The Chinese team sponsored by Dongfeng Motor Corporation, lies in second place overall – five points behind the Spanish crew – going into the 7,600-nautical mile marathon Leg 7 through the Southern Ocean and round Cape Horn – the most feared headland in world sailing.
“I think everybody is ready – everybody realises that we are at a key moment in the race but we are in a good position,” said Caudrelier in Auckland during a break in preparations for the 20-day leg to Itajai.
“We are five points behind but we can beat them for sure. We have been ahead of them maybe more than they have been ahead of us during the previous legs and maybe they are better finishers than us.”
“But we have prepared really well, and in every part of the team, to finish this race in the best condition. After the break in Auckland my sailors are in the same place as me – they want to win the race and they are 100% behind me – we trust each other and the fighting spirit is there,” added the Frenchman.
Caudrelier openly admits that his crew, who come from six nations and include two female stars in Carolijn Brouwer of the Netherlands and Marie Riou of France, are frustrated to be behind Xabi Fernandez’s team in the overall ranking.
“They’re fed up with being behind and if we look at what we have done so far – we have done very well – we just need that small extra element and I think we can go and get it,” he said.
This leg is the longest in the race but it is also one of two legs of the remaining five that scores double-points, plus there is an additional bonus point for the first team to round Cape Horn, so it could have a dramatic effect on the overall ranking.
Caudrelier’s crew includes several sailors who have already sailed round Cape Horn more than once but there are one or two who will be doing it for the first time, including Riou.
“I am really excited to pass Cape Horn,” said the French four-time Nacra 17 world champion. “I never imagined that I would pass Cape Horn in my life because I am used to inshore and Olympic sailing. I wanted to do offshore sailing but I never thought I would go around the world, so I am really happy. This is a big dream for me – a big dream.”
Her fellow countryman Jeremie Beyou will be rounding the Horn for the second time after successfully doing so in the last Vendee Globe solo round the world race on board his IMOCA, Maître CoQ.
“It’s a bit different because in the Vendee Globe you reach there after one-and-a-half months of racing. This time, as part of a crew, you reach it after two weeks. But it is still a special one – always a tough one – because the winds can be strong, the Pacific sea can be OK with a big swell but it can be rough too. It makes the way you prepare your leg a bit different to the others.”
Beyou says for the whole crew on Dongfeng the key balance to strike on this leg is between going fast and being safe. On the helm, he says, there is a big responsibility to everyone else on board. “Always you have the responsibility for the boat in your hands, so you want to be quick but you know that if you do a mistake you can break something or, worse, break some people,” he said.
Chinese sailor Chen Jinhao – also known as Horace – is another Cape Horn rookie. He is back on the boat taking the place of Xue Liu (Black) and for Horace this is a particularly emotional moment as he prepares to become one of only a handful of Chinese sailors to pass Cape Horn in the modern era, among them Guo Chuan who was lost at sea in 2016.
“For me this is like the Everest of my sailing career,” said Horace. “In the last race I missed out on this opportunity because I was injured and I have dreamt of taking this challenge on since then. For our crew this is also a moment of truth – we are eager to get going and to do our best on the hardest leg of the race.”
The Australian/British bowman Jack Bouttell knows this leg is going to be a real ordeal on the front of the boat as Dongfeng surfs eastwards towards south America on the vast wavetrains that rumble around Antarctica.
“For me the leg is split into two parts – to Cape Horn and then up the coast of Brazil to Itajai,” he said. “We have done one Southern Ocean leg already which was shorter than this one but it was very, very tough – if it’s like that again, it’s going to be very, very difficult.”
Like his skipper, Bouttell views this as a key moment in the race and in Dongfeng Race Team’s battle with MAPFRE. “We are more than half way in terms of distance but less than half way in term of points,” he said. “So this is a really big leg in terms of points and morale and a really big turning point because it is going to set up the final phase of the race.”
Navigator Pascal Bidegorry agrees but also makes the point that the other boats in the fleet – now back up to seven teams with the return of Vestas 11th Hour Racing after repairs – are each showing that they have improved their game.
“We have to sail well in tough conditions, but at this stage in the race all the boats are able to go fast in the Southern Ocean, and to attack strongly,” said Bidegorry. “MAPFRE of course is impressive, but Team AkzoNobel and Team Sun Hung Kai Scallywag have really improved in the last weeks as well.”
This is Dongfeng Race Team’s second Volvo Ocean Race campaign. In 2014-15 it finished third overall, also under Caudrelier’s leadership. Apart from challenging for overall honours in the race, Dongfeng Race Team is committed to helping to grow the sport of offshore ocean racing in China.
