And then there were none… just three days after two Ultims set off on a head-to-head around the world Jules Verne non-stop record bid, both return to France after suffering foil damage on the same dayThe two Ultim foiling trimarans which had set off on a Jules Verne Trophy around the world non-stop record attempt have both aborted their current circumnavigation.
\nFrancois Gabart\u2018s\u00a0SVR-Lazartigue\u00a0was first to end its record bid. At 0110 (UTC) this morning, Tuesday, December 3 the crew reported that they felt an impact while sailing in 25-30 knots of wind, around 500 miles from the Azores. The impact was described as a shock from an \u2018OANI\u2019, or an unidentified animal or object \u2013 the marine equivalent of a UFO.
\nThe crew discovered that the trimaran\u2019s starboard foil was damaged and made the decision to turn around, heading back to the team\u2019s home port of Concarneau, Brittany, as soon as possible. The Ultim is expected to reach port between Friday 8 and Sunday 8 December.
\nAfter three days of racing, the SVR-Lazartigue crew were at best 145 minutes behind Francis Joyon on IDEC Sport\u2018s record time from 2017. On day three the crew also hit a sustained speed of 49.9 knots.
\nSVR-Lazartigue was one of two foiling Ultims bidding for a Jules Verne Trophy record in 2024.
\nSodebo abandons Jules Verne attempt
\nSecond to abandon their attempt was Thomas Coville\u2019s Sodebo Ultim 3\u00a0The team reported that this afternoon, while making progress in the trade winds towards the Equator, the Sodebo Ultim 3 sustained damage to the central rudder.
\nThe team statement explained: \u201cFollowing an initial inspection, the crew noted the total loss of the central rudder flush with the bottom of the hull. Investigations are underway to determine whether the breakage of the central rudder stock was due to a mechanical problem or an impact.\u201d
\nHanging on for the ride: the crew of Sodebo during the Trophee Jules Verne attempt. Photo:Vincent Curutchet\/Team Sodebo
\nThe crew has also turned back to its team base in Lorient to make repairs. The Sodebo team confirmed that the boat has no water ingress or collateral damage and the sailors can return by their own means.
\nWhile both Ultims had initially set off within 12 hours of each other in what initially looked set to be a compelling head-to-head battle around the world, the notoriously vulnerable trimarans also both succumbed to foil damage within the same day.
\nThe question for both teams will be whether they can return to port, then get the complex trimarans back up to optimum record-breaking condition, in time to take advantage of any future weather scenarios that could offer a fast Atlantic southbound passage.<\/p>\n
Tom Laperche steering, jet fighter-style, on SVR-Lazartigue. Photo: Guillaume Gatefait
\nSVR-Lazartigue reported that: \u2018The team was hard at work exploring the different options including using their spare foil to go back to the Jules Verne Trophy as soon as a favorable weather window presents itself.
\nHeading for home
\nThe Sodebo tracker dashboard\u00a0includes a fascinating live chat function showing communication between the race crew, and the technical and routing teams ashore.
\nAt 1513 today the boat reported: \u2018Problem with the CC rudder.\u2019
\nThe technical crew can remotely monitor onboard telemetry, load cells etc, and observed that the boat had \u2018probably lost all the saffron (foil)\u2019.
\nHalf an hour later, the routing cell posted: \u2018Ok guys, we\u2019re coming back home, damn it. Phil, can you work on a safe route home? Thanks, sorry.\u2019
\nThe router added: \u2018It\u2019s hard for everyone, it [the challenge] was good.\u2019
\nSodebo skipper Thomas Coville. Photo: Vincent Curutchet\/Team Sodebo
\nThe technical team then added some advice to the team: \u2018You can open the whale hatch, check that there is no water first before a wave rises on the deck. Depending on what we see, we will probably have to open the inspection hatch to visually inspect the rest of the stock to be sure that it has not come loose from the lower bearing (risk of reaching the aft bulkhead).
\n\u201cCarefully inspect the torque tube and the entire chain connecting the rudders and the steering system.
\n\u201cWe can see on the telemetry that the clutch release worked [the Ultims have various \u2018shock-absorber\u2019 systems built in to protect the boat in the event of an impact] but a good check of the entire system is necessary.\u201d
\n\u00a0
\nThe post Foil damage halts Jules Verne record attempts: both Gabart and Coville\u2019s crews turn for home appeared first on Yachting World.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
And then there were none… just three days after two Ultims set off on a head-to-head around the world Jules Verne non-stop record bid, both return to France after suffering foil damage on the same dayThe two Ultim foiling trimarans … <\/p>\n