For Piment Rouge, their preparation for the ARC+ began with a trip to the Outremer Yachting shipyard. Our Outremer 51 is still very new - she was launched in June 2021 - but she’s already logged two Atlantic crossings. Once back at the yard at La Grande-Motte, in the South of France, a thorough check of the engines was undertaken - touching up any oxidation, changing the oils and filters, and a general mechanical inspection. The next step involved swapping out worn lines (halyards, sheets and reefing lines). Then came a 10-day passage from La Grande-Motte to Las Palmas, in Gran Canaria, which made an opportunity to take stock of the 3 main areas to focus on in preparing for the Atlantic crossing: safety, performance and ambiance. This speedy check-sail between the Mediterranean and the Atlantic revealed some play in the lower shrouds. The crew of Piment Rouge took advantage of the preparation week in Las Palmas to change the defective wires and then ensure the rig was satisfactorily tensioned. An operation that involved numerous interventions “at altitude” and perfect synchronization with the rigging technicians in the port.
Happening in parallel with this were updates for the electronics. This was a relatively tedious process and clearly, the preparation time in Las Palmas ahead of the start was far from too long!
No concessions on safety at sea
Ensuring absolute safety on passage is crucial. While the flag state rules for a French boat impose a basic list of equipment, the ARC+ organizing committee requires a much more extensive list with more than 50 items. As far as the catamaran was concerned, the compulsory equipment mainly involved communications equipment: VHF radio (Very High Frequency), AIS (Automatic Identification System), GPS (Global Position System) backup in case of dismasting, radar reflector, etc.
Collective emergency equipment such as lifebelts, life rafts and powerful flashlights are also examined. The correct attachment of the boat’s heavy and mobile equipment (anchors, propane tanks, batteries, etc.) is checked.
For the individual, the traditional life jacket marked with the name of the catamaran is completed by a whistle, a light, a transparent waterproof hood and a PLB that transmits back to the multihull. Compliance with these points is checked and validated in Las Palmas by the ARC+ staff (the “yellow shirts” team - named for obvious reasons). The day before the start, the skippers are invited to a briefing where the latest safety, navigation and weather recommendations are given. Arrival procedures (docking and customs clearance, etc.) are also discussed.
Finally, in the captain’s mind, as well as from ARC+ organizers’ point of view, Piment Rouge was deemed ready to cross the start line in complete safety!
Performance… for winning!
The ARC+ is a rally in two stages: Las Palmas in Gran Canaria to Mindelo in Cape Verde - 850 nautical miles; then Mindelo to St. Georges in Grenada - 2,150 miles. For us, with our inherently fast catamaran, it was tempting to achieve a good performance. All the more so as the previous year, Piment Rouge had taken line honors in all categories on both legs. While an Outremer 51 is a powerful catamaran, its best adversary is another Outremer 51! And that’s exactly what this edition of the ARC+ has in store for us, in the form of Helia 2. One Piece, an Outremer 45, and Hanuman, a Catana 53, were also serious competitors in the multihull category. Successful sailing requires confidence in the reliability of your equipment.
As described above, all the participants started on an equal footing at this level, but for us, there remained various little details to optimize, and our experience from the previous edition meant we knew where to try and make the difference.
A catamaran that’s clean throughout, from the exterior of the hulls to the bottom of the lockers, makes you want to take care of it. We’ve always devoted time to make sure that Piment Rouge is neat and tidy in all circumstances. One of the most important points is of course the condition of the hull. The surface condition of our catamaran was impeccable, and we obviously dove before each departure to remove what little fouling had settled during the stopovers.
For the ARC+ 2022, Piment Rouge got a new code D, a 1,720-square foot (160 m²) sail mounted on a furler. This sail was delivered by a crew member less than 36 hours before departure and tested the next day at sea. Unfortunately, the luff proved to be too long in standard installation. This test allowed us to come up with a solution before the start. With some ingenuity, the crew managed to set up an “in-house” system: the Code D could be used as an intermediary between the gennaker and the asymmetric spinnaker. This sail configuration proved invaluable on the transatlantic rally, during which, as per the statistics, the wind was mostly behind us.
With a high-performance and well- prepared catamaran, and good sails, all that remained was to determine which route to take. We are now tackling the subject of routing, or how to get from the start to the finish as quickly as possible while juggling speed and course? Routing allows us to propose trajectories according to the weather forecast and the theoretical performance of the catamaran (and its sails). Today, routing is well supported by various software for visualizing and analyzing GRIB files (GRIdded Binary files: dynamic weather information) and the integration of speed polars (synthesis of the multihull’s performance according to the wind speed and angle). One problem is that the sources of information that can be used today are too numerous! After the crew discussed all the possibilities, the captain decided - we used the polars calculated from the navigation data of Piment Rouge previously in the Atlantic (from the ARC+ 2021 and the return crossing) and two sources of GRIB file (PWE and GFS) for the routing calculation. The strategy as to the route to follow was therefore mainly based on the results of the simulations that can be performed on the software. However, the final decision on where to go remains human and was subject to heated and enthusiastic discussions aboard Piment Rouge. An optimized trajectory can include more challenging sea states and wind conditions – making things therefore less comfortable...
During the race, the position and trajectories of the other participants (at least our direct competitors) did have an influence our choice of route in order to exercise some control over our opponents. This was the tactical part, just as exciting as the strategy discussed above. Note that strategy and tactics can lead to different choices - again, it is up to us - and ultimately the captain - to decide. The ARC+ sends GPS positions of all the other participants by satellite every 4 hours and a ranking every 24 hours. These positions can be followed on routing software such as Octopus. From our previous experience, the crew has an in-house means to quickly calculate the ranking from the files every 4 hours.
One final advantage for Piment Rouge: the catamaran benefits from a crew that knows it well. The personal experience and the skills of each crew member are naturally good for performance, without forgetting to mention the masterclasses given by the Captain!
A warm atmosphere on board
For us - and this is true for most of the participants - the ARC+ is an opportunity to have fun during some beautiful sailing trips, both within each crew and between them. Piment Rouge set off with seven crew members on board: Pierre, Sabine, Serge, Catherine, Hervé, Claire and Vincent. Being so numerous allowed for good rest periods but can also be complicated to manage. It’s important to build a competent and complementary crew where everyone will find their place. In order not to be stepping on each other’s toes, you need to think about the layout of the boat and specially, to maintain good management of the storage so that the seven-person ocean passage could be enjoyed in a pleasant atmosphere... until crossing the finish line.
The rhythm of life on board was punctuated by the watchkeeping system. Our watches concerned the watch on deck, course-keeping, and the preparation of meals. The construction of a watch chart was fundamental to the preparation of our transatlantic race. It was the common point of reference for the crew, managing the group and the individuals. Long-awaited naps or chats are also the result of the timing imposed by the watch system. On board, we juggle between three clocks: one in UTC (GMT for those of a certain age) for the electronic devices and in particular the routing which takes this parameter into account; then local time, for the departure and calculate the race time in accordance with the ARC+; and finally ship’s time, which starts at local time and changes at noon each time we cross a meridian of longitude on the course in relation to the local arrival time. It is this last clock that was our reference for the watchkeeping system.
Mealtimes also regulate the tempo of the days. On Piment Rouge, everyone has their own recipe and takes pleasure in cooking for the others. It’s also a way to split up the provisioning list. No question of having anything missing, there will be no minimart along the route! The anticipation of cooking allows to manage the variety of the fresh food to begin with, then dry and canned food as we went along - we started out with satisfying, home-made ratatouille, then approached the finish line with our famous RTMT salad (rice - tuna - maize - canned tomatoes). We also bet on fishing, but it didn’t work every time... The routing thanks to the estimation of the time of course also plays its role to anticipate the number of meals left to go. It’s preferable to have a surplus of water and a few cans of food without weighing yourself down unnecessarily.
Piment Rouge has the particularity of being very well equipped with a sound system and particularly in speakers. Pierre, our captain, is indeed a rock fan (including hard and metal!). Music, it is well known, softens the mood and helps the cohesion of the group – whether for relaxing or for pure release. But to achieve this, the choice of tracks and the management of the volume must be handled with the greatest of attention according to the atmosphere of the moment, and the weather... The fact remains that music, as an asset, if it is well mastered, is an indisputable unifying element.
Before setting off for a short week under way to Mindelo, we organized a last evening with the neighbors on Piment Rouge’s dock. While Helia2, One Piece and Hanuman were our most serious competitors, they were first and foremost crews with whom we shared the same adventure and henceforth common memories.
On the morning of the departure, we put on our Piment Rouge clothing, ensured the memory of our passage here with a dab of paint on the rocks of Las Palmas. And then after a final safety check, we set the mood just before the line with an appropriate choice of music. Piment Rouge, all shiny, was finally ready to extend her two wakes...
Piment Rouge’s Race Twice in second place over the line, first on corrected time!
After more than 3,300 nm swallowed up in 13 days and 14 hours, interspersed with a beautiful stopover in São Vicente and Santa Antão in Cape Verde, Piment Rouge came in second place over the line both times (behind Fra Diavolo) but was the first multihull in real time and corrected time, winning the ARC+22 multihull category.
The crossing went safely despite more challenging conditions than in the 2021 edition. The crew arrived tired, of course, but delighted and in good shape. Like many participants, Piment Rouge suffered some damage to the sails (Code D and asymmetric spinnaker torn) and the headsail furler broke. Piment Rouge arrived almost side by side with Helia 2 in St. Georges (just 12 minutes separated them). Together, we extended nightly welcomes that were both warm and musical to our other friendly competitors Hanuman and One Piece, in the spirit of the camaraderie that had been initiated in the Canaries.
Thanks to the quality of our preparation and that of the organization of the ARC+, our objectives of safety, ambiance and performance were achieved!
For more information on the Piment Rouge story:
www.catamaranpimentpouge.com
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