Birds fly south

Emma Richards and Mikaela von Koskull make their final preps for the Jacques Vabre

Above: Emma Richards (left) and Finnish crewwoman Mikaela von Koskull.

In the build up to the Jacques Vabre the boat was based in Lorient, from where Richards says it was easy to sail for training purposes and close to the centre of the 60ft trimaran universe (equidistant between the Breton ports of La Trinite-sur-Mer and Port la Foret). Unfortunately getting in the way of their training for the race was an amount of work which had to be done to the boat to make her conform to the Offshore Racing Multihull Association rules. The boat has not been raced competitively in France since Fossett took her in the Route de Rhum four years after Arthaud's victory and the rules have developed considerably in the interim.

Although seemingly simple, one of the most problematic jobs was reducing the length of the bow sprit. There have been a number of other modifications to make, notably to the safety gear to bring the tri in line. "We've ended up doing more boat work this week," commented Richards. "We've had to add more stanchions as they must be 2.13m apart and no more than that."

Considering that the much respected trimaran sailor Paul Vatine was lost when his boat capsized in this race two years ago, it is no surprise that the race organisation takes their safety regulations seriously. One gets the impression Richards is surprised by the amount of mods they have had to make to the boat to make it comply. "At the end of the day it doesn't affect racing but it is time we could have spent training."

And training is what Richards and von Koskull, as experienced as they are, profoundly need in a fleet where the crew expertise is so great that someone such as Michel Desjoyeaux, recent winner of the Vendee Globe, is taking part as a crew rather than a skipper.

The boat is also a little long in the tooth compared to the gleaming new competition. Away from France it hasn't undergone the continual tweaks that the French crews have made to their steeds. Wingmast technology especially has progressed greatly and all the modern boats have rigs which can be canted to weather to give them extra pace, a feature the new Pindar does not have. Richards admits that the new boats are a breed apart, but says they have the same mast height even if they are short on sail area compared to the newer boats - this may prove significant on the course south to Ascension Island and on to the finish in Salvador da Bahia in Brazil. However they do have some new sails in the form of a main from the Incidences loft in La Rochelle and a genniker and Solent jib from North in La Trinite.