeur, Tanguy de Lamotte 5 also gives her 2nd youth between 2012 and 2015. It allows her to finally 4 finish this sacred Vendée Globe for which she was originally conceived fifteen years earlier. On its way, Pingouin bravely won her second 1. The mainsail Vendée Globe with Romain Attanasio in 2017 ... OUF! After all these 2. The mast years of racing, all these waves in the hull and these storms in the sails, 3. The genoa after a score of transatlantic and round the world races (a record?), we 4. The keel would gladly propose her a well-deserved retirement but, hey hey ... 5. The rudders Well what do you know? She asks for more! As you will have noticed, 6. The hull she never ran the Route du Rhum and me neither! I am so happy, confi- 7. The drifts dent and proud that we have chosen to team up now. 8. The bowsprit We are on fire! " 9. The coach roof Life at sea, live autonomously what is it? No supermarket on the horizon ... Offshore life is very simple: you just cannot go to the supermarket to buy what you miss. So, you have to plan everything ... and preserve everything. Or even repair, invent, tinker with everything. In a word, you have to be AU-TO-NO-MOUS. This word is not here by chance, it comes from the Greek Autos: oneself and Nomos: the rule. It's you who makes the rules of the game. It's up to you to adapt to it. An exciting game that makes you grow and look at things differently. The planet is like a boat on the scale of the universe ... When you disembark at the pier after having wasted your water, your food and torn your sails, you unders- tand that our planet is exactly like a boat launched into space. For our ship Earth, there will be no interstellar garage to repair what we break. No galactic supermarket to buy a species of animals, plants or natural resources that we would have destroyed and that would suddenly be sorely lacking ... In short, to sail is to understand that we must take care of everything. Otherwise, one day or another you are stuck, and the punishment is not funny, not funny at all. Ambience of the Medusa Raft to start and Titanic to finish. The w ind, the sails ... The w eather. The sailboat's engine is not its diesel engine. It's just good at carrying out the maneuvers in the port and getting you out for a few hours, at best a few days, from a critical situation12. No. The real engine of the boat are the sails, the ropes, the mast, the boom, the stays, what is called rigging. And you better take care of them. If a sail is torn, it must be repaired (by sewing or gluing). Being autonomous means predicting the wind and the state of the sea (it is the waves that do the greatest damage on a sailboat, rarely the wind itself), knowing how to adjust the sails and doing maneuvers without breaking anything. Today, the sailor receives the weather information on his computer via satellite communications. On the Route du Rhum, one is even entitled to the help of a "router": a standby team on the shore that focuses on the strate- gy, weather forecasts and advises the sailor. Before that, the wind was "estimated" through a bundle of indices: the barometer, the direction of the swell, the shape and order of the clouds, the pilot-charts (statisti- cal map of the average winds in an area) and some signs sometimes a little ... magical13 12 Even putting huge tanks on board, you could not go around the world without refueling. Thus, the only boat which is able to go around the world non-stop and without assistance with an average speed of more than 40 km / h is ... A sailboat! 13 The legendary sailor Bernard Moitessier says he avoided a terrible storm by obeying dolphins who, in a sharp turn, advised him to change course ...! Life at sea, live autonomously what is it? Energy. Is not there a small problem with the phrase "solo navigation"!? Who holds the bar while the only sailor sleeps, eats, changes course or checks the weather? The autopilot of course! In the 1960s, we used a regulator of pace, an ingenious thing that pushed on the rudder while checking the wind ... It was OK for the small sailing ships which dragged along. But on the big boats which go (very) fast, it's too fragile and always late. Today, it takes a little artificial intelligence: a computer that not only reacts instantly but ANTICI- PATES the ACCELERATIONS of the boat, the wind and the sea. The autopilot is so important that most solitaires (it soothes their solitude) give him a loving name. On 4myplanet, for example, I called my autopilot: Raymond Barre ... But to run this autopilot, you need electricity. A lot of electricity. It is stored in batteries which, miraculously, are charged by inexhaustible and abundant sources on a boat: the sun, via solar panels, and the resistance of the water to the speed of the boat via a hydrogenerator (a turbine which turns in water). All of this MUST be enough to provide you with all the energy you need to power the autopilot and keel cylinders, water maker, lighting and electronics14. You can also run the diesel engine (disconnected from the propeller!) But we tend to do without it because it is ...? 15 To drink and to eat. Huuuuuuuuge frustration for the ocean sailor: being surrounded by water and risking dying of thirst. The high salt content of seawater actually causes more dehydration than hydration. So, you have to either store fresh water. Or hope to recover rainwater. Or produce drinkable water from seawater. Via a membrane system, it is the job of the water maker. Again, it takes a lot of electricity to run the machine. The one who ventures to use a manual desalinator, either loves his pain or is called Hercules. For a dinner it's another matter. If you've ever slept outside after a day of walking in the mountains, you know exactly what is obses- sing you at the bivouac: food! Eating is vital during an adventure. Doing it with pleasure is just as essential. For the sailor, the dilemma is the following: if he embarks tasty simmered canned food, he enjoys it(pleasure), but he weighs down his boat and loses the race (sadness). There is a solution of freeze-dried meals (all the water is extracted from the dishes prior and it is enough to rehy- drate them to consume them) but one gets tired of it, the pleasure is lesser and the performance in the race suffers. I opted for a subtle compromise. A base of lyophilized food of good quality but also some "gastronomical" dishes to cheer up. What is certain is that one must manage to eat varying the sweet and the salty. Already we sleep little. If moreover we eat badly ... 14 If you do not spend your time playing on your screen while eating ice cream (freezer). 15 POLLUTANT! Life at sea, live autonomously what is it? To sleep. We talked about the engine of the boat, now, let’s not forget to talk about the engine of the sailor. The solo sailing race is the one of the most complete sports. It's a bit like playing box and chess for 15 days. If you sleep too much or not enough, you lose both. It is only the experience that allows you to mix a subtle sauce between quantity and quality of your presence on the deck (to steer, adjust the sails) and the chart table (to analyze the weather and the trajectories of your adversaries, devise a strategy). In any case, we sleep little. Very little. Less than 4 hours a day. And by small periods (about 20 minutes). The art is to sleep at the right time: when your body claims it and before it's too late to do it. Forbidden to "burn oneself". In cases of severe lack of sleep, sailors may hallucinate. Often, it is a character who invites himself on board. But once, I saw a huge mountain come out of the water in front of my boat, as in a Japanese manga ... And which smiled at me! ZZ ZZZZ ZZ Z Z Z Mayday Mayday. Good. Let's be clear. We do not want to talk about it. Yet it is by preparing for the worst that we will avoid it, the worst. The worst on board for a solita- ry sailor? A fall in the water. It's just FORBIDDEN. So, we focus. As soon as it is too unsteady, the harness is my best companion. Then there is a struc- tural damage to the ship or the sailor. A waterway and an injury are the two situations that we are also trained to repair. One day of Vendée Globe, Bertrand de Broc had to sew his own tongue with a thread and a needle ... Brrrr and yuck. In all honesty, if I promise you not to arrive to this, I gua- rantee you that I am ready to face everything! The megafauna One of my great joys (almost guaranteed!) during the Route du Rhum, it will be to observe the fauna that populates the North Atlantic Ocean. And specially to watch the dolphin dance. They love to accompany 4myplanet by playing in her bow wave. Pursuits, jumping contests and even flips on lucky days, the show given by this happy company always breaks my loneliness. If the dolphin is easily observable from the surface and comes to hunt on the surface, if it is the more curious that the man, I do know that in the air or under the surface, a multitude of other fascinating species exist. Here are some of my favorites whose profiles are certified by Marineland's teaching team! And yes, if I'm a specialist in boats, Marineland is in animals so it was normal to ask them! DO YOU KNOW THESE ANIMALS? Connect each animal number to a letter to find its name. (You will find the answers at the bottom of the page) Go to the next page to know in more detail all these animals that I could meet during my crossing! 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 A. Great Cormorant F. Moonfish or mola B. White-breasted surgeonfish G. Cod C. Harbor porpoise H. Bottlenose dolphin D. Black P ilot whale I. Black-headed Gull E. Gray seal - 2F - 4D - 6G - 8I 9-C 8-I 7-B 6-G 5-A 4-D 3-H 2-F 1-E The megafauna The mammals The bottlenose dolphin, do not flip for Flipper! CThis marine mammal is just amazing. Very curious, he knows how to live close to the humans, some dolphins even look for our company. We were able to study it at leisure. Whether in captivity or in a natural state, what we have discovered is extraordinary. It's impossible to tell you everything here, but here's a short list of scientifically proven facts. Do not hesitate to do your own research if the subject fascinates you! There are 36 species of dolphins that have colonized all the seas and oceans of the world up to the freshwater rivers. "But the craziest thing about the dolphin is that it orientates itself by sound or ultrasound! Incredible but true ! These sounds emitted by his melon (his big round forehead) are bouncing off what is in front of it: an object, a prey. Then these sounds return to the dolphin at the level of its lower jaw which will decrypt the information and send it to the brain. From there, an image is created ... What also fascinates us humans is its intelligence. In some ways, this marine mammal has abstraction abilities (solving mathematical problems, etc.) superior to those of the chimpanzee. We also saw female dolphins use sponges on their rostrum to search for food on the sandy bottoms without hurting themselves. Few animals are able to use a tool, or to make one "and then transmit this technique to their little ones"! Indeed, the dolphin is very sociable. He is able to achieve prowess’s through mutual aid and communication. Several cases of wounded individuals (and divers in distress!) have been documented where a dolphin supported the individual coming up to the surface to help him breathe and regain his strength. To "discuss", dolphins use a rich range of sounds called vocalizations that is produced by a system of cavities between the lungs and the vent. We even suspect individuals to have a voice signature, a nickname that would allow them to identify even from afar before seeing friends! "Thus, the female can call her little ones just by emitting her own sound signature. I could still tell you about the amazing healing abilities of their fat, the fat that allows them to survive terrible clashes with their main predators, such as the shark and the killer whale ... But what is incredible is that sometimes, dolphins and predators work together in memorable fishing parties. The black pilot whale, do not get swallow ed by a globi! If one day, in the midst of a dizzying storm, for which the Bay of Biscay knows the secrets, you rub of the crust of salt that clutches your eyelashes and widen your eyes. Or if in the waves at the back of the boat, black masses as big as cars chase you and you think "A whale? No, too small. A dolphin ? No too big, too round and too black ". You're admiring a group of pilot whales playing or resting on the surface after a good meal. Like his friend, the bottlenose dolphin, he is part of the delphinid family. It is one of the biggest because it can measure six meters and weigh three thou- sand kilos. Despite his big melon that makes him look clumsy, it is nevertheless full of intelligence and is essential to the functioning of whale’s sonar as a submarine. You can rightly think that it has "the melon" but keep it for you, better avoid the “coup de boule”. Also, it is best to avoid its teeth, as they are long and sharp, because it is part of the suborder of toothed whales, the "odontocetes". Octopuses and squids know something about them, as they make up 90% of its menu. It is also a protected species, at the same time it is unlikely that you get an idea of angling it! Hahaha. The megafauna The mammals The harbor porpoise, here is one of the smallest toothed whales! Like a little round dolphin whose nose was cut off, it is so cute, the porpoise! Easy to reco- gnize, this darling is hard to spot. An amateur of cold and shallow waters, he follows the boats for pleasure, out of curiosity, desire to play or because of greed hoping some fish falls over the board. But unlike his cousin, the porpoise is discreet because he does not like to jump out of the water. He also prefers to “stroll” in couples. All this does not mean that it is rare. Its global population is estimated at several hundred thousand individuals. But it was very (too) badly treated on our shores that it has deserted now. The Europeans hunted it for its meat, which was still on the shelves in the middle of the last century. Yet, it is not a malicious species because it feeds on small fish, gastropods and crustaceans. Too small to interest whalers, it is now protected. When it manages to escape the clutches of the killer whale, its main natural predator, Mr. and Mrs. Porpoise are still not safe. They are too often caught in large fish trawls where they drown. And pollution is the other big enemy. Placed at the end of the food chain, it presents disturbing levels of heavy metals, tars and chemicals, each more toxic than the other. So, with one voice with the porpoises, I say "blind overfishing and pollution of the oceans, ENOUGH!" The gray seal, Mr. and Mrs. Whiskers! Sincerely, here is the one that I hope I do not meet once crossed the starting line! Not that it is unfriendly, just that it really lives too close to the beaches and rocks to remain frequentable for the 4 meters of draft of my IMOCA. With a gray coat, large males can measure up to 3 meters for a weight of 350 kg. Mrs. Whiskers herself, is smaller, weighing around 220kg. If its habitat range is wide, stretching from the coast of Portugal to the shores of Quebec's Saint Lawrence, it only likes fresh water. So, there is no chance that I find it disguised as pompom girls in the West Indies. This opportunistic bulimic is a great eater of "everything that moves". In the true sense, because it is satisfied with everything that crosses its path: fish, from cod to herring, octopus or lobsters. And figuratively, because its mustaches are one of the most advanced motion detec- tors of creation. Constantly improved for 25 million years, these long "vibrissae" possess ten times more sensitive sensors than those of the rat. In calm waters, it can detect a movement of water after 30 seconds ... But me, meanwhile, with my Penguin, we will be far already! The megafauna The fish Cod, voracious and not very combative! Here is the one that is not trying to be “smart pants” when a gray seal or his cousin the sea calf is lurking around. But if a small fish or even an old chewing gum comes to a beaked hook in front of its snout, the omnivore (who eats everything) cannot resist and throws itself on the delicacy. A friend who went fishing in Iceland told me "the cod are voracious and not very combative". You will recognize it on the stalls of the fishmonger "with its big mouth of gobbler and his goatee under the chin. The French like to call it "morue". But once delivered in beautiful white salted fillets, it becomes "morue" ... Weighing on average 3 kg for 70 cm long, some speci- mens live up to 30 years and weight 100 kg. Very popular and appreciated fish throughout the last centuries, it is hated by children for its strengthening liver oil. Its population have collapsed as a result of overfishing. Nowadays, the strong fishing restrictions have restored the image (and the fair price) of this delicious white and delicate flesh. Its abundant eggs are part of the tarama. As for a fresh cod liver marinated and pan fried, I can guarantee you that it is a dish worthy of a Viking princess! The mola or sunfish, the millstone does not pull the face... This amazing fish called "sun" because of its shape, could be less beautifully but just as aptly called "millstone", because it is what its other name, "mola" or "mola mola", is in Latin. Fish anvil would also have been possible because it is a heavy fish. Very heavy. The adult weighs one ton on average (1000 kg "!). The largest mola ever discovered mea- sured 3.30 meters and weighed 2.3 tons. It must be said that this great jellyfish eater never stops to eat ... or grow. It is very difficult to keep it in aquarium because its size increases by several tens of cm in a few months. It may be that I meet it in the warm tropical waters, I just hope that there will be no collision at high speed with this safe! Very peaceful, it quite often scares swimmers, as when it is sunba- thing on the surface, its emerging dorsal fin strangely looks like that of a shark. Among the animals with bones and verte- brae, and yes, it is a fish with bones, it holds a record in the Guinness book of records of the largest egg-layer. 300 million eggs – a record to beat! The blue surgeonfish "Hi friend ! I am Acanthurus leucosternon, but you can call me "Leuco". You certainly know a close cousin of mine who is famous as an animation film star: Dory, form “Finding Nemo”, do you remember? Dory and I belong to the big family of surgeon fish. I say "big family" because it seems that we are still discovering new species regularly. And I say "surgeon" because we all have developed a very special scale at the beginning of our caudal fin (our tail). Packaged in its colorful sheath (we're cool, we warn that we have a weapon), we have sharpened a formidable scalpel, a cutting tip that we get out when we are angry. By waving the tail very fast and very strong, we can inflict formidable wounds on our enemies or rivals from coral reefs. I, the white-breasted surgeon, put it in a bright yellow sheath on my flashy blue body. Otherwise, I am a grazer of algae, all that is most peaceful and joyful. In short, I think we could quickly become friends, you and me! "But Alexia, you'll see me only once you have arrived in Pointe à Pitre in warmer waters than Saint Malo ... In fact, my colors and those of the inhabitants of the turquoise waters of the Caribbean will be your reward for your effort "! Go brave, all the colorful fish are with you "!!! The megafauna The birds The Great Cormorant, The Sea Raven, The Bald Raven or the Coal of the Seas, the Underwater Bird! The old Breton sailors called this bird the raven of the seas, because it is all black and lives in a group, like a corvid. Like a corvid too, it perches on the branches of the trees or at the top of the rocks, to rest, to make its nest ... or to dry itself. Indeed, its plumage is much less impervious than that of other swimming birds. So, you'll see it, between two fishing parties, spend time opening its big wings to dry its feathers. It is an inconvenience when it needs to swim on the surface, when often, like a submarine with its periscope, one sees only the head to above the water. But it's a big advantage when he decides to go underwater for diving and fishing. 2 minutes apnea and 30 meters deep, its performances are those of a champion. Feet webbed, rocket shape, even the lens of his eye is deformed to adapt to an underwater light diffraction. Its reputation as a formidable fisherman is such that it was entitled to its own fable by Jean de la Fontaine. In China and Japan, it is tamed for its qualities as a fisherman. Less pleasant consequence of this reputation, it was persecuted for a long time, in particular by the fish farmers, who, under certain exceptional circums- tances, still have the right today to shoot it although it is a protected species. The Black-headed Gull, warbling and feathering! Very common in Europe, where it does not settle for colonizing just the water, the marine estuaries, but also the fields and the dumps, one finds it all the way to Greenland which rigorous winter dislodges it at the end of the autumn. It becomes a migrant. Its adaptabi- lity is therefore absolutely remarkable. Including its food that is as varied as its search and capture modes. It is found even in some cities. Frankin, Gaston Lagaffe's father, even brought one into the offices of Spirou. Decked with a hateful character, the famous hoarse and sonorous cry with cynical accents, was celebrated over all jokes tainted with black humor. A beautiful pearl white, it is impossible to confuse it with a pigeon with which it shares the size, the inattentive often takes it for another seagull, which are larger. The riches of the oceans Our sea, the nurturer of all ... When you look at an image of our planet taken from a satellite, what color do you see? Blue and brown. But mostly a dominant blue. Blue is the water that covers more than 70% of the earth's surface. The vast majority of this water (98%) is composed of seas and oceans that are interconnected seas. That's why humans have dubbed the Earth, the Blue Planet that could just as easily be called the Ocean Planet. If the sea were a country, it would be the seventh world economy. Thus, according to a WWF report16, the oceans, mangroves, coral reefs and seagrass beds - all the "products" from the seas - generously generate ¤ 2.3 trillion worth of goods and services ... Per year ! Since the dawn of time, they have graciously offered us their immeasurable wealth in the most diverse forms: food from fishing, tourism, sports and health by boating and swimming, beauty, curiosity and scientific research by the unheard-of biodiversity. For example, three billion humans depend daily on fish and marine animals as an "important source of animal protein." We cannot survive if our oceans do not prosper. Marine riches are extremely vulnerable to environmental degradation, over-fishing, climate change and pollution. Sustainable use and preservation of coastal marine ecosystems are essential. For small developing island countries in particular, it is a vital priority that the 2030 Agenda of the United Nations is emphasized. Let's stop for a moment on the catastrophic impacts of the collapse of the fish populations, where 90% of the world's stocks are over-exploited or threatened with pollution. Consider the tragic consequences of global warming and ocean acidification on coral reefs. If they represent only under 0.2% of the surface of the oceans, they contain 30% of the marine biodiversity. These are truly the "house of species". Tara expedi- tion researchers18 estimate that half of the world's coral population19 has already been bleached, died or been directly threatened in the last decade. A cleaner and less endangered sea is essential not only to feed humanity in the centuries to come. But also, simply to ensure the continuity and safeguarding of the life on the Blue Planet. In short: no matter where you live you need the oceans! 16 World Wildlife Fund or Word Wide Fund for Nature (since 1986) is the Global Fund for Nature and Wildlife. 17 Or "tidal zone": a zone of the coastline that a very oxygenated water covers and discovers with each tide, it is of an exceptional biodiversity. 18 Tara Pacific 2016/2017 Expedition 19 Corals are animals Marine pollution It is not difficult to understand that if all of the water flowing over the earth ends up in the oceans, Water cycle our garbage follows the same slope, the same path. Thus, 80% of the pollution of the seas is of the Heavy metals Macro waste terrestrial origin. It is a direct consequence of human activities on land and not maritime activities. Hydrocarbons The various pollutants are driven by the continental water cycle (city, countryside, mountain). They Invasive species end up irremediably in the oceans. When it rains, the water runs along the roads in the ditches, the Plastics canals ... And leads to the rivers the waste that is on the ground. All that floats or dissolves will go there: plastics (especially small bits), hydrocarbons, medicines, pesticide residues from agriculture, etc. The idea that soil will naturally retain and treat most of the waste is therefore false. But the coast of the country where the pollutants begin their ravages is not the end of the sinister journey. The pollutants, especially the most microscopic ones, will ride the great marine currents to finally scatter on the coasts and in the waters of the whole world. All great explorers will tell you. From the most remote fjords of Greenland to the deserted beaches of the Pacific, it is sad, but there is plastic waste everywhere. BACTERIOLOGICAL POLLUTION These bacteria come from the wastewater (not properly treated) of our households and our agricultural. It's invisible until you notice the damage. PHYSICO-CHEMICAL POLLUTION These are detergents (washing liquids), hydrocarbons (petroleum), biocides, heavy metals from urban, marine, domestic, agricultural and industrial activities. It's invisible until you notice the damage. MECHANICAL POLLUTION This is the most visible. It has been (too) long considered to be the only pollution. It consists of macro-wastes from most rivers. RADIO-ACTIVE POLLUTION Radioactive elements from nuclear power plants or hospital waste (radiological treatment). Radioactivity is a devious pollutant that is very difficult to control. BIOLOGICAL POLLUTION These are animal, plant or invasive species that invade a natural environment by endangering local species. PLASTICS A big up for plastics! They know how to do everything. From macro to micro, they are the champions of pollution. And although we know very well today that they are far from representing the only threat, their vicious cycle is quite fascinating. So, a plastic bag abandoned in nature is able to make a nice series of a cascading damage. Judge by yourself. After having destroyed a landscape (this is its slightest defect), poten- tially smothered by a passing bird, it floats in the ocean where a jellyfish eater can become attracted to it at breakfast. Afterwards, it will have the good taste to break up into tiny particles, also confused with food by other species and continue to make spectacular volumes of water toxic. The pollutants, especially the most microscopic, will ride the great marine currents to finally scatter on the coasts and in the waters of the whole world. All great explorers will tell you. From the most remote fjords of Greenland to the deserted beaches of the Pacific, it is sad, but there is plastic waste. Water Cycle, Heavy Metals, Macro Waste, Hydrocarbons, Inva- sive Species, Plastics, If the poisoned fish survive, our devilish plastic bag will find its way to your plate, completely invisible, in the form of microscopic pollutants. Morality, what is better to do in your opinion? Just learn how to better destroy plastic bags that we continue to produce as before? Or radically CHANGE our way of life and learn to do without them TOTALLY? Marine pollution ACT DAILY! DO NOT THROW ANY WASTE IN THE NATURE, in the streams, in the mountains, on the beach, in the toilets, in the city ... Oceans BE AN ECO-RESPONSIBLE CONSUMER of plastic using environmentally friendly Plastic detergents and products, limiting aggregates the amount of our waste, refusing to use any disposable product Abandon Plastic bag in nature (handkerchiefs, dishes, batteries, Shopping etc.) for the benefit of its equivalent reusable, washable or recyclable Oil (paper bags, jars, vegetable fiber Transport fabrics ...) ones, avoiding the use of Ingestion by by w ind or marine animals stream to the sea Plastics and fertilizers and pesticides in our pollutants are gardens, minimizing the use of plas- found on our plates! During their marine journey, fragmentation and accumulation of pollutants (PCBs, pesticides ...) tics ... The water cycles Water is magic, it knows how to take different forms. Put an ice cube on a plate and it becomes liquid water! Water can also move, like rain or Condensation snow with clouds. But the total amount of water Rainfall on the planet will not change. For this reason, we must protect this precious stock that we have. Runoff water Rainfall it's up to you to play the kids! Evaporation Become the guardians Infiltration Underground Water cycles of the oceans! waters SAVE A LIFE & A HEART WITH Sir, it's not Oh! a good place to You must take a nap! DEFiBRiLAT hor wake up! Sir, sir it is not the time to sleep ?! Quick!! Call 112!! Oh la la, he's He is in cardiac not breathing ... arrest! Hello! I'm in Saint Malo, on the pier, a man is lying, un- conscious, Fortunately, I downloaded I put one hand on Paste the patches ... the Stayingalive app the other in the Connect the device ... to find the nearest middle of the Analysis in progress ... defibrillator! chest, arms out- ... stretched. I have Do not touch ... to make 100 Shock is recommended ... compressions per Do not touch ... minute by pressing Shock is recommended ... fast and hard. Thank you Thank you children, you are children, we will the heroes! take over now! cardiac arrest: 112 / compresses heart / defibrillates /// Location: www.stayingalive.org