News Around the World
Who ya gonna call? Billy Besson of course. Whenever a very high-performance boat requires a Frenchman on the stick the four-time Nacra World Champion appears to be the one who always gets a phone call (especially if Franck Cammas is busy – ed). Besson’s first foray into the SailGP series was a very last-minute affair with a talented crew but who critically were lacking in foiling cat experience. Second time around Besson has had time to do his homework, including recruiting Ben Ainslie’s AC75 compadre Leigh McMillan as wing trimmer on the French F50 for 2021. Other cross-border America’s Cup recruits in the 2021 fleet include newly minted Japanese sailor Francesco Bruni-San, lately of the Luna Rossa parish, facing off against his former co-helmsman Jimmy Spithill on Team USA
Gabart’s former Macif, which holds the solo round-the-world record, was in Lorient to receive her new livery, have modifications to the daggerboard plus a new central rudder identical to those on the two new Ultims that are currently in build for Gabart and Le Cléac’h. ‘We even modified the main rudder installations that it has the
same bearings in the same place in order to facilitate, if necessary, the interchangeability of the rudders across these three boats [Actual Leader and the new Banque Populaire XI and M 101, all designed by VPLP],’ says Yves. The racing priority in 2021 is the Transat Jacques Vabre this
autumn and in 2022 the Route du Rhum, plus possibly other regattas on the Ultim circuit. From this spring Yves and his team will sail as often as possible. ‘We must familiarise ourselves with this extraordinary foiler. With elevators on all the foils we completely evolve into a new dimension… literally,’ insists the sailor from La Trinité, ‘as we decide the altitude we want to fly.’ Regarding the previous Actual Leader (ex-Sodebo 2), she has
been sold to an organisation – Brest Ultim Sailing (BUS) – in which Actual is one of the partners, to be made available for teams involved in Ultim competitions. Since the announcement, in August 2020, of the plan to acquire the trimaran Macif (M100) from François Gabart, made by Samuel Tual, president of Actual Group, Emmanuel Bachellerie, CEO of BUS, and a former Ultim Class committee member indicated an interest in the purchase of the former Sodebo. The agreement was sealed in principle at the end of 2020 and signed on 25 March. The BUS trimaran will be lifted from the water in the coming
weeks to be prepared for various proposals that may be received: charter, charter with an option to purchase, or resale… Everything is open as long as the trimaran is involved in the next races in which the Ultim trimarans participate (the Transat Jacques Vabre 2021, Route du Rhum 2022 and Brest Oceans 2023, at a minimum). BUS will also offer future operators all technical, sports and media assis- tance, if they so wish. Though the timing is tight for the next Transat
24 SEAHORSE
Jacques Vabre, everything will be done so that she can be on the starting line. The end of April is also time for the launch of the new Banque
Populaire XI, the conclusion of titanic work at CDK Technologies in Lorient. Ronan Lucas, director of the BP team: ‘We see the boat taking shape in front of our eyes, and she is even more impressive than we thought… In big projects small adjustments obviously need to be made and this is also what makes the construction exciting. It requires all the energy of a team to find the right solutions to deal with small problems. We have no major concerns and are committed to launch at the end of April.’ Meanwhile, at MerConcept in Concarneau, not far from Lorient,
François Gabart and his team are also involved in the assembly of ‘M101’. The launch of this new VPLP Ultim, whose design was driven by the pursuit of minimal aerodynamic drag, is scheduled for this summer. François Gabart: ‘Despite a complicated financial context the team are determined to deliver an exceptional multihull – our work is currently a week ahead of schedule. We’re moving for- ward really well technically and now there is a mixture of excitement and impatience to go sailing… ‘We are lucky enough to see the trimaran taking shape on a daily
basis and we look forward to feeling and showing the full potential of this boat. Obviously there is still a challenge at the economic and commercial level! But it’s moving in the right direction and, even if it doesn’t go as fast as I would like, our motivation remains intact to compete for fabulous races and new oceanic records.’ François Gabart’s main challenge other than building the 32m
stealth weapon is to find a partner as soon as possible to campaign the giant trimaran as Macif has decided to withdraw from the Ultim circuit. The boat is for sale and the sooner it is sold the better. In the same MerConcept yard Apivia, the first Imoca across the
Vendée Globe finish line, is being prepared for the upcoming season. And an electric foiling catamaran is also being manufactured! Patrice Carpentier
JEAN-MARIE LIOT/DPPI
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