Groupama 3 delayed

Monday 07, December 2009, 08:00 GMT

NEWS ROUND-UP

Groupama 3's departure from Cape Town has been delayed by a faulty generator. The 100-foot trimaran was due to set sail last Friday for its home base in the port of Brest to prepare for another attempt at the Jules Verne Trophy.

The boat, skippered by Franck Cammas, sustained damage during her previous attempt last month. The plan is to sail the 6,000 miles from Cape Town to France to prepare for a second tilt at the Jules Verne in the New Year. 

Fred Le Peutrec, who will be acting slipper for the homeward journey, said: "We were in the process of charging the batteries one last time when, all of a sudden, the alarm sounded in the engine compartment. After a thorough check it has been deemed to be out of service.

"It's annoying as we should already be at sea by now but that's just the way it is. It's better that this problem occurred now rather than after we'd set sail because, without power, we can't desalinate the seawater. As a result we would have been forced to make a stopover, which is never simple in such a large boat."

Le Peutrec reported that they have been able to find a replacement generator. "We just have to get it delivered to Cape Town, which isn't easy. If everything goes smoothly at customs, we should receive the block on Sunday evening, assemble everything onto it on Monday and then head out to sea on Tuesday, he added.

"By leaving Cape Town on 8th December, we still have a chance of making Brest before the Christmas festivity. Indeed this is the latest challenge we have set ourselves as, together with the start of stand-by for the Jules Verne Trophy remaining set at 1st January, there will be little time left to share with our families."

One of the upsides of the delay has been the fact that the crew have been able to witness the draw for the 2010 World Cup draw from close quarters as it took place near to the basin where Groupama 3 is tied up in Cape Town.

Meanwhile, Ireland's Damian Foxall, a member of the Green Dragon crew in 2008-09, has signed up with the Groupama entry, led by Cammas, for the 2011-12 edition of the Volvo Ocean Race.

Foxall will be one of two watch leaders on board and will be responsible for crew preparation as the team is assembled next year.

The Groupama project has bought Ericsson 4, winner of the 2008-09 race, and has secured the services of Argentine designer Juan Kouyoumdjian.

Foxall delivered the boat from Sweden to the team base in Lorient last week.

Sanderson's Sydney-Hobart mission

Mike Sanderson, who took ABN AMRO ONE to overall honours in the 2005-06 Volvo Ocean Race will be aboard race record-holder Wild Oats XI in the Rolex Sydney-Hobart.

Sanderson and the 18-member crew of the super maxi will be chasing their fifth consecutive line honours victory in the blue water classic when the gun sounds on Boxng Day.

The boat will be skippered by Mark Richards while Sanderson will share reserve helmsman duties alongside Iain Murray.

There are Whitbread/Volvo sailors dotted throughout the field. Joining Sanderson on Wild Oats is Adrienne Cahalan, the only woman to have sailed on board a Volvo Open 70 when she was navigator on Brasil 1 in the 2005-06 race for the first leg.

Among others, Noel Drennan, Craig Satterthwaite, Stu Bannatyne, Earle Williams have teamed up on the New Zealand maxi Alfa Romeo, a favourite for line honours.

Former Ericsson team-mates in 2005-06 Tim Powell (skipper) and Steve Hayles join forces on Ran, the Judel-Vrolijk 72, while 2008-09 Ericsson 4 crew members, the Salter brothers Jules and Guy and Brad Jackson are on the 100-foot maxi ICAP Leopard.

Grant Wharington, who led an Australian entry in the 2005-06 race, skippers Wild Thing, the line honours victor in 2003 before losing her canting keel and capsizing the following year.

The Don Jones-designed maxi was rebuilt and finished second to Wild Oats in 2008.

Meanwhile, Wharington's modified first generation Volvo Open 70 - Ichi Ban, has Tom Braidwood and Andy Meiklejohn among its ranks. There is further representation in the race with Merit, the Volvo 60 and Lion New Zealand, the Whitbread maxi from 1985-86.

On show in Paris

The Volvo Ocean Race has a strong presence at the Paris Boat Show with an exhibition featuring race simulator The Ride, and The Dome, a cinema showing archive and recent footage of race exploits.

Race CEO Knut Frostad was present on Saturday to meet with French media along with members of Groupama, the French entry headed by Franck Cammas which has entered the next three races.

"After the announcement of Groupama's involvement in the next Volvo Ocean Race, the interest in the race has increased in France and we wanted to show our support by coming to the show with our Volvo Ocean Race Experience," he said.

"The French sailing fans and public will be able to get a taste of what life is like on board a Volvo Open 70 in our simulator and find out about the history of the race in the Dome, our cinema.

"The future is bright for French involvement in the race again and we can only build on the amazing achievements of French sailors, like Eric Tabarly in the Whitbread Race."

Minoprio takes World Match Racing title

New Zealand's Adam Minoprio and his Emirates Team New Zealand Black Match Racing Team won the 2009 World Match Racing Tour by picking up enough points en route to the finals of the Monsoon Cup - the last round of the championship in Kuala Terengganu, Malaysia. Britain's Ben Ainslie was second and Australia's Peter Gilmour third.

Latest Podcast 

In this week's Volvo Sailing podcast there is the latest from the Dubai to Muscat race, including reaction following the capture of Sail Bahrain's crew by authorities in Iranian waters and a preview of the World Yacht Racing Forum.