Delta Lloyd Regatta - New member for Prince de Bretagne

by Corinne McKenzie on 27 May 2011 Delta Lloyd Regatta sees the French Match-Racing team Prince de Bretagne take on Ocean racer Jeanne Grégoire as a new teammember.

Now onboard Prince de Bretagne is Jeanne Grégoire who is a confirmed Ocean racer and who is also a sailor that has crossed the Atlantic solo on multiple occasions! Jeanne is in Medemblik joining the team of Julie Bossard and Pauline Chalaux.

'We were looking for a third crew. Jeanne was available and wanted to take a break from Ocean racing so she joined us.' explained skipper Julie Bossard. The new team has sailed together for a couple of days only before the start of the regatta and is still adjusting.

'I needed a break from solo racing across the oceans.' explains Jeanne. 'I was ready to take some time off to try other type of sailing, so it was perfect timing for me.'

What can bring an Ocean racer to a Match racing team?

'Jeanne brings a new eye to our sailing, she was able to pick up our mistakes straight away.' says Pauline Chalaux. 'It is very refreshing to have on board someone from a complete different back ground and she is reacting quickly to situations.'

With communication on board being a key element in match-racing, this is still an area to improve. 'I have sometimes problem to understand the Match racing lingo!' admits Jeanne. 'They are using technical terms and also some words that are proper to them and can describe a whole situation or tactic, and then I am lost!'

How does it feel for an Ocean racer, used to spend days alone in her yacht with the sky for horizon?

'When I did the mini Transat, 10 years ago, the boat was about the same size as the Elliott! I left one continent to reach another. Here I can see the objective a quarter of a mile away! I go to the blue mark instead of sailing to Rio! More seriously, sailing with others, in 'confined' situations when actions happened quickly and when strategy involves tacking within a few meters, is opening a different way of seeing sailing and will for sure help me when I am alone on the ocean! Even if then the strategy involves a 500 miles course rather than 10 minutes around marks!'

Three weeks ago, Jeanne Grégoire finished fourth in the Benodet-Martinique race. In July she will set off for the Solitaire du Figaro. In the meantime, Jeanne, Julie and Pauline are sharing experiences and are combining in one team, two very different sailing worlds.

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