Royal Air Force Yacht Club

In the press conference he gave on Monday in Les Sables d’Olonne, Vendée General Council President Bruno Retailleau unveiled plans for a new village designed for the start in the Vendée port, which is a very attractive element for the public. In 2008, 700,000 people had visited the village, making it one of the Vendée Globe assets. It will be open every day from 10AM to 8PM, just like the pontoons. Sémaf, the company in charge of the village design and construction this year is familiar with the world of sailing since it had already took care of the village for the last edition of the Vendée Globe as well as several other Solitaire du Figaro and Transat Jacques Vabre editions. Another company, Bodard will provide modular constructions used for the press center in Les Sables d’Olonne and the general race headquarters in Paris.
 

Spreading on more than 10,000 square meters, the 2012-2013 village will be 30% larger than the 2008 one and it will match the needs for information on the race and the sponsors better. A new access will be available in the Alliaura Marine area to make things simpler for visitors coming from the city center. Focusing on the Vendée Globe and Vendée, the village will feature six major areas as well as a press center that can host up to 1,000 journalists and the Point P area reserved for the boat’s technical containers:
 

1- 1,000 square meters on the Gravière Wharf to showcase the assets of Vendée and the practice of sailing.
2- 1,200 square meters designed by the General Council to present the race, the skippers, the boats as well as an educational presentation of the undersea flora and fauna.
3- A 225-sqare-meter aquarium on the Vendée Globe Square focusing on the themes of oceans and coastal preservation with a fun and spectacular tour.
4- 2,400 square meters for the boats’ sponsors where companies and partnerships with skippers are presented.
5- A 1,400-square-meter area with restaurants, shows and concerts based on the sea theme.
6- A 3,500-square-meter hall companies and sponsors can use to introduce their clients and partners’ to the world of the Vendée globe.
Open from October 20 to november 11, 2012.
 

The French skipper, 34, will therefore participate in his very first Vendée Globe on board Initiatives-Cœur, a monohull that was launched on Monday May 21st and that will be christened in September. « This is a huge challenge for me, it’s going to be very tough. I feel lucky to have that opportunity and that first experience and I’m proud to share it with my pertners. This is a unique adventure that I will keep in mind forever. »
 

Built in 1998, the boat has already competed in the 2000-2001 Vendée Globe, flying the colors of Whirlpool with French skipper Catherine Chabaud (Pictured here with de Lamotte) at the helm. After winning the Velux 5 Oceans (A single-handed round-the-world race with stopovers) in 2010, the boat went back to the shipyard for renovation work before the pre-start training period begins.
 

Tanguy de Lamotte has the « Mécénat Chirurgie Cardiaque » association by his side, and the skipper is deeply involved in it: « I am so lucky to have such a fulfilling life, a life I have chosen, and it is my duty to share it with people who need us. I have chosen to support Mécénat Chirurgie Cardiaque because I know the association needs financial support to succeed. As yachtsmen, we are constantly looking for funds to make our dreams come true at sea but these children need money just to stay alive. »
 

With less than six months to go before the race starts, the port of Les Sables d'Olonne hosted a press conference during which the Vendée Globe organization team discussed the list of confirmed competitors and the new features of the 2012-2013 edition. 

Vendée General Council President Bruno Retailleau put the sportlight on the best skippers in the world of single-handed sailing, sixteen of which have currently confirmed they will race in the Vendée Globe this year: Jean-Pierre Dick (FRA) on Virbac Paprec, Vincent Riou (FRA) on PRB, Kito De Pavant (FRA) on Groupe Bel, François Gabart (FRA) on Macif, Jérémie Béyou (FRA) on Maître CoQ, Armel Le Cléac’h (FRA) on Banque Populaire, Dominique Wavre (SUI) on Mirabaud, Samantha Davies (GB) on Savéol, Alex Thomson (GB) on Hugo Boss, Mike Golding (GB) on Gamesa, Marc Guillemot (FRA) on Safran, Arnaud Boissières (FRA) on Akéna Vérandas, Bernard Stamm (SUI) on Cheminées Poujoulat, Javier Sanso (ESP) on Acciona, Alessandro Di Benedetto (FRA/ITA) on Team Plastique and Jean Le Cam (FRA) on Synerciel.

Three or four more yachtsmen may very well join these experienced skippers and announce their participation in June, for a starting list that could reach about twenty names. The seventh edition would therefore feature roughly as many entrants as the previous ones. Among skippers still looking for partners are Louis Burton (FRA), Tanguy De Lamotte (FRA), Bertrand De Broc (FRA), Anne Liardet (FRA), Raphaël Dinelli (FRA), Brian Thomson (GB), Dee Caffari (GB), Steve White (GB), John Mackay (GB) and Juan Merediz (ESP). With seven non-French yachtsmen- 40% of the total fleet - already confirmed, the 2012 competitors make for a very international start list. The new generation of skippers is also very present through several Figaro class specialists willing to compete against the most mamous Vendée Globe participants. Bruno Retailleau expressed how happy he was with the international and intergenerational dimension of the Vendée Globe. 
 

Jean-Yves Chauve, M.D. is a Vendée Globe personality to be reckoned with when it comes to the issues of health and medical care. He is known for his radio assistance of Bertrand de Broc when the French skipper had to stitch his own tongue while sailing south of Australia during the 1992-1993 Vendée Globe. But even though the most visible part of his job is done during the race, Doctor Chauve’s mission begins long before the actual start of the race, as he explains: « Before the race, my focus is mainly on prevention. Basically, I gather the medical files sent by each skipper’s general physician. We have to keep in mind the yachtsmen’s average age is higher than in most other sports. They may be well-trained athletes, they’re just not as efficient as they were in their twenties! »


In addition to the skippers’ fitness, another element makes a solid prevention effort necessary. « In single-handed races, the skippers push their bodies in a very demanding way. They sometimes have to wake up and rush on the deck for physically exhausting operations, without time to gradually warm up». That creates a context in which a cardiac incident is not unlikely, which prompts the doctor to pay close attention to the cardiac sonograms and the physical test results each skipper includes in his or her medical file. But he also has to make sure none of the yachtsmen suffers from any pathological contraindication that would make it impossible to safely compete in such an extreme race in complete isolation, such as convulsions or blood coagulation problems. These pathologies, even though they are relatively easy to deal with on dry land, can be life-threatening for a skipper who cannot have any direct medical assistance at sea.


« A wrong response is worse than no response at all »


To make up for that absence of immediate care, the first tool yachtsmen can rely on is their first-aid kits, designed for the occasion. « It matches all the specific needs of long-distance single-handed races and it is the same for everyone. I must be notified when an item is added and it must be approved to avoid adding products that could turn out to enhance the skippers’ performances », adds Doctor Chauve. « But traumas are the most serious medical risks and if that happens, medication can’t really help, except when it comes to pain control».


That is precisely why all Vendée Globe competitors have to attend a mandatory training session teaching them the basic elements of medical response. « It is a 26-hour training dealing with what to do in case of fracture, sprain or dental issue as well as how to dress a wound or use stitching glue. It also helps them get more familiar with the first-aid kit. The training doesn’t focus on physiology or anatomy but it features simulations of actual accidents. Because a wrong response is often worse than no response at all », the physician explains.

« Efficient and self-sufficient »


As the Vendée Globe is a category 0 offshore race, entrants must go through that training, which is sometimes called « survival training », in addition to the basic first-response session. In spite of their solid experience and the fact the training is valid for five years, many yachtsmen prefer taking it again on a more regular basis, just to be on the safe side. As Chauve summarizes, « No skipper wants to leave anything to chance, this is how they see things. Making sure the boat sails fast is good, but the skipper has to be ok too. That’s why, for medical care as well as for mechanics, weather forecasts, electronics, communication and computers, Vendée Globe skippers have to be efficient and self-sufficient ».
 

To prepare for the upcoming Vendée Globe, skippers try to compete in offshore races before the start in Les Sables d’Olonne on November 10. On May 19, the Europa Warm'up, a sailing tour of Europe, will start in Barcelona. The competitors list features Jean-Pierre Dick on Virbac-Paprec 3. The French skipper hopes to « improve the performances of his monohull and check how the other boats are doing in terms of speed, settings and technique. It's a very good training as the Vendée Globe approaches. » He will also be able to rely on a prestigious support as Roland Journdain, two-time winner of the Route du Rhum in the IMOCA category, will be among his crewmates. Experience is not the only thing Jourdain will bring: « I'm here to enjoy myself and share good times with the rest of the crew on board Virbac-Paprec 3. I can also tell jokes and tug the guys in before they go to sleep... (laughter) Confidence and mutual appreciation don't mean we're not serious and motivated. Beyond the actual race, our goal is to assist Jean-Pierre in his Vendée Globe preparation. »