Dick double qualifier
Thursday May 31st 2007, Author: James Boyd, Location: Transoceanic
On 22 April 2007, Jean-Pierre Dick and Paprec-Virbac left New Zealand and have since been sailing their new Farr designed Open 60, Paprec-Virbac back to France. Following a crossing of the Pacific ocean without mishap, last week they sailed through the Panama Canal.
Paprec-Virbac will now get on with the qualifications on the Atlantic for the Barcelona World Race 2007 and the Vendée Globe 2008.
Since the lock gates of the Panama Canal were closed behind Paprec-Virbac, last Saturday, Jean-Pierre Dick and Damian Foxall have set sail for Halifax, Nova Scotia, 2,200 miles away, in order to qualify for the two-handed Barcelona Round the World Race. Following this Dick will then set off singlehanded for Lorient, 2,500 miles away to carry out his qualification for the Vendée Globe. If all goes according to plan Paprec-Virbac should reach France around0th June after a voyage of more than 11,200 miles (20,742 km) - the equivalent of half a lap of the world.
"One of the reasons for building in New Zealand was the return sail to France," explained Dick. "It is an excellent full scale test for a new boat. I think that it is a great advantage to be high-performing in the next Barcelona World Race."
How do find your new boat after crossing the Pacific Ocean?
"The boat is really sound. There have been no surprises. There is an increse in power between the two generations. Thanks to the trim tabs (adjustable tabs under the hull), the bow does not dive into the waves. This major innovation seems to be really interesting at certain points of sailing. We also wanted an ergonomic boat and this is a success. Manoeuvring goes smoothly and it is pleasant to live aboard both inside and out thanks to the sliders (sliding roof which protects from sea spray)."
What is your first assessment of this crossing?
"It is positive, even though we broke a few parts. That is why we came to get her. The most important thing is to iron out these small imperfections of this new prototype by sailing as much as possible. Among the new generation boats, Paprec-Virbac will certainly be the one with the most miles clocked up at the start of the Barcelona World Race, on 11 November 2007. This will be a major advantage helping us to perform well in this race."
How has the beginning of this qualification gone?
We had a large technical problem yesterday. The engine wouldn't start any more, but we managed to get around this crisis! We relayed each other at the helm all night. I've taken up the good old habits I had during the Vendée Globe again. I sang at the helm! This morning, cruising off Guantanamo (Cuba), Damian found the problem and everything has got back to normal. Luckily for us, since we wouldn't like to stop there! We didn't lose a foot because of it. We are a good team, and we get on well together. Damian has been there since Paprec-Virbac was launched and he has given a good deal to the project. He's an excellent co-skipper.
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