EDS race favourite

Ed Gorman talks to Sill skipper Roland Jourdain, currently negotiating his entry in the next Vendee Globe...with his wife

Roland 'Bilou' Jourdain starts the EDS Atlantic Challenge as the firm favourite by virtue of his consistently high quality performances in the inshore grand-prix which have preceded it. With excellent crew work and probably the fastest boat in the seven-strong fleet off the wind, Bilou and his co-skipper Gael Le Cleac'h in Sill are the men to beat.

But Bilou, who finished third in the Vendee in the Marc Lombard-designed Open 60, is not convinced by the pre-start favouritism. He reckons Mike Golding and his crew in Ecover (formerly Team Group 4) will be a potent threat especially downwind, and Ellen MacArthur and her team in Kingfisher will be dangerous upwind and in light airs.

"I think downwind Golding's boat is very good because it has less wetted area than mine," Bilou told madforsailing, as he continued his preparations for the start. "But in reaching - in certain conditions of wind - I think Sill is very fast. When reaching, Sill is very powerful; she can go and go and go. But Kingfisher is good in light winds and upwind every time."

Bilou believes that during the Vendee, Sill and Kingfisher matched up well downwind when being raced single-handed. However once the boats are fully crewed in the EDS grand prix, he admits Sill may have the edge (as Kingfisher's co-skipper Nick Moloney clearly believes). "With crew - we'll see - maybe we are a little bit faster," said Bilou.

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