Ocean Racing Magazine - #6 - December 2007 & January 2008 - (Page 65)

The accent comes from Lower Brittany. Singing and highly coloured, the final syllables are dropped as if from one of the local high cliffs. There’s no doubt about it. The man is clearly marked by his local origins. The land looking out across the ocean. If you bring back the childhood memories of family sailing trips between Aber Wrac’h and Cornwall, the eyes light up immediately. The excuses given for skipping class, the carefully painted varnish on his father’s boat and shrimp fishing with his two brothers in the Helford Estuary… the childlike smile returns to his lips. Jacques Caraës, aged 48, has the sea in his blood. In amongst the wood shavings ‘Could do better’ was the judgement in his school reports, while Jacques was growing up in a sawmill, set up by his great grandfather, which was to become his playground. As an adolescent, he preferred joining his friends from Brest at the Saint-François School in Lesneven for his first sailing contests. "It began with racing between cruisers in the roadstead, but very quickly that evolved into RORC races. One year in particular was to leave its mark. 1979 and the Fastnet tragedy. Bobbing around in the liferaft with my mates tumbling around for six hours, I promised I would go on a pilgrimage to Lourdes, if we got out alive. Probably that comes from my upbringing…" Jacques did make it through and regularly received proposals to sail. On Gitana IV the sought after crewman was brought into shape. Having taken his final school exams, he headed off to the capital to study at the National Institute of Wood. "I gave up before the end of the second year and became a salesman at the family sawmill. I met up with some former boat-builders, who worked for fishermen. Some fascinating characters, who trusted our knowhow, as we were able to deal with special orders. However, things came to an end with the arrival of plastic." From the mini to the giants The sailing virus was still affecting him, and without giving up his job, he joined the French Challenge in the America’s Cup in 83 in Newport and 87 in Australia. Then, he had the opportunity to do the Mini-Transat in 1989 thanks to Jean-Hervé Mer, the skipper of Gitana: "It was something I dreamt of. It just took a small budget. My father read about it in the Télégramme de Brest newspaper. At that time we still used the sextant to sail. Third in the Canaries, very early on my pilot failed. Following the aircraft trails reassured me. In the end I finished seventh. My story was closely followed in the abers (NW Brittany). Then, I met a great man, Gilles Falc’hun, head of the Sill company. He offered me the helm of the Figaro Bénéteau in their colours. I did that for three seasons." In 1992, with Michel Desjoyeaux, Jacques Caraës won the big one: a win in the Transat AG2R. The following year, he was hired by Daniel Mallé, the skipper of La Poste. Then it was off on the Whitbread, the crewed race around the world, with a certain Eric Tabarly at the helm. Then, multihulls began to appear. "It was right at the start. I began with Jean Maurel on Elf Aquitaine, then with François Boucher on Ker Cadelac. I became part of the core members in La Trinité-sur-Mer. With Olivier Moussy, in 87, we ripped off our bow and dismasted on Laiteries Mont Saint-Michel, whilst we were in the lead and close to the finish in the La BauleDakar". His talent as a skilled crewman in the bow team was recognised in the small circle, and his list of achievements could fill up an entire hold. Enough skill to burst his braces. As delightful as a plate of oysters from Prat Ar Coum. He’d found his calling in the multihull circuit. Francis Joyon, Michel Desjoyeaux, Franck Cammas, Jean Le Cam were his brothers in arms. Record-hunters were soon to call on his skills, and on his kindness in all circumstances. It was in round the world sailing that Jacques was to sign his best chapters. He won The Race with Grant Dalton on Club Med in 2001, then the Jules Verne Trophy with Bruno Peyron on Orange II in 2005. In the following year, he smashed the Atlantic record twice! On a multihull, again on Orange II, and in a monohull on the huge Mari-Cha IV. He is the only sailor to have his name down on the two lists. Pure joy. In spite of some exceptional work, he has never lost sight of the essential. "Staring at the counters is not my thing and I leave others do that. I prefer watching the sunset and admiring the colours on the sea. Without doubt, another consequence of growing up in the “abers” (NW Brittany). Then, I love life. I have no regrets, apart maybe from never doing the Vendée Globe. There are things that deserve to be experienced. Adventure in general is something I enjoy." That is why Jacques is off again on a trip around the world with Franck Cammas. The previous ones left him with some great memories: "With Orange II, there was an amazing team on board. I was the pitman. Everything was done in a joyful atmosphere. The more you laugh, the faster you go. Having said that with Dalton, it was also a great experience. Not as funny, for sure, but from a sporting viewpoint very interesting. Sailing with Anglo-Saxons is very different from our Latin methods. You learn a lot about preparing the boat and the planning schedule is stuck to. I think you start a race more relaxed in that way. I don’t mean it produces better results, but that’s the way they do it." "You can’t turn down a round the world voyage" This winter, the new challenge for Jacques Caraës will therefore be on Groupama 3 attempting to win the Jules Verne Trophy. " I gave him a hand at the start, but because of my busy schedule, they didn’t call me up. Then, in early October, I got a call from Franck Proffit to offer me the job of bowman and film cameraman. I didn’t know that old fellows were allowed up at the front, but hey…As you can’t turn down a round the world voyage, I accepted. The trimaran isn’t simple, a little spartan, but the voyage will last a little less time. Then, there are people I know on board, Seb Audigane and Ronan Le Goff." To spoil himself with something different from the daily offerings in The Race, Jacques Caraës smuggled a 20 kg Spanish ham on board, which he hid in the mast of Club Med. This time however, the Breton will put up with the bare minimum: " Cammas and Dalton are a bit alike. Hiding places are increasingly difficult to find. Franck is planning on a round the world voyage lasting under fifty days. He is the type, who would rather use up the stores in the liferaft. He’s someone, who doesn’t leave any place for daydreaming, but a round the world crew has to include a range of different characters. We cannot all be the same, or it wouldn’t work. In any case, I don’t think he hired me to be the clown on board." The day after his presentation of the course for the 2008 Figaro singlehanded event at the Paris Boat Show, Jacques Caraës will be on stand by for another whirlwind trip around the world. Fully up for it and never without his sense of humour, "I’m on form. This sort of proposal always gets me going… and whatever happens, I will still have the Jules Verne record!" Serge Messager Ocean Racing - december 2007 ©G. Martin-Raget/Orange

Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of Ocean Racing Magazine - #6 - December 2007 & January 2008

Cover
Edito
Contents
What they said
News
Portfolio - The news in the picture
Transat Jacques Vabre - Monohulls in power
In the words of the skipper - Michel Desjoyaux, A little bit more
Barcelona World Race - A couple sailing around the world
Imoca - Growth crisis in the Imoca class
Transat 6.5 - A whole series of records
Mini Class - Anatomy of a winner
Multihulls - What sort of trimarans tomorrow ?
Volvo Ocean Race - Second generation
Trials - Mach 45 : an unusual IRC
Match Racing - King Richard
Tactics - A good start
Portrait - Jacques Caraës
Lab - Tubular or wing mast ?
Forty years ago - Chichester, the lonely sea and the sky
Equipment - Shop window
New products - From the drawing board to the boatyard
Opinion - The mirage of worshipping technology

Ocean Racing Magazine - #6 - December 2007 & January 2008