14.05.2011
Groupama 4: A great sense of pride
Today, Saturday 14 May, Groupama 4, the first Volvo 70 built in
France, was launched at 1400 GMT, opposite Groupama Sailing Team’s base in
Lorient. Groupama’s representatives, the sailors, the members of the shore
team and an enthusiastic crowd attended this important stage of the project
led by skipper Franck Cammas.
Lined faces betrayed the fatigue amassed over recent days. After
nearly 50,000 man hours, the monohull Groupama 4 is now ready to traverse
the globe’s seas.
Australian Ben Wright, head of the shore team with five Volvo Open 70 build
projects already under his belt, seems particularly satisfied with the work
achieved by the team. “It’s a big day… in a long series of big days! We
still have a few miles to cover with Groupama Sailing Team. However, at
least now we’re done with the sketches: the boat is here in front of us.
We’re tired but that’s par for the course after all these man hours. We’ve
worked hard but we’re not stopping here! It’s only just begun in fact!”
The sense of pleasure is palpable and the event brings everyone
together. After all the difficulties that have to be surmounted during a
project of this scale, Groupama 4 is now floating in the port of Lorient. As
such Franck Cammas and his men have taken another step in the history of the
Groupama Sailing Team: “In the construction of a yacht, the further you push
the thought processes, the better you understand things, but the more
difficult it becomes to make choices. You’re always keen to go into things
deeply but there’s a deadline where you have to stop thinking and
concentrate on making ideas a reality. Today, a new side to the work begins
in the form of sail trials. And for the all those involved in the project,
now is the moment of truth”.
In sailing, the competition begins well before the warning signals for the
race start. It’s in the minds of the men behind the boat’s design, in the
gestures of the boat builders and all those taking part in the project, that
a victory is built.
When you decide to take part in a project of this size, you’re never
sheltered from obstacles. Franck Cammas: “You encounter difficulties
everyday. When you have to make choices, you’re bound to have to overcome
obstacles. As was the case during construction of the first three Groupama
boats, we encountered problems here too: it was inevitable that there were
differences to the original schedule… There were a few timings which weren’t
adhered to, some adhesion processes which had to be redone and parts that
had to be rebuilt… That’s another reason why I’m proud of the work my team
has done. Thank you to them, thanks to Juan Koujoumdjian, our architect, and
thanks to Groupama, without whom we wouldn’t be here!”
Jean-Luc Baucherel, President of Groupama, travelled to Lorient with
around fifty representatives from Groupama Loire Bretagne: “It’s an
important day for Groupama as our first monohull has been launched. Five
years of new adventures lay in store. We’ll be able to weigh up our
performance against the best Anglo-Saxon crews during the next two editions
of the Volvo Ocean Race. This is a whole new concept for Groupama but we are
in no doubt about the abilities of Franck Cammas and his crew to be up there
with the frontrunners. We’re taking over from a great sailor called Eric
Tabarly and we hope we can be worthy of him and carry France’s colours high.
We were familiar with the multihull and, today, we’re ready for a new series
of competitions aboard a monohull. It is with great enthusiasm and pride
that we are competing in this new competition”.
Although the phase in the yard is over for the members of the shore crew,
sail trials are set to begin on Tuesday 17 May for the sailing crew. The
next major stages which will punctuate the life of Groupama Sailing Team
between now and the start of the Volvo Ocean Race will be the christening of
Groupama 4 on 11 June in Lorient, then the Fastnet Race in the UK on 14
August. In the latter, Franck Cammas and his crew will, for the very first
time, be able to see how Groupama 4 fairs in relation to her future rivals.
Technical specifications for Groupama 4:
LOA: 21.50m
Beam: 5.70m
Water draught: 4.50m
Displacement: 14 tonnes
Keel: swing
Material: carbon honeycomb sandwich
Upwind sails: 315m²
Downwind sails: 675m²
Architect: Juan Kouyoumdjian
www.groupama.com
The Volvo Ocean Race
A crewed round the world race with stopovers, the Volvo Ocean Race, formerly
known as the Whitbread, will set out from Alicante (Spain) on 5 November
2011 for its eleventh edition. Spanning 9 months and 10 stopovers, the
participating crews will cover over 39,270 miles over 4 oceans. The race
will conclude in Galway (Ireland) on 7 July 2012 after making a stopover in
Lorient, France, Groupama Sailing Team’s base, from 16 June to 1 July 2012.
Groupama 4 is the first French boat to compete in the event since 1993.
www.volvooceanrace.com
www.cammas-groupama.com
Translated by Kate Jennings – Expression
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