JL VDH is Alone! Why?

People are talking about the GGR, enthusiastic with this 50th anniversary resurrection of a great adventure and demonstration of the human spirit in a simple way. They feel comfortable with the ordinary bits. The boats, the rules and the challenge. But what is happening with Jean Luc VDH? Is he too fast, or the others too slow? Even JL VDH himself could not hold back the laughter in a recent satellite phone safety call on GGR Sound Cloud. I had to laugh with him. The fleet is spread over 5500 miles across the Oceans. “It is impossible? Crazy? I never thought of this!” he says.

Is he hiding a secret weapon? Or unique advantage? How can this be real? Capt’n Coconut is happy, and Esmeralda is OK to be at one with the world and sailing unlike Jean Luc. BUT how and why can JL VDH be so far into the future? People cannot understand. I know him and to me the answer is not only clear, but simple!

For every other entrant, this is a new and demanding world that surrounds them. They are isolated in the last great wilderness on earth where anyone can be free. It’s a friendly beautiful place they love that demands respect. Here they must and do sail with eyes wide open, constantly looking over their shoulder, happy to survive another day. They can feel vulnerable and rightly so. BUT not so for JL VDH who is at home, relaxed and at one with this life on the sea. He knows it so well from every perspective. He has been here in 6.5mtr boats and 24mtr boats, spending years of his life living all of it’s raw emotion. He really is the OLD MAN of the sea. He respects it’s power and absorbs it’s beauty with passion. He is comfortably at HOME in this water world. Only JL VDH can forget those other pressures and distractions facing the fleet. Only he can remain focused forward to that ultimate goal the finish line 24 hours every day.. This is his natural world.

All entrants are good sailors, but JL VDH is a FAST sailor too. He has been on the podium on four previous circumnavigating Races (BOC and VENDEE) and made a record-breaking run against the clock west about. But look at his summer club racing. He is a regular champion with crew in 36ft yachts to this day. Results against all comers young and old in the best boats. No one else in the fleet can match him for SPEED sailing. He can trim and drive a boat well.

With a lifetime of building, preparing, sailing and breaking boats while solo sailing oceans of the world, JL VDH gains a unique perspective of what it takes to get a boat ready. It becomes second nature and can feel ordinary, even boring. It becomes an important familiar process before you make to sea. But if this game is new, you must read books, talk to others and make judgments based on your best ideas. JL VDH does not need new ideas. He has ultimate EXPERIENCE. He knows how to do things and why, so gets on with it. No one else is on this level. It shows. If you look closely it really shows! His boat preparation and gear choice is perfect.

When you race solo four times around the world against the best in the world, you UNDERSTAND what must be done and when, if you wish to win. If you’re in a bunk and sense the need to trim sail, it is done immediately! Or is it? If you are there for the first time like many in the GGR, your focus and actions may be distracted, distorted, even intimidated by having to cope with just the ocean, or even surviving instead of trimming. And then, how hard can you push your boat. No one knows this better than JL VDH!

Everyone is in this race, but who is really RACING.? JL VDH certainly is. He wants to win. This is his ultimate dream since it all began reading about Bernard Moitessier, (in Paris Match magazine he still owns) as it happened 50 years ago. It was real time for him and now he is doing it. No one has that level of passion. He knows he has just one shot to do this. This is a mantra for him. If he thinks it needs to be done, JL VDH will get up to trim sails when the pain makes it hurt, simply because it needs to be done NOW. This is the man and this is the biggest reason WHY HE IS ALONE at the front.

He is incredible to watch. It is inspiring, and it is fun. He is 73! It makes me happy to see him enjoying his life through this Golden Globe a new cultural renaissance in Sailing that is changing the way the world looks at solo around the world racing. He makes it look easy. It is NOT! He makes it looks fast and he is.

As I say so often ADVENTURE HAS AN UNKNOWN OUTCOME. None more so than the 2018 GGR. JL VDH is a long way from the finish and he knows it, but to me and many others he is a champion and fun guy. He is also one part of an amazing group of sailors, the GGR family, throwing everything at their own personal dream, doing their own thing. Of the 18 who lined up at the start none is better than the other. They are all equal in my mind, just that some are faster!

The adventure continues.

Don

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DAY 106 – NEWS UPDATE

Jean-Luc Van Den Heede first into the Pacific
Abhilash Tomy on the mend after major back surgery
Gregor McGuckin returns home to Irish welcome

Dateline 16:30 UTC 15.10.2018 – Les Sables d’Olonne, France

Jean-Luc Van Den Heede continues to extend his lead over the 7 remaining Golden Globe Race yachts now stretched across 4,800 miles of the Southern Ocean. This last weekend saw the 73 year old Frenchman follow in the wake of Sir Robin Knox-Johnston’s yacht Suhaili 50 years ago by cutting inside Stewart Island on the southern tip of New Zealand to navigate through the treacherous Fouveaux Straight at night.

The short cut has gained him a further day advantage over second placed Dutchman Mark Slats (Rustler 36 Ophen Maverick) who is now some 2,000 miles astern, and not expected to reach the BoatShed.com Hobart film gate before Monday 22nd of October

STOP PRESS…STOP PRESS
Mark Slats injured during knock-down

At 16:00 UTC today, Dutch skipper Mark Slats alerted Race HQ that his yacht had just suffered two knock-downs in quick succession and that he had been hit by a toolbox flying across the cabin which may have resulted in him sustaining a cracked rib.

The tough Dutchman was not too concerned about the injury, but more about the sudden change in conditions. He reported that the winds had suddenly picked up to 30-35knots and that a 3 metre southerly swell was hitting Ophen Maverick on the beam. Race HQ is monitoring the situation and will make a safety call to Slats tomorrow.

News from India is that Abhilash Tomy, who underwent major back surgery last Thursday following his rescue in the Southern Ocean, is expected to make a full recovery. Capt. Sharma visited him in the INHS Kalyani Naval Hospital and tweeted “This naval legend now has a back of steel. The docs are totally floored by his sense of humour”
Tomy responded “Platinum Sir. My value has just gone up!”

Gregor McGuckin who was dismasted in the same storm also made the news on his return to Ireland today. Recalling his ordeal aboard his yacht Hanley Energy Endurance which suffered three knock-downs in quick succession, he admitted: “We were in the worst possible place to be in at the worst possible time” The seas were huge – 15 metres high and the biggest problem I had was keeping the boat facing downwind and not slewing round to be beam-on.”

When he heard from Race Control in Les Sables d’Olonne that Abhilash Tomy had been injured some 90 miles to the north he set up a jury rig to sail towards him, ”I thought I might be first on the scene – but praying that I wouldn’t be!”

It’s hard work in the calms too!

Since that storm conditions in the South Indian Ocean have been more kindly, but that can cause problems too as Mark Slats reported today.

“The last 14-15 days have been the heaviest so far. Everyone thinks that the storms are heavy, but the calms are much heavier. Its much more work. It all started just around 30 September; the wind left but there was still a lot of sea. After 3 days the sea was flatter, but when you sail with your spinnaker up you are busy day and night.

Just before this, I went into the water to clean the bottom of my boat. I was surprised how many barnacles were attached to the bottom. First I scraped the boat with a filling knife, then with sandpaper before finishing with a scourer. I came out of the water like an ice cube and set up the spinnaker. I flew it for 100 hours. So I have not slept for 100 hours, just naps of fifteen minutes.

I have also become kind of scientist. There were all kinds of jellyfish around the boat. Very special. In the calms I suddenly had a whale next to the boat, really super cool. He just came to take a quick glance and then left again.

Now I have NE wind. Sailing close hauled is boring. The boat comes loose and then it falls down again. Sleeping is very difficult because I am woken up by the waves. Sometimes it quiet for 15 minutes but then you have waves again and the boat comes loose again.

I can tell you, ‘things are not for free’ this moment of the race. It’s annoying. Fortunately, I make progress. I am not going that fast, but, I make an average of 5 knots. I sailed for 5 days close hauled. Yesterday the wind turned to the East 5 knots, almost no wind, then to the North, then back to the West. For the first time in 15-16 days I’ve very good wind now. I don’t know for how long. I do have south wind now, I am sailing half wind. I do 5 knots; it’s super nice.

A low-pressure system has passed over me. That gave a lot of rain last night; I was busy all night with jerry cans and buckets catching 70 litres of water. It’s nice to be able to drink just a little bit more. I even took the luxury this morning of brushing my teeth with fresh water – something I have not been able to do since the Atlantic.

I do not look forward to the Hobart [film drop]. I would rather have just sailed through. It may sound strange, but I am here in my own world. It sounds very weird but it makes sense to just continue. But then I do not have a map of Hobart any more, so that will be exciting!”

Water, water everywhere

Third placed Estonian Uku Randmaa (Rustler 36 One and All) also caught a good measure of fresh water yesterday but expressed concern that Britain’s Susie Goodall sailing her Rustler 36 DHL Starlight has been making up ground on his position. Uku is expected to reach the BoatShed.com Hobart film drop some time between 27-28th October with Goodall a couple of days behind.

Susie, who has been worried about dwindling water stocks in recent weeks, got more than she bargained for at the weekend after leaving one of her deck hatches open during a downpour. “I got more water in the boat than at any time during the race and now everything is wet.” She told Race HQ today.

Sixth placed American/Hungarian Istvan Kopar (Tradewind 35 Puffin) is also making good progress 7 miles behind Finland’s Tapio Lehtinen (Gaia 36, Asteria) but continues to be plagued by niggling problems. Without a working SSB radio, he cannot pick up commercial weather forecasts nor the accurate time signals required for celestial navigation. He’s relying on a wind-up clock instead. This past week, everything seemed to get on top of him when he messaged: “ANOTHER DAY IN GGR WHEN I MISS MY FAMLY & HOME TERRIBLY & QUESTION MY SANITY”

At the back of the fleet Russia’s Igor Zaretskiy and Australian Mark Sinclair appear to be competing to see who can make this global adventure last the longest. Now some 5,000 miles behind Race leader Jean-Luc Van Den Heede, they have been going nowhere fast in recent days and face having the shadow of Sir Robin Knox-Johnston’s virtual Suhaili overtake them. Both have stayed resolutely north of the Roaring Forty latitudes since rounding the Cape of Good Hope and are only now biting the bullet and heading southwards towards the westerly air-stream.

Award winners

Are Wiig was awarded a seamanship medal by the Norwegian Sailing Association his achievement in recovering from a 360° roll and dismasting 400 miles south of the Cape of Good Hope and sailing his OE32 yacht Olleanna under jury rig unaided the 400 miles north to Cape Town.

Irish skipper Gregor McGuckin has been voted Yachtsman of the Month by Afloat magazine readers, for recovering from a similar situation and going to the aid of fellow competitor Abhilash Tomy.

Latest positions at 12:00 UTC today 15.10.18

1. Jean- Luc VDH (FRA)Rustler 36 Matmut
2. Mark Slats (NED)Rustler 36 Ohpen Maverick
3. Uku Randmaa (EST) Rustler 36 One and All
4. Susie Goodall (GBR) Rustler 36 DHL Starlight
5. Tapio Lehtinen (FIN) Gaia 36 Asteria
6. Istvan Kopar (USA) Tradewind 35 Puffin
7. Mark Sinclair (Aus) Lello 34 Coconut
8. Igor Zaretskiy (RUS) Endurance 35 Esmeralda

CHICHESTER CLASS

1. Loïc Lepage (FRA) Nicholson 32 Laaland

RETIRED

1. Ertan Beskardes (GBR) Rustler 36 Lazy Otter
2. Kevin Farebrother (AUS) Tradewind 35 Sagarmatha
3. Nabil Amra (PAL) Biscay 36 Liberty II
4. Antoine Cousot (FRA) Biscay 36 Métier Intérim
5. Philippe Péché (FRA) Rustler 36 PRB
6. Are Wiig (NOR) OE 32 Olleanna
7. Gregor McGuckin (IRE) Biscay 36 Hanley Energy Endurance
8. Abhilash Tomy (IND) Suhaili replica Thuriya
9. Francesco Cappelletti (ITA) Endurance 35 007

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How safe is safe? Imagine it!

It’s been a fast three weeks since last offering my thoughts here. Long days, high emotion and real adventure. My energy has been drawn elsewhere but now I am back.

The first and only rescue of the GGR so far must rate as being as big as it gets. A multinational effort to rescue an injured sailor, as far from anywhere as you can be! They come no better. A true credit to all involved and we offer our heartfelt humble thanks.

Even media reports were responsible. For the first time since I can remember, compared to other RTW races, GGR missed the headline..” WHO PAYS FOR THE RESCUE” People seem to understand this was an experienced sailor, in a good boat, on a responsible adventure. He had planned for everything. The game changer was serious injury. If he had not been injured, ABHILASH TOMY would be sailing to Australia right now under a jury rig. So too GREGOR MCGUKIN who made the difficult and seamanlike decision to grab a lift home, simply because he could or should. In the future if he had a problem, some may question why he did not?

ABHILASH is recovering after surgery and GREGOR returns to Ireland on Monday. The response by some has been interesting. A GGR2022 entrant retired after the storm. His opinion now… you cannot make these boats safe any more! Better now than later as he may not have finished a GGR anyway. On the other side interest in entering the 2022 GGR has increased post the BIG storm.

Many of those who once thought the GGR was reckless, full of dreamers and old people have now changed their mind. Information and example have shown that old is just a number. These sailors are instead champions and dreamers with serious intent and care for detail doing amazing things. They grab life in all it’s dimensions with full vigor. What better example can you ask of any human.

The GGR is different from any other sailing race around the world and people are starting to like it. Our fan base grows rapidly as they become passionate fans and part of the GGR family. This is brutally honest adventure, played out by real people engaged in an epic struggle against time, isolation and the Ocean. They are coping in different ways. We watch as they overcome monumental hurdles struggling to keep it all together. These stories big and small are intriguing. The colour is immense.

The task of passing this story to you is left to me and my small team. Even for us it gets emotional. You tell us so often our stores are compelling, human and real. Yes it’s true. THANKS! In life the term HERO is thrown around often, but GGR entrants truly are, in their own way. These men and woman out there right now are surely inspiring.

Strangely some are still confused. When a sailing commentator suggested a GGR entrant had only one damaged sat phone, when the reality is that he has two sat phones, plus two satellite texting units, and a prominent French sailing magazine suggests GGR has no Race Director, when it has and always will. Another suggested GGR yachts had Hobie Cat rigs. (They were actually designed and built by the best in the business for the Southern Ocean). I wonder why? One phone call and we could have told them the facts.

When in the same commentary it is suggested that safety has moved on in 50 years and our slow GGR boats are dangerous, unable to move away from bad weather, I think they are missing the point. Sure a 60ft foiler glides easily at 25kts around bad weather using colorful satellite screens and in the future Artificial intelligence leading the way. But does that mean you must or can only solo circumnavigate in a Multimillion Dollar boat to be safe! Not in my lifetime that is certain!

How safe is safe when at 25kts you hit a whale? How safe is safe when you lose your mast extreme sailing at 25kts spray flying everywhere? How safe is safe when sadly 10 years ago in the same place as ABHILASH TOMY, a Vendee Globe skipper was seriously injured, incapacitated and needed a similar extreme rescue. GGR yachts are AS SAFE AS ANY OTHER. The ocean is unsafe, and we know that. It draws us in as all adventures do.

Nothing in this world compares to the challenge of the Golden Globe in a small boat, on a big ocean, over 240 days, in total isolation. Not the Vendee Globe, not the Volvo, not the Clipper Race nor anything planned in the future. Only the original 1968 Golden Globe is comparable. The GGR stands alone in the high tech fast world we live in.

When VITO DUMAS set out from Buenos Aires to circumnavigate the world solo via the great capes on 27th June 1942, in the middle of winter, his boat LEHG II was just 31ft long. It was a SAFE BOAT. When my Australian friends Jon Saunders, David Dix, Jessie Martin and Jessica Watson all set out on six successful non-stop solo circumnavigations, they were in little S&S 34 yachts. When Australian Kay Cottee became the first woman ever to complete a solo non-stop unassisted circumnavigation in 1988, she sailed in a boat basically the same size as a Rustler 36. They were all SAFE BOATS.

The power of imagination.

We receive many emails, messages and comments every day from GGR family around the world about their involvement and passion for this adventure. A few days ago I received the following from Anders in Denmark. It mentions one of our great objectives with the GGR when planning started four years ago. The power to excite people’s imagination as it used to be 50 years ago. Many comments mention this fact. It is the very same reason audio book sales are going crazy around the world. People have discovered the joy and experience of closing their eyes for a change and really thinking about it.

Dear Don and team

Just a quick little email greeting from Denmark with the warmest complements of your race handling and setup.

After following the event loosely over the past year or two, and quite closely over the past month, I have recently found that the skippers of the GGR are now entering my dreams at night in an extremely vivid way. I have followed ocean races before, but to my mind absolutely nothing compares to the GGR as a spectator sport. My interpretation is that the slowness of it and the lack of imagery facilitates my own imagination much much more than dramatic clips of VOR-boats in high seas, or the fancy media coverage of Olympic sailing, America’s Cup etc. etc..

It’s not just the relatability of these real-life sailors driving boats very similar to what is handled by average sailors. I believe it is the distancing and remediation of the vintage setup forcing me to make my own interpretation undigested by satellite images, 3D-modelling and other hi-tech gizmos digesting the experience. I learn so much more from following the GGR than from any other event.

Much of this comes down of cause to you and your team’s media handling which is no less than extraordinary in many ways. Not least (from a viewer’s perspective) in terms of willingness to share personal opinions, observations and all of these small and big observations around the race and the preparations. As a spectator it puts us mentally right in the race committee office with you. That is a new and very different experience. I have assisted in multiple regatta events, nationally and a few international. laying courses, taking finishing times, starting races, and done a bit of competing. But not even on the water in committee boats have I felt this engaged in a race in which I do not myself participate.

Dissertations in media studies could and should be written about this event. It is absolutely phenomenal!

Just a humble thank you….All the best….Anders

THANKS ANDERS AND ALL OUR MANY SUPORTERS…DON

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DAY 97 – Jean-Luc Van Den Heede passes through Hobart film gate with 1,600 mile lead over 2nd placed Mark Slats

Dateline 11:30 UTC 6.10.2018 – Les Sables d’Olonne, France

Jean-Luc Van Den Heede reached the BoatShed.com Hobart film gate at 07:30 local time on Saturday (21:30 UTC Friday) to drop film and letters before heading out of Storm Bay tro resume his lead in the Golden Globe Race.

The 73-year old Matmut skipper was in good spirits and sighted the lengthy preparation work for his 1,600 mile lead. “The boat is good, the self steering works well and I have only minor problems like a leaking window to deal with.”

Jean-Luc remained at anchor for 3 1/2 hours completing media interviews before making most of the the calm conditions to check his mast and rigging. He also tried to catch some sleep, but after 15 minutes returned on deck complaining that the conditions were “too calm to sleep!” He then set off to cross the South Pacific Ocean and round Cape Horn predicting that he would complete this solo circumnavigation back in Les Sables d’Olonne during the first week of February within 210 days

Dutchman Mark Slats, the second placed skipper, trails Van Den Heede by 1,600 miles and is not expected to reach Hobart for another 10 days.

To view interviews with Jean-Luc in English and French go to:

www.facebook.com/goldengloberace/

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DAY 96 – NEWS UPDATE

Jean-Luc Van Den Heede ETA at Hobart film gate is 06:00 ESAT Saturday, 20:00 UTC Friday

Dateline 10:00 UTC 5.10.2018 – Les Sables d’Olonne, France

At 08:00 UTC Friday, (18:00 local time) French Race leader Jean-Luc Van Den Heede. was 40 miles from the BoatShed.com film gate at Hobart, Tasmania, his Rustler 36 Matmut making 3.7knots. the 73-year old skipper is expected to sail in to Storm Bay and cross the line shortly after Dawn at 06:00 local time Saturday (20:00 UTC Friday)

All skippers are compelled to pick up a buoy and stop in Storm Bay for a minimum of 90 minutes to hand across film and letters, be interviewed by the media and meet family and team members. No one can board the yachts or provide any assistance and the skipper cannot disembark.

Each skipper will be interviewed live by Race Chairman Don McIntyre and answer questions from media gathered at GGR Race HQ in Les Sables d’Olonne . These interviews will be broadcast live on Facebook www.facebook.com/goldengloberace and coverage of Jean-Luc‘s arrival is planned to start 30 minutes before as he sails or motors into Storm Bay.

The Press boat will leave the Royal Yacht Club of Tasmania dock at 04:45 local time

Hobart Press contact: Don McIntyre

Race HQ live link and press conference in Les Sables d’Olonne
Media wishing to attend Jean-Luc Van Den Heede linked press conference at Race HQ in Les Sables d’Olonne at approx 21:00 French time, should contact Céline Trommenschlager – GGR Manager celine@goldengloberace.com + 33 (0)6 74 83 11 30

What is happening with the two Golden Globe Race yachts abandoned following the rescue of Gregor McGuckin and Abhalish Tomy?

Irishman Gregor McGuckin made no mention about abandoning his yacht Hanley Energy Endurance at the press conference held in Perth on Monday and has been unavailable for comment since. On 26th September Neil O’Hagen, spokesman for Team Ireland issued the following statement which the GGR republished in that day’s press update:

“During the controlled evacuation of Hanley Energy Endurance, McGuckin was instructed to leave the vessel afloat. The French fisheries patrol vessel Osiris instructed McGuckin that scuttling the vessel would be in breach of international maritime regulations. Hence, McGuckin removed all debris from the deck that could become separated, secured all equipment on board, and ensured the AIS beacon was active. The power source to the AIS device is solar panels which should remain active without any outside assistance, reducing the risk to other vessels. Precautionary steps were also taken to ensure the relatively small amount of fuel onboard is secure.”

On the same day Capt Dilip Donde, manager for Abhilash Tomy‘s campaign reported that there were plans to salvage Tomy’s yacht Thuriya, left drifting in the Indian Ocean when he was recovered by the crew of the French Fisheries Patrol ship Osiris on Monday. “The plan is for the Indian Navy to tow Thuriya to St Paul’s Island some 40 miles north, and leave a crew to make repairs and sail her to land.”

The Indian Navy have been unavailable to comment further.

GGR Race organisers believe the reason for the French Fisheries Protection vessel Osisis not allowing these skippers to scuttle their boats is because the waters surrounding this string of islands in the South Indian Ocean is disignated as an International Marine Park, and protected by law from being poluted deliberately. Responsibility for the yachts rests with the skippers, and not the Race organisers.

Commander Abhilash Tomy is expected to return to India tomorrow and will hopefully provide an update on his yacht.

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