Regata Vendée Globe.

Vendée Globe 2004/2005: The ice seas

The 7 of November of the 2004 with 8 knots Northwest left the 20 participants under the glances 300,000 spectators and escorted by other 15,000 on board 1000 boats that gave the goodbye them.

From the first night one considers like a race with different speeds. The head group removes almost 300 miles in the first 24 hours, whereas still there are participants without leaving. Raphaël Dinelli hits a trunk during the second night and Joé seeten recognizes to have lost his to gennaker around the Portuguese coasts.

Cabo Finisterre - Canary Islands: The slope until the Canary Islands at a high speed takes place and with waves of 6 meters and winds of about 40 knots! Marc Thiercelin sinks the prow in several occasions losing the confidence in its boat, whereas Jean him surfea Cam to 24 knots. When Vincent Riou arrives at the latitude of Las Palmas, six boats of regata are to less than 100 miles to the round one.

The Canary Islands - Green Cabo: Jean him Cam takes control of the race head after six days of navigation followed 1.6 miles by Vincent Riou and 24 miles by Sébastien Josse. Jean Le Cam decides the route to the east of green Cabo and guesses right with better winds crossing `dolldrums' with more speed and arriving the first the Trade winds from the Northeast.

ITCZ - Ecuador: The first night they have had to support storms and encalmadas, others are cruzado with smooth breezes. Jean Le Cam follows in head and arrives at the Equator with 3 days of advance in front of the past edition. Although some participants grasp as some failures can to the undergone salary, all follow in race!

The anticyclone of Santa Helena: They make a good traverse trying happen both between nuclei of high pressures before the door is closed. An air mass settles and hunts to everybody leaving to the participants nailed in half of the South Atlantic. They are in a handkerchief. Jean and Vincent only sail to 500 meters of Roland. Roland Jourdain and Sébastien Josse are both first in reaching 40º rugientes making one more a route Southher than both leaders of the race.

Entrance to the great South: The first serious failures and abandonments take place.

Winds of 50 knots and waves of 6 meters force the boats to fly making 400 miles to the day. Marc Thiercelin loses his to genaker breaking the boom and Raphaël Dinelli is hurt in the hand. The second group is catched in one violent storm near the Uruguayan coasts fighting against winds of 70 knots and waves of 12 meters! Alex Thomson breaks a carbon support causing a hole in the bridge of about 30 centimeters of diameter. Without intimidating itself route to Cape Town continues in race doing. They begin to bring forth failures everywhere; Raphaël Dinelli breaks a low stay, Conrad Humphreys throws a Code-5 (a small one genaker) to the water due to a breakage of the halliard. Norbert Sedlacek tears in two its Genoa. Mike Golding and Sébastien Josse have problems with the communications and computer science side. A pair of days later Hervé Laurent breaks its rudder of port after knocking down the boat in two occasions. Hours later Conrad Humphreys it hits a “UFO” that breaks its rudder of starboard. On the following day Hervé Laurent is forced to retire.

Cape of Good Hope - Cabo Leeuwin: The Indian Ocean follows faithful its reputation. Jean Le Cam follows thirdly in head followed by Vincent Riou 35 miles and by Roland Jourdain 571 miles.

Jean-Pierre Dick discovers that its motor does not generate electricity and its generator set does not work. Norbert Sedlacek announces a failure in the keel that could separate, which does not make him stop to follow in race, Conrad Humphreys casts anchor in a beach of the bay of Simon' s Town to try to repair its rudder. Alex Thomson announces its abandonment. Joé Seeten breaks the rudder. Norbert Sedlacek announces its abandonment. The race head is surrounded in another storm with 50 wind knots… Conrad Humphreys to 3,000 miles of the leader becomes to do to the sea, and Dominique Wavre warns the position of iceberg near South 50º. Joé returns to have bad luck when hitting another “UFO” that breaks its rudder to him of port forcing to him to cast anchor in Island Dirty to repair of fortune. Roland Jourdain is throwing smoke, and finishes making 431 miles in 24 hours to almost 19 knots of average. The failures continue. The storms also. Nick Moloney is surrounded next to Jean-Pierre Dick in a terrible storm with winds of 70 knots, arriving to call to its family for `to take leave'. Roland Jourdain who was in third position retires as a result of one serious failure in its keel. On the following day Bilou also does.

From the Iceberg to Cape Horn: The main directorate of New Zealand navy warns the direction of great race that fifteen iceberg moves to 300 miles of the Island of Campbell. Patrice Carpentier breaks the spanker boom. Jean Le Cam and Vincent Riou alert to the direction of numerous race of `Growlers' floating of his to the south of New Zealand around. Jean has seen a ten of which, one as great one as one islita. On the following day Sébastien Josse hits against a iceberg and breaks its boom. It is a nightmare since at night they are not seen. Before this unbearable oppression several participants as Vincent changes of strategy and chooses one more a more North route. The zone of iceberg does not stop growing expanding on 1600 miles in length. In Nochevieja Jean one is in the Cape Horn to 261 miles of Vincent and improving in 5 days the mark obtained by Michel Desjoyeaux in the previous edition.

Cape Horn to Ecuador: Whereas participants undertake the ascent of the Atlantic, others finish arriving at the zone having to still make the return to Antarctica through I indicate. Patrice Carpentier returns to divide the spanker boom repaired having to leave the race. Jean-Pierre Dick also divides to the spanker boom realizing a repair of fortune.

The arrival: Jean Le Cam spends the Equator 11 hours behind Vincent Riou that leads the race. Mike Golding is only to 37 miles of the second, to the lost salary Jean a good advantage when crossing “doldrums”. The head trio approaches Europe in one fitted aggressive one in front of trade winds of the Northeast obtaining to gain 200 miles daily. Vincent decides to border an anticyclone by the left that moves away 500 miles to him of the direct route but it promises good winds, reducing 50 miles with the classified second. To 10 days of the arrival still it can pass any thing. Meanwhile Nick Moloney loses its keel to 120 miles of Rio de Janeiro adding the seventh abandonment. Jean takes an advantage of 76 miles but their winds are less favorable.

Vincent Riou decides the route by the anticyclone on Ireland looking for the rotation of winds by the northeast instead of to advance fitting to rage. Jean only takes control of the head of race by 0.7 miles whereas Vincent turns to put direct course to them Sabers d' Olonne with more rag and a very acceptable traverse that will allow him to only gain the race by 7 hours of difference after 87 days of race, reducing in more than 5 days the record of Michel Desjoyeux.