Vendee 2020

[MicHughV]

The Vendee started today....gonna be interesting to see how this new crop of foilers do. As long as you can keep them together, they fly.

Like to see Alex Thompson on the podium this year as # 1. He is a plucky lad.

They all are, but nobody walks a mast like he does !!

[bil56]

you can follow them on
https://www.vendeeglobe.org/fr/cartographie

light wind on the aerea, already average speed >17kts !

[B23iL23]

I too would like to see Alex Thomson make it (and I'm Irish!). He's put so much into this time and again. However he has spent so little time in the boat and it's a really complicated boat , he's basically starting from scratch.

The other fav boats are all well debugged and understood so he's going to have to have a perfect race and some Irish luck on his side to win it.

Fingers crossed.

Originally Posted by MicHughV

The Vendee started today....gonna be interesting to see how this new crop of foilers do. As long as you can keep them together, they fly.

Like to see Alex Thompson on the podium this year as # 1. He is a plucky lad.

They all are, but nobody walks a mast like he does !!

[MicHughV]

I watched the start....it was a slow start, but things started picking up...heavy French presence, so Alex will have his work cut out for him, the French are masters at this game.

To me, the big challenge is staying awake and/or finding time for a nap, all the while doing 30 knots...I've done some singlehanded sailing, it is brutal.....

And of course, hitting something...anything...in the southern ocean at full clip. Nah, it's not for me, maybe if I was 40 years younger....but I admire those that do it.

I wouldn't mind a daysail on one of these jets in a good breeze...that would certainly get the adrenalin flowing...

[ausnp84]

I saw Alex’s boat in Portsmouth last year... wow. Very, very cool!!

Looking forward to following this year’s race.

N

[MicHughV]

all these boats are amazing...surfing downwind on my boat I sometimes....briefly...saw 10-12 knots...but more often than not...plugging away at 5-6 knots....30 plus knots was attainable only in my fishing boat powered by twin outboards.....it doesn't sound fast...but bouncing from one wave to the next was/is a white knuckle experience...

for the life of me, I don't understand how these sailors rest/sleep in these conditions...they seem to be always one short step away from disaster...

Alex uses a beanbag as his " bed"....smart.....sink down in it and you'd have some protection in the event of an impact...ablution facilities are equally basic...a "good" sleep is 40 minutes of shut eye....and you need to do this non-stop for 70-90 days....what more is there to say....men...and women....of steel !!

[MicHughV]

well...that didn't take long....1st boat has already turned around...

[ausnp84]

Originally Posted by MicHughV

well...that didn't take long....1st boat has already turned around...

Not surprising really - same as F1 these cars are on the leading edge of technology, and some retirements have to be expected.

Feel sorry for the skipper tho - he must be gutted!

N

[GordMay]

Originally Posted by bil56

you can follow them on
https://www.vendeeglobe.org/fr/cartographie

En Anglais:
➥ https://www.vendeeglobe.org/en
➥ https://www.vendeeglobe.org/en/news
➥ https://www.vendeeglobe.org/en/presentation

Fabrice Amedeo is heading back to Les Sables d´Olonne for a pit stop
➥ https://www.vendeeglobe.org/en/news/...for-a-pit-stop

[ausnp84]

Originally Posted by GordMay

En Anglais:
➥ https://www.vendeeglobe.org/en
➥ https://www.vendeeglobe.org/en/news
➥ https://www.vendeeglobe.org/en/presentation

Fabrice Amedeo is heading back to Les Sables d´Olonne for a pit stop
➥ https://www.vendeeglobe.org/en/news/...for-a-pit-stop

Thanks for this! Seems they’re periodically having SQL servers errors but the site comes back up pretty quick.

N

[Yellowtulip]

Originally Posted by MicHughV

I watched the start....it was a slow start, but things started picking up...heavy French presence, so Alex will have his work cut out for him, the French are masters at this game.

To me, the big challenge is staying awake and/or finding time for a nap, all the while doing 30 knots...I've done some singlehanded sailing, it is brutal.....

And of course, hitting something...anything...in the southern ocean at full clip. Nah, it's not for me, maybe if I was 40 years younger....but I admire those that do it.

I wouldn't mind a daysail on one of these jets in a good breeze...that would certainly get the adrenalin flowing...

Some of them have some advanced technology. There's a system called Oscar (sp?) attached to the keel that sends a sonar ping ahead of the boat looking for objects in the water.
Another one is a wide-angle infra-red camera on the mast.

[Yellowtulip]

Originally Posted by Yellowtulip

Some of them have some advanced technology. There's a system called Oscar (sp?) attached to the keel that sends a sonar ping ahead of the boat looking for objects in the water.
Another one is a wide-angle infra-red camera on the mast.

I got that wrong. OSCAR is the camera-based system, it uses RGB, thermal imaging and artificial intelligence.
https://www.oscar-navigation.com/ind...racing-series/

I haven't been able to trace the forward looking sonar yet, perhaps it's the conventional system.

[MicHughV]

y'know...I'm a retired structural marine engineer...and I look at these boats and my mind is filled with every possible thing that could possible go wrong or break, especially so, if they were to hit anything. But these boats are extremely high tech, just the hull alone takes a year or more to make.....and off course, the builder is trying to shave off every ounce that they can. It would be fascinating to be involved with the design and construction of one of these things. Modern day computer skills...3D Autocad and a variety of computer load models and the like make it all possible, just like the America's Cup boats.
I would love to see this technology drift down to the average cruising boat, makes me wonder. My first hull was 3/16" steel plate...a far cry...a very far cry..from these.

But at the end of the day, there is still a human being on board that has to make it all come together.

[Knotical]

I have been following the prep & interviews and the tech is fascinating, saw the beginning and already checked on the track and standings a few times, coming days and weeks should be exciting.

Btw, Alex Thompson posted a daily update, had a couple of hiccups it seems like which explains his slow progress and standing so far.

https://youtu.be/QVZSYK6ALDM

[MicHughV]

interesting that the non-foilers are in the lead at present time....those foilers need a certain amount of speed to be affective...the southern ocean will be where they will shine..