The rather extreme Sunday for all the sailors yesterday gave way to some less aggressive nautical jousting in terms of weather conditions this Monday, though they were just as thrilling. The wind was still very much in evidence in the Solent, with 8 to 14 knots of SW’ly, to which three to four knots of current could be added in places. Fortunately such climes clearly suited the Gitana Team.
If the sign of a true champion is knowing how to react in tricky situations then Yann Guichard and his three crew are well on their way to success. Slightly ruffled yesterday after their incident with Groupama 40 in race 11 and again in this morning’s coastal course, where they brought up the rear, the crew of Edmond de Rothschild Group rose above the situation and managed to turn the game around in style: “Since the start of this Grand Prix I can’t hide the fact that it’s the start procedures that have been causing us grief and it just hasn’t come easy up till now. Our result in the coastal course really cut me to the quick so I had to rapidly get that out of my system” admitted Yann Guichard. “This afternoon we got off to some better starts because I was more incisive and more of an opportunist. Once that phase goes well everything seems to fall into place for the next stage. However, we did have a few rather average passages across the start line but we were then able to make up some ground by threading our way along in all the little veins of breeze. The crew is young but we’re making progress with every race, so I’m confident about the future races”, enthused the skipper this evening, satisfied with the exploit his crew had pulled off today.
Despite everything and given the slender points deficit this evening between the top four boats, the skipper of Edmond de Rothschild Group was keen to be prudent and measured: “We mustn’t get carried away! We’ve had a good day, the dynamics are good, but we’re only halfway through this Grand Prix and there are still a lot of races to be run yet.”
Tomorrow, there’s a relaxed morning scheduled for the Extreme Sailing Series! The sailors will be able to make the most of a well-earned rest after three days of intense racing and the four men of Gitana Team certainly won’t be complaining: “This morning-off comes at exactly the right moment… There’s a steady pace to this competition and conditions are physically testing for the men so it will enable everyone to recharge their batteries.”
The first races of the day are scheduled to take place off Egypt Point at around 1700 hours tomorrow afternoon.
Provisional ranking of the Grand Prix of Cowes on 2nd August (after 19 races)
1. The Wave, Muscat (Paul Campbell-James) – 127 points
2. Oman Sail Masirah (Loïck Peyron) - 113 points
3. Edmond de Rothschild Group (Yann Guichard) - 112 points
4. Ecover Sailing Team (Mike Golding) - 112 points
5. Red Bull Extreme Sailing (Roman Hagara) - 106 points
6. Groupama 40 (Franck Cammas) - 97 points
7. Team GAC Pindar (Nick Moloney) - 82 points
8. The Ocean Racing Club (Mitch Booth) - 79 points
9. Veolia Environnement (Roland Jourdain) - 23 points
The crew of Edmond de Rothschild Group
Yann Guichard - Skipper, helm / Pierre Pennec – Mainsail trimmer / Thierry Fouchier – Headsail trimmer / Nicolas Heintz – Bowman