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Team Groupama
Franck Cammas : "It’s only just begun in fact !"
samedi 14 mai 2011 –
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Lined faces betrayed the fatigue amassed over recent days. After nearly 50,000 man hours, the monohull Groupama 4 is now ready to traverse the globe’s seas. Australian Ben Wright, head of the shore team with five Volvo Open 70 build projects already under his belt, seems particularly satisfied with the work achieved by the team.
“It’s a big day… in a long series of big days ! We still have a few miles to cover with Groupama Sailing Team. However, at least now we’re done with the sketches : the boat is here in front of us. We’re tired but that’s par for the course after all these man hours. We’ve worked hard but we’re not stopping here ! It’s only just begun in fact !”
The sense of pleasure is palpable and the event brings everyone together. After all the difficulties that have to be surmounted during a project of this scale, Groupama 4 is now floating in the port of Lorient Lorient L’actualité du port de Lorient et de sa région. . As such Franck Cammas and his men have taken another step in the history of the Groupama Sailing Team :
“In the construction of a yacht, the further you push the thought processes, the better you understand things, but the more difficult it becomes to make choices. You’re always keen to go into things deeply but there’s a deadline where you have to stop thinking and concentrate on making ideas a reality. Today, a new side to the work begins in the form of sail trials. And for the all those involved in the project, now is the moment of truth”.
“You encounter difficulties everyday. When you have to make choices, you’re bound to have to overcome obstacles. As was the case during construction of the first three Groupama boats, we encountered problems here too : it was inevitable that there were differences to the original schedule… There were a few timings which weren’t adhered to, some adhesion processes which had to be redone and parts that had to be rebuilt… That’s another reason why I’m proud of the work my team has done. Thank you to them, thanks to Juan Koujoumdjian, our architect, and thanks to Groupama, without whom we wouldn’t be here !”
Although the phase in the yard is over for the members of the shore crew, sail trials are set to begin on Tuesday 17 May for the sailing crew. The next major stages which will punctuate the life of Groupama Sailing Team between now and the start of the Volvo Ocean Race will be the christening of Groupama 4 on 11 June in Lorient Lorient L’actualité du port de Lorient et de sa région. , then the Fastnet Race in the UK on 14 August. In the latter, Franck Cammas and his crew will, for the very first time, be able to see how Groupama 4 fairs in relation to her future rivals.
Info presse Welcome Onboard / www.cammas-groupama.com
Technical specifications for Groupama 4
LOA : 21.50m
Beam : 5.70m
Water draught : 4.50m
Displacement : 14 tonnes
Keel : swing
Material : carbon honeycomb sandwich
Upwind sails : 315m2
Downwind sails : 675m2
Architect : Juan Kouyoumdjian
Dans la même rubrique
Team Groupama : Groupama 4 safely into port in Lorient
Multiplast : Groupama 4 on her way out
Volvo Ocean Race : 1st 2011 Volvo Open 70 set sails in the Hauraki Gulf
Team Groupama : Groupama Sailing Team’s occupations from M34 to the shipyard
