Bruno Peyron (Photo by George Bekris)
The Race: Created by the French sailor Bruno Peyron, The Race started on 31st December 2000, as a way to celebrate our arrival in the third millennium with a global ocean race. The Race was the first race around the world without limits, in other words it was open to boats without any size restrictions. The total freedom that was given to designers led to the birth of a new generation of sailboats, maxi-multihulls, now known as the G-Class.
For the first edition of The Race, the first giant multihulls ever built set out from the start in Barcelona to sail around the world via the three capes (Good Hope, Leeuwin and the Horn) before crossing the finish line in Marseilles.
The reference time for the race was set by the New Zealander Grant Dalton aboard the maxi-catamaran Club Med, which completed the voyage in 62 days, 56 minutes and 33 seconds.
Three times holder of the Jules Verne Trophy and creator of The Race, the non-stop crewed race around the world without outside assistance and without limits, Bruno Peyron has officially announced that he has decided to relaunch The Race. After several months of studies and some careful thinking and after consulting the main potential competitors, a second edition of the race around the world for the giant G-class boats is therefore planned for 2013-2014, starting from a port in Southern Europe.
Orange II In Newport, RI (Photo by George Bekris)
Around ten giants
After talks with leading maxi-multihull G-class skippers, it transpires that out of the dozen giants that have so far been built, between eight and ten of them may be lining up for the start of The Race, and that is without counting any new boats, which may be built by then, in particular using moulds from the latest multihulls from the most recent generation.
The ultimate goal remains the same as when the first edition was launched: Bringing together “the ten fastest teams around the world.”
All lights are green
Bruno Peyron, who took some time to think about this before coming to a decision explains: “As I’ve been able to stand back and gain some perspective since I last took part in the Jules VerneTrophy, there are several things I noticed that led me to take this decision to relaunch The Race. First, since the recent America’s Cup that we have just seen, we can conclude that we French are no longer alone in the world of multihulls and that is excellent news. We are entering a new era.
We can see too that since The Race, 12 giant multihulls have been built, including four in the past three years. So today there are certainly enough boats of sufficient quality for us to propose this event relaunch to their skippers and partners, without counting any new multihulls, which may be built following on from this by 2013 or 2014.
I have noticed that some major brands have been looking at the possibilities offered by the Volvo Ocean Race, which I can fully understand, but this does indicate that there is simply no alternative international race for multihulls. And just to conclude, others around me have become aware of this and share this feeling and my discussions with the leading G-class skippers have led me to move things forward in this direction.
The new 100-foot class (of which three are already up and running and a fourth is about to be made ready) has shown what these innovative boats can do sailing around the world via the three legendary capes while budgets remain limited. So, in this respect, it is now much easier to be able to take part in The Race.
Why 2013 or 2014? To place the event in between two editions of the Volvo Ocean Race and to offer the main international challengers the possibility of taking part in the event. This time frame will enable teams to draw up their project and get things moving by attracting a group of ambitious and enthusiastic partners.”
The organising team is being formed
After talks with various agencies specialising in sports marketing, Bruno Peyron has decided to award the overall management of The Race event to Thierry Reboul. Former Head of Advertising for Air France and Head of Communications at Alcatel, Thierry Reboul was the founder of the Ubi bene agency, which specialises in promoting events.
He will in particular be in charge of organising and negotiating with the main partners and the official event sites.
A call for tender will be launched to complete the arrangements with an international team, which will be appointed as executive producers.
Comments:
Grant Dalton, Winner of The Race: “When Bruno Peyron announced he was launching The Race, with my experience of round the world sailing, it immediately interested me. Although the Jules Verne Trophy was fascinating, what really attracted me here was the idea of a real race with other boats. Thanks to Bruno’s vision, I was able to experience the finest moment of my professional career. The maxi-catamaran Club Med was the first of her kind, measuring 108 feet and able to cover more than 600 miles day after day. She was a marvel and I was privileged to be on board. The Race opened the way to more extreme sailing. It pushed back the limits and allowed us to do what had previously been thought impossible. This race remains by far the highlight of my 25 years of professional sailing. The idea of relaunching The Race will move the world of sailing another step forward.”
Pascal Bidégorry, Skipper of the maxi-trimaran Banque Populaire V, holder of the North Atlantic record: “Since Banque Populaire V was built, taking part in The Race has seemed obvious to me. I experienced the first edition as a spectator and I can still remember the enthusiasm that surrounded this race. After a few years of sailing multihulls and when you are lucky enough to sail on a maxi-multihull like Banque Populaire, I can’t imagine taking part in all these record attempts without entering an event like The Race. These are fabulous boats and battling it out around the world in real time is incredible. I admire what they do in the Volvo Ocean Race, but from a race and sailing perspective, there’s nothing like The Race.”
Francis Joyon, the single-handed round the world record holder: “I think that any project, which gets our giant multihulls racing is something that needs to be looked at, particularly when the idea comes from Bruno, who has so much experience in this field.”
Lionel Lemonchois, winner of the last Route du Rhum and who was on board Team Adventure in the first edition of The Race: “It’s great to hear that Bruno is relaunching The Race. He is finally giving us an opportunity to race around the world aboard these incredible maxi-multihulls. Personally, this race led me to discover these fantastic machines and I have some great memories of it. With another challenge ahead, I hope to be there….”
For More information about The Race Click HERE
Groupama 3 Prior to 2008 Jules Verne Attempt (Photo by George Bekris)
Since Magellan’s expedition, circumnavigation has inspired sailors, but the first to have covered the globe without stopovers were the solo sailors participating in the Golden Globe Race of 1968. The crewed course only began in 1993, to inaugurate the Jules Verne Trophy, held to date by Bruno Peyron in a time of fifty and a half days…
In 1985, the Jules Verne novel greatly inspired Yves Le Cornec and a few companions (Yvon Fauconnier, Florence Arthaud, Jean-François Costes,…). They refitted Eugène Riguidel’s giant trimaran, William Saurin, which did the crossing from Québec to Saint Malo at an average speed of 12.98 knots. A performance, which was enough to envisage a circumnavigation of less than 80 days… This ambitious project was as crazy as Phileas Fogg’s gamble and didn’t get off the ground due to lack of financing. It was put to the back of the cupboard of anecdotes until the arrival of the first Vendée Globe Challenge in 1989.
After Olivier de Kersauson and Philippe Monet, single-handed round the world recordmen, Titouan Lamazou shattered the course time with 109 days 8 hours and 48 minutes. This was enough to relaunch the 80 day challenge for these sailors, who just back from the Annapurna of the seas, wanted to conquer Everest!
The idea was taken up by all the great figures in sailing, with projects as vast as the three oceans they cross! In August 1990, Yvon Fauconnier played host to Jean-Yves Terlain, Loïck and Bruno Peyron, Florence Arthaud, Titouan Lamazou, Peter Blake and Robin Knox-Johnston, on the canal boat moored at the island of La Jatte… to organise an association and a start and finish point, between Lizard Point and the Créac’h lighthouse on Ushant. Recognised in sporting terms by the IYRU, morally supported by the Jules Verne Society, politically backed by the Ministers of National Education, Culture, Sports and the Sea, the “Round the World in 80 days Association” didn’t win unanimous support among the pretenders.
Finally Olivier de Kersauson was to be the first to launch himself into it as time was pressing: though Phileas Fogg wasn`t worried by weather conditions, the sailors only had one `window’ with which to leave, from November until mid-February. In great secrecy he refitted his trimaran Poulain, extended to 27 metres. British skipper Robin Knox-Johnston and Kiwi Peter Blake then bought Formule Tag, Mike Birch’s former catamaran. Latest on, Bruno Peyron modified Jet Services IV and he too set off in this winter of 1993: he was the first to descend below the 80 day barrier!
Orange II (Photo by George Bekris)
On 20th April 1993 Bruno Peyron headed a team which completed the first legendary round the world in 79 days, 6 hours, 15 minutes and 56 seconds and thus became the first crew to win the `Jules Verne Trophy’.
In seventeen years there have been twenty attempts to beat the record, only six of which have borne fruit: Bruno Peyron in 1993, Peter Blake and Robin Knox-Johnston in 1994, Olivier de Kersauson in 1997, Bruno Peyron in 2002, Olivier de Kersauson in 2004 and Bruno Peyron again in 2005.
In 2005, Bruno Peyron placed the bar very high: 50 days, 16 hours, 20 minutes and 4 seconds… It is the main aim of the year once again and a challenge taken up by Franck and his men.
Fast Forward To January 2008
Franck Cammas and his nine crew were constantly ahead of the record time set by Géronimo and Orange 2. Yet we recall that off New Zealand on a certain 18th February, the port float snapped, leading to Groupama 3′s capsize.
Groupama 3 Capsizes In The Pacific Ocean During 2008 Jules Verne Trophy Attempt (Photo by DR)
Though the men were safe and sound and quickly airlifted by helicopter by New Zealand rescuers, the maxi trimaran was badly damaged. However, thanks to the unfailing support of Groupama, the trimaran was towed, lifted onto a cargo ship and has since been restored to its former glory at the Multiplast yard in Brittany.
For its second attempt, Franck Cammas will have a reinforced and developed Groupama 3, as well as a loyal crew completed by a few new faces.
Time to beat: 50 days, 16 hours, 20 minutes and 4 seconds
The Jules Verne Trophy course is 26,000 nautical miles. It begins by crossing the start line defined by an imaginary line linking the Créac’h lighthouse on the island of Ushant and the Lizard Point lighthouse. From there the aim is to circumnavigate the globe by leaving the Cape of Good Hope, Cape Leeuwin and Cape Horn to port, and crossing the finish line, described above, in the opposite direction.
Orange II Skippered by Bruno Peyron
(click on image below to view gallery)
Orange II Photo by George Bekris
