Vendee Globe 2028 (Brit bias)

[ridgy]

So I don't understand why Pip still has the boat. Did the medallia just buy it for her outright? That would seem incredibly generous. I would have thought that the sponsor owned the boat and would sell to recoup whatever they could when the sponsorship ended. The murky world of sports sponsorship.

 

[dunedin]

Well done Sam G - Sam Goodchild is the IMOCA Globe Series Champion for the second time

 

[John_Silver]

Well done, indeed! It’s been a good year for the Brits (see post #69). With Will Harris breaking into the IMOCA Globe Series top ten. Plus Sam D (probably) bowing out of her IMOCA career (active skippering, leastways) with a top ten placing.

 

[John_Silver]

Pip preparing to step the mast this Wednesday. . . .



. . . . Before sailing back to Poole on Friday or Saturday. Foils on the deck. No main (lost during dismasting?) - jib only. “It’s baby steps.” Video on FB

 

[John_Silver]

Pip's mast ready to restep tomorrow - with a still day forecast for the crane.



Pip plans to sail, from Caen, on Friday. ETA in Poole is Saturday morning. Imagine that there will be a welcome committee assembled on the Quay. Maybe a few boats out too. Its taken a year, but she's (almost) got the boat home. A Force of Nature!



FB update video

EDIT: Lively forecast Fri/Sat on Meteo Consult:

 

[John_Silver]

Pip sets mast stepping to music (on FB). Meteo Consult still giving S veering SW, gusts peaking at 50+kts (this side of the Channel) and generally 40+kts, base wind 30+kts, Friday into Saturday. A tail wind but.......

 

[John_Silver]

Pip's going for it. "The boat is seaworthy but nowhere near racing condition"......."It's going to be really windy, so just sailing across with a small jib will be perfect." (Full story in FB vid - turns out that she does have a 'really nice' spare main. But not £7k to buy battens for it).



ETA Poole Quay 'early' Saturday AM. See you there!

PS: AIS is back on - Medallia Solo Sailor.

 

[John_Silver]

Pip under way



Plans to “peg it across the Channel…before the sea state gets too big.”

 

[John_Silver]

60(ish) nm to go (Orca shows Pip as the pin off Pte de Barfleur)



Tide turns east-going, on her, 18.00 through to around 23.00.

 

[John_Silver]

Just 7 hrs later (no foils & jib only remember) Pip has passed the Bar Buoy. Boat and skipper home for Christmas.



Who knows what adventures the New Year will bring? Can’t wait to find out…..

 

[John_Silver]

Pip’s Christmas ‘Name the Boat’ prize draw New Year. New start.

​

 

[dunedin]

As an aside, I am surprised that Poole is a deep enough harbour for a modern Open 60

 

[John_Silver]

As an aside, I am surprised that Poole is a deep enough harbour for a modern Open 60

Quay and approaches are dredged to min 6m below CD. To provide all tides access for the ferry ‘Barfleur' (5.5m draft from memory). If the UK rye crop fell short, we used to bring a cargo in at the Quay, to keep the Ryvita factory running. Those coasters drew around 5m too. So Pip's IMOCA (4.5m draft) is fine, in the Ship Channel.