Guyot Environnement - Team Europe will not resume the third leg of The Ocean Race, but after the repair in Cape Town/South Africa will transfer the yacht directly to Itajaí/Brazil in order to rejoin the race on time and well prepared for the fourth leg. The decision to abandon the third leg was made by the sailing crew and technical team after the damage had been assessed and the repair work had begun.
"The decision has been made. We had no choice. If we had resumed the third stage and travelled around the Southern Ocean to Itajaí, we would have had no time to prepare for the next stage. We would always have been late on the other stages as well. In Itajaí we still have 60 per cent of the race to go. We may lose 20 per cent now, but we'll be ready for the remaining 60 per cent," explained skipper Benjamin Dutreux.
After the ultrasound examination (NDT) of the yacht, no further damage was found apart from the delaminated area on the port side of the hull in the cabin area, but the repair will still take some time. The current weather in Cape Town, with wind and rain, is not playing into the team's hands. In order to be able to carry out the work, the yacht was placed on the jacks between the two team containers. Tarpaulins were used to create a working area that was as sheltered from the rain as possible.
Before the delaminated area can be opened from the outside, Thomas Cardrin's tech team has reinforced the inner area with carbon laminate. On Wednesday, the outer carbon layer of the fuselage will be cut open and the Nomex core removed. The inner carbon layer will remain. The honeycomb structure will be replaced by a foam sandwich core, which will be glued on Thursday. Guyot Environnement - Team Europe received a lot of help from Team Holcim in procuring the foam sheets and carbon mats, as the special materials required were not readily available in South Africa.
After gluing in the sandwich foam, the open area will be glued back together with carbon fibre mats on Friday morning. Filling, sanding and varnishing work should complete the process by Sunday, before the yacht can go back into the water on Tuesday of next week.
"In the meantime, the sailing team is preparing for the transfer and the next stages. We can't intervene in the repairs, but we have four experienced boat builders for that," says Dutreux. A specialist from Holcim is also assisting with the work. "We are now planning the transfer and the next stages. The journey to Itajaí will be undertaken by part of the sailing crew and the technical team." Thomas Cardrin, head of the Guyot Environnement - Team Europe tech team, expects the yacht to be 100 per cent operational again after the repairs.
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Tatjana Pokorny
Sports reporter
