Orange II gets underway

by Courtesy Scuttlebuttereurope on 19 Feb 2004 Bruno Peyron set off Tuesday afternoon at 15:25 aboard his Orange II maxi-catamaran, and is heading towards the western tip of Brittany, in order to reach the Jules Verne starting line (off Ushant Island) early Wednesday morning.

The current benchmark time on the course (round the world, crewed) is 64 days, 8 hours and 37 minutes, and has been set by Orange, first one of the name, in May 2002.

During the press conference held prior to the start, Bruno Peyron has presented his crew and announced a few changes in the list. Hervé Jan (watch leader) revealed he would not leave for family reasons. He will be replaced by Frenchman Nicolas Pichelin, former crewmember aboard Club Med, winner of The Race.

Swede Eduardo Valteras becomes the 15th man, in charge of onboard computing systems.

Bruno Peyron has also indicated that the weather predictions have been confirmed, and that the crossing of the line is scheduled for tomorrow between 06:00 and 10:00 GMT (7:00 and 11:00 French time). Bruno Peyron:

‘we will take advantage of 20-knot easterly winds for the start. The weather conditions are good, and the wind is expected to increase as early as the second day. We will then aim for a low pressure cell positioned south of Portugal, which we should tackle in the right direction. The boat is 100% ready and the crew is very concentrated. I hope we'll do a good job’.

15 men will take part in the adventure. They are : Bruno Peyron (skipper), Roger Nilson (Navigator/Medical), Halvard Mabire (Watch leader/Helmsman), Yann Eliès (Watch leader/Sails), Jacques Caraës (Trimmer/Video), Yves Le Blévec (Shore coordination/composite materials), Ronan Le Goff (Bowman/Deck hardware), Nicolas Pichelin (Trimmer / Helmsman), Jean-Baptiste Epron (Supplies/Video), Sébastien Audigane (Helmsman /Security), Florent Chastel (Bowman/Rigging), Vladimir Dzalba-Lyndis (Medical/Security), Klabbe Nylof (Helmsman / Mechanics), Nicolas de Castro (Bowman /Composites applications), Eduardo Valderas (Computer systems).

http://www.maxicatamaran-orange.com