Race for Water takes the lead

Steve Ravussin's crew beats Gitana in one race at the Krys Match

The second day of the Krys Match racing out of La Trinité-sur-Mer had it all weather-wise, with some clear spells, blue skies and a northwesterly wind of around 15 knots. The three MOD70s - Veolia Environnement, Foncia, Race for Water, and the modified ORMA 60 Gitana 11-Edmond de Rothschild Group, were able to put on a fantastic show and at the close of play today there is a new leader in Race for Water, skippered by the Swiss sailor Stève Ravussin.

Race For Water (3rd, 1st and 2nd) and Gitana 11- Edmond de Rothschild Group (2nd, 2nd and 1st) enjoyed an almost faultless round of races today.

In addition to the fact that they were very aggressive in the start phases, Stève Ravussin and his tactician François Morvan performed well and maintained the pressure over Gitana 11-Edmond de Rothschild Group. This enabled the Swiss crew to dominate in race 2, when for the first time they beat Josse's longer, faster trimaran.

Having dominated today’s first fleet race from beginning to end, Michel Desjoyeaux and his crew aboard the MOD70 Foncia found themselves vying with Roland Jourdain and Veolia Environnement in the following two, in what proved to be a race within a race. With the two crews battling on an equal footing, it was a game of cat and mouse, each taking turns to get the upper hand.

Stève Ravussin, skipper of the MOD70 Race for Water said: “We’re really happy! We got off to some good starts and managed to pull off the majority of our manœuvres. I’m very happy with my team, which is progressing very fast. François Morvan, our tactician adapted very quickly and called the laylines well. It’s not a done deal yet though! Let’s wait till tomorrow night!”

When asked about his role on board, François Morvan, 28, said modestly: "It's a team effort. We are eight on board and this victory is the result of a great team effort. We did a very good start today and it's always easier to make the right decisions when you're ahead. In this kind of race where the course is particularly short, the manoeuvres make the difference. What matters in the choice of tactics is to facilitate the work of the crew by anticipating the lengths well before the buoys, to be sharp with the lay-lines and to be at the right place at the right moment."

Since the first day the Race for Water crew has changed as Orange 2 veteran Seb Audigane had to stand down following an injury to his right index finger. He is recovering well. Fortunately the bone was not damaged, and he will return onboard soon. In the meantime, former Banque Populaire skipper Pascal Bidegorry came to the rescue. He is familiar with the boat as he was part of the crew when Race for Water competed in the Rolex Fastnet Race in August.

Sébastien Josse, skipper of the prototype Gitana 11-Edmond de Rothschild Group: “For us coming along to theKrys Match is the opportunity to observe our future rivals in the MOD70 class. At the end of the first two days of racing we can see that there’s little separating us now. The MOD70s have come up to our expectations, namely a trimaran capable of sailing in 30 knots of wind, without us having to effect repairs in the evening. Furthermore, the race format makes it possible to run a whole series of races, which leaves the playing field wide open in competitive terms!”

At the end of the afternoon, like yesterday, speed runs were held for the boats, going two at a time on a beam reach. Aside from the entertainment factor, these runs were mostly aimed at separating those boats which were tied on points after the day’s three races.

Thanks to the substantial audiovisual production package (six image and audio sources: helicopters, boats, plus onboard cameras on Veolia Environnement and Race for Water, complemented by two sources of 3D tracking) and a partnership with the AMP Visual TV Group, the last two Krys Match races of the day were broadcast live on the official website.

27 people were in charge of creating and producing this live show, watched by more than 2,000 people.

Results after the second day of racing:

1. Water Race for 52 points
2. Foncia 47 points
3. Veolia Environnement 47 points

Programme for Saturday 8 October in La Trinité-sur-Mer:

1000 to 1230 hours Pro-am
1400 to 1630 hours Three fleet races
1730 hours Prize-giving

To see the video below in its full screen glory, click on the bottom RH button in the viewer. And apologies - this video is 20 minutes long and takes a while to load (ie: go off and make some tea)