He did it ! Breton skipper Roland Jourdain sailed from Cascais, Portugal, to Concarneau, Finistère, with its innovative boat We Explore. A solo journey of more than 1,200 miles, which allows him to qualify for the Route du Rhum 2022. The catamaran, built partly in flax fibers, will therefore be at the start of the sailing race on November 6th.
50% vegetable fibers
The Quimpérois was welcomed as a hero, this Monday, July 25, in the port of Concarneau. Part of his team and elected officials, including the mayor of the city, applauded him when he docked. “We have the impression of being at the arrival of the Route du Rhum“laughed Roland Jourdain, greeting everyone.
The catamaran is 18 meters long and 8 meters wide, which makes it a beautiful boat! He is built, 50% flax fibers. The rest is ensured, as traditionally, by fiberglass. Inside, the ceiling is covered with organic seaweed paint. A green plant even hangs from the ceiling.
– Clara Guichon
“Crossing the Atlantic with a hectare of flax, symbolically, is the prettiest, enthuses Roland Jourdain. Afterwards, I still have everything to discover… I am in the shoes of a young dad discovering his baby’s first steps.“The skipper pushed it up to 22 knots.”Not bad for Norman linenhe laughs. But I know what a new boat is, so I twirl my tongue several times in my mouth before speaking.“One of the difficulties: the catamaran is narrow and therefore likely to turn over easily.
“The first victory is to be at the start of the Route du Rhumjudge Roland Jourdain. The second is that we’ll be able to take advantage of this renowned race to show those who didn’t believe us that we can sail well with flax. We are going to show one of the ways to be happy tomorrow with more sobriety. It’s not just about constraints. Anyway, the lumps, they happen. So we are proving that, despite the lumps, we have a good laugh and we have solutions.”
– Clara Guichon
– Clara Guichon
– Clara Guichon