Would you believe it? 65-year-old Jean Le Cam is in first place in the Vendée Globe, in his brand new, but non-foiling IMOCA 60?
Will he hold the lead all the way around the planet? Probably not, but who cares, he is in front now.
And who knows, a dagger-board boat will be easier on him, and itself in this race of attrition, so I’m pulling for another top-five position for Jean, to go with his 4th, again on a non-foiling boat, in the last running.
Maybe he can even make the podium this time. Wouldn’t that be something for a guy at retirement age on a non-foiler?
Often in long races it’s not about top speed it’s about how much of the time you go quite fast, and, above all, how often you go the right way, and Jean is a master at the last two.
Yes, all of the others are younger and many have faster boats, but you gotta drive hard and be super-smart to beat any sailor who has won three Solitaire du Figaro titles, even if the last one was a quarter century ago.
And none of that freeze-dried crap, or at least less, for Jean. He carries fine paté and other good food—weight be damned. I like the man’s style.
Go Jean Le Cam!
Hooray for the Old Sailors of the world.
You go Jean!
A man who learned from, sailed and competed with E Tabarly 👍
As he say’s : Bien dire, faire rire; bien faire, faire taire !
The best for him and his followers !
Go Jean Le Cam, indeed! And with paté—I like the man’s style, too!
I met him briefly a couple of times around mid nineties, when I also raced extreme classes in France. I immediately noticed him for having his own competent opinions and style, and being fun to bullshit with. Never underestimate someone who can make good jokes. 😅
life is too short for freeze-dried food, indeed! As it is for uncomfortable ships.
good for him and an inspiration for old geezers who still sail or are getting close to do so.
The last of the youngsters still competing at this level who sailed with Tabarly – what a legacy.
Go Jean!
It’s a testament both to the skill and guile of the skippers, and to the talents of the naval architects, that a boat of this size and power can be single-handed at all, let alone by someone who’s eligible for the senior’s discount.
So far, it’s proving to be a very competitive race. At the time I write this, Jean is in 21st of 39, with the fleet having largely been divided between those who stayed near to a shortest-distance course (and are now a little behind) versus those who took a risk heading farther west and betting that a forecast favourable wind would come in (it did, and that group are now the leaders).
There are some interesting lessons from this kind of racing that tie into the “How big is too big?” discussion on here. I would certainly not advocate for a single- or double-handed cruising boat to fly a 180 m2 (!!!) sail. But…. imagine what cruising boats might be like if they received the level of engineering effort with respect to sail handling, running rigging, and contingency planning in case of failure that these IMOCAs do?
concerning your last sentence, this can and is done in some cases. the adventure 40 is an example, or some of the cruising designs from architects with extensive Imoca and Class 40 experience.