Sea, Sail & Surf newsJules Verne Trophy
Orange lies to, to let the storm pass over
dimanche 24 mars 2002 –
No doubt about it, when it’s like this, you’re better off being an albatross down here than a nutshell, albeit a nutshell 34 metres long ! Bruno during the radio chat : " When you start surfing at 33/34 knots, when there are gusts of up more than 60 knots, when the waves more than 10 metres high and no more than 150 metres apart... and you add to that a confused sea which hits you broadside on... it’s time to take your foot off the accelerator ! So we’ve decided to park for a while, to lie to. Just to give the sea time to calm down a little. We’ve pushed the boat a bit too hard over the past 48 hours, which is not how to get make it right round the world. What’s more, it was about time to give her a full check-up ".
No sooner said than done. Taking advantage of a good series of waves, the boat came up head to wind around 6 o’clock this morning, leaving the worst of the storm to pass over. The crew took advantage of the slowed pace to visit the grounds, as it were, after two days of truly rough weather. Only minor damage to report (problems with electrical connections, all of which were repaired in the morning.
"But how the hell do we get out of this mess...", as Bruno put it. " Let’s have a look at the situation ", analysed Gilles Chiorri. First of all, the low which was lying south-east of us has slowed. Secondly, as we were moving faster than the low, we have caught up with it. Thirdly, the high pressure zone behind us has swelled. Caught between two weather systems, the wind has increased and instead of having 40 knots, we find ourselves with 60 knots and a dangerous sea. We’ve let the worst go through and have put up a bit of canvas over the past hour (around midday). We are now sailing with three reefs in the main and are making way south ".
Riding out the worst of it and forgetting the clock for a couple of hours was the wisest decision to take. AT midday today, the maxi-catamaran Orange was some 1000 miles south of the Kerguelen Islands and was back on her normal course by this afternoon, heading south-east.
Quote-Unquote :
Bruno Peyron : " Sailing in 50-knots winds is no problem with this sort of boat. Sailing in these sorts of seas is a problem ! It’s a veritable cauldron ".
Benoît Briand : " Helming in these conditions, there are times when you lose contact with the boat for ten seconds or so, as you are completely covered in water. You’re not on the water any more but under it !"
Gilles Chiorri : " There are a few crests around and about our Orange world at the moment. ON my watch, I had 56 knots of wind and 36-knot surf Surf #Surf . It’s tough, damp, violent and physical ! "
Information Mer & Media / Orange
Map : Geronimo vs Orange
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Photo : JP Epron / Maxi Catamaran Orange
