The summer heatwave has in no way slowed the Mirabaud team’s preparations for the start of the Transat Jacques Vabre scheduled for the 30 October at 13:02 off Le Havre.
The moment the new mast arrives in La Rochelle on the 12 September, it will be stepped, tuned and tested, as will the new sails and then Mirabaud will head straight to Le Havre ahead of the start of the race. Before the yacht crosses the line however, dozens of little jobs must be attended to: provisioning, calibrating the navigation equipment, media and sponsor appearances, plus the specific pre-race preparations…
“We are preparing for the race backwards, that is to say, the opposite way to how we would usually prepare,” explains Dominique. “In a normal scenario, we would start with the training and only prepare the baggage right at the end. In this case, we have already packed our clothes and some of the provisions, plus our spare parts, etc. Our goal is to be able to devote all our time and concentration on the mast when it arrives and the subsequent training. We have prepared a meticulous operations schedule that is adapted to our special circumstances.”
For the moment, all is going to plan and the road map is being followed to the letter. Dominique and Michèle were even able to take a week off to go mountain biking in the hills behind Nice.
The technical team also slowed their pace, so the team will be well rested going into the last phase before the race.