Sodeb'O on standby for Discovery Route record attempt

by Kate Jennings - Expression on 13 May 2009
Whilst the skipper of Sodeb'O put in a tremendous effort last winter sailing around the world single-handed, Francis Joyon showed great talent in squeezing the record between Cadiz (Spain) and San Salvador (Bahamas), which comprises a transatlantic crossing spanning nearly 4,000 miles, that the skipper of IDEC covered on his large trimaran at an average speed of over 16 knots.

Thomas Coville is this year concentrating on the Northern Atlantic and from today he is repositioning his sights along this course, which he is drawn to in more ways than one.

Time to beat
The route: Cadiz - San Salvador
Number of miles to be covered: 3,884 miles solo record to be beaten in: 9 days, 20 hours, 35 minutes - Francis Joyon, Idec (2008) at an average speed of 16.4 knots (30.37 km/hr) Stand-by dates: 12th May 2009 – start of June 2009.

Known to his nearest and dearest as Tom, he is a top level competitor above all else and at the very core of him he retains a sense of enjoyment, which is never satisfied, as well as an almost childlike quality, that of being at sea, powering along on his own at ever greater speeds across oceans or even around the world. For Thomas Coville, who has been sailing with Sodeb'O for the past 10 years, there is no such thing as routine. And this is even truer this year with several targets in his sights; that of two future record attempts this summer across the Northern Atlantic, as well as the Route du Rhum 2010. 'I’ve chosen to live under the pressure of time and demand. I’m also aware that I’m committed to a team and a partner that I’ve chosen. Setting off is still just as exciting as ever and for me it is synonymous with enjoyment and freedom' confides the French sailor with an eye to the future as ever.

This Southern course across the Northern Atlantic is a route which is familiar to him after he set a record time here back in 2005, in a 60 footer (18.28m). This year the skipper of Sodeb'O wants to explore it on his 105 footer (32 m), a design created for him by Nigel Irens and Benoît Cabaret, which he is really getting a good handle on 'but which may still be improved upon, particularly in view of the Route du Rhum 2010'.

Having confirmed his participation in 2010 with his 32 metre steed in the most celebrated of solo transatlantic races, this long atlantic crossing represents a nice little training gallop: 'For me it’s a full scale test across a course which is a little longer than the Route du Rhum. The Discovery Route takes 9 to 10 days compared with 7 to 8 for the Route du Rhum'.

Thomas drops the poetry and remains highly technical about the voyage:
'This East to West transatlantic between Cadiz and San Salvador represents 2/3 of the Route du Rhum crossing with a particularly demanding course through the Portuguese tradewinds, which is always a tricky time. You imagine it to be a stable wind, which isn’t the case at all'. As to the crossing, 'it’s rather pleasant and much easier in terms of climate than the Northern Atlantic. The pace downwind is nothing like that of a circumnavigation of the globe. The finish in the Bahamas is especially magical, even if the cyclonic conditions were pretty overwhelming in 2005!'

The difference between a 60 footer and a 105 footer on this type of course? 'In a 105 footer, you achieve more regular average speeds but not necessarily higher ones. The 60 footer is more flighty, more risky. Single-handed on a 32 metre boat, you have to take the punches. You take risks and you’re on the look-out due to the very high speed. You must never forget that you have 12 tonnes beneath your feet and that at speeds like that, there are some big stresses involved in everything. In a 105 footer with 650 m2 of sail area, you quickly fall into the red' concluded the skipper from La Trinité.

When the three footed dragonflies power along at lightning speed in the tracks of the caravels of the 15th century.

It was in 1492, on 3rd August to be precise. Christopher Columbus set off from Palos, at the southern tip of Spain, with three Caravels; Nina, Pinta and Santa Maria, comprising 90 crewmen. After a stopover in the Canaries, then a long course out to the West, the Admiral discovered a jewel of nature on 12th October; a luxurious island which he christened San Salvador.

Five centuries on, in 1984, a race gathered together the top large multihulls of the day to sail this legendary course. Philippe Poupon took victory on Fleury Michon VII. In 1988, Jet Services V set a record time in crewed configuration with 12 days and 12 hours; a record which was to last until 2000. In that year, the maxi catamaran Club Med, co-skippered by Grant Dalton and Bruno Peyron, completed the crossing in 10 days and 14 hours. In February 2003, a sailor known for never giving up, the late American Steve Fossett, a recordman on all manner of craft, improved on the reference time by a day on Playstation with 9 days, 13 hours and 30 minutes. The current reference time in crewed configuration for this crossing, spanning nearly 4,000 miles, lies with Groupama 3, with a fantastic time of 7 days, 10 hours, 58 minutes and 53 seconds.

It was necessary to wait until 2004 for Francis Joyon on IDEC to set the first solo time of 11 days, 3 hours, 17 minutes and 12 seconds. A year later, it was Thomas’ turn to take the start on the 60 footer Sodeb'O. His passage went rather well despite a nasty cyclone, which came so close to him at the end of the course, that he was forced to make a big detour, which considerably extended his course. However, it didn’t stop him from beating Francis’ record. With a time of 10 days, 11 hours, 50 minutes and 20 seconds, he reduced the record time by nearly 24 hours. And then last year, whilst Thomas was battling his way around the world, Francis Joyon got his own back on his maxi trimaran, which measures nearly 30 metres.

He single-handedly devoured the 3,884 miles in 9 days, 20 hours, 35 minutes at an average speed of 16.4 knots, which more or less represents Fossett’s time in 2003 in crewed configuration.

Once again, Thomas has not had his final say on the matter. In his record hunting programme he admits: 'I really want to bag the reference time in this little battle the pair of us have been informally involved in on the record planet'.

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