Approaching Cape Finisterre

Having been dealing with light airs as best they could for over 36 hours, Giancarlo Pedote and Martin Le Pape managed to pick up some breeze yesterday evening so they’re finally able to step on it. “We’re making good headway with a peak speed of 20 knots, so that’s not bad. We’re in the process of overtaking Maître Coq. In any case, we’re digging deep to pull that off, that’s the good news. We ended up latching onto the E’ly wind as planned, a little ahead of the guys above, and right now we’re on a straight-line course towards Cape Finisterre, which we are due to reach this evening”, commented the co-skipper of Prysmian Group, which is still positioned in 10th place in the fleet in the 15th Transat Jacques Vabre Normandie Le Havre this Wednesday, less than 3 miles shy of the duos made up of Yannick Bestaven – Jean-Marie Dauris and Romain Attanasio – Sébastien Marsset. “The further down the racetrack we get, the stronger the wind becomes. We’re slipping along really nicely as there isn’t a big sea. It’s pleasant. We’re making the most of it to get some shut-eye and we’re sleeping like babies”, added Martin, who is regularly taking turns at the helm with Giancarlo and seems to have got into a good routine and found an effective way of working together. “When sailing double-handed, it’s very important to divide up the tasks well, to be complementary and ask yourself the right questions together”, confirms the Florentine. Organising oneself, utilising one another’s skills in the best possible way and communicating effectively throughout: such are the keys to sailing as a duo. “Outlining a strategy about how to do things before setting sail is essential. When you stick to the plan, everything goes smoothly”, assures Giancarlo, who may be more familiar with solo sailing, but is well aware of the advantages of sailing double-handed: “It means you can push the machine harder, because whilst you sleep, the other one is on deck. There’s no slack period”.