14 may 2004

Jean Le Cam (Bonduelle) : "Our boat is about the same speed as Ecover, it's just our crew is better!" chorused the crew of Bonduelle, beaming. "No in fact it was great to have Mike so close to measure ourselves against and we' re certainly going to have a beer together tonight" says Jean Le Cam. "We' re obviously delighted with our performance - particularly after our recent launch. These are the sails we'll do the Vendée Globe with so it was interesting to see how well we did. The boat's in great shape so I'm off tomorrow to do the 750 mile qualifier for The Transat. From there we will take part in the Brest 2004, a renowned parade of old and new boats and then we'll work on the boat in the CDK yard in July and August in preparation for the Vendée Globe. All this is just the beginning and it augers very well for the future...”

Mike Golding (Ecover) : "It was absolutely fascinating racing. We were side by side with Bonduelle most of the way out of the Channel and then we were 15 miles ahead as we headed up the Irish Sea. At the rock we fell into a small hole during which time Bonduelle went by and we were left with the other boats for a while before we managed to leave them behind. The race was essentially controlled by that but it really could have gone any way. From there on and into the channel we had very gentle conditions with never any more than 17 knots of wind. Le Cam's little switch up towards the English coast when we'd both been sailing mid-Channel was clearly a good option but he was lucky not to get caught up with the wind stopping and starting right across to Dungeness. On board we had generators and other non-essential and weighty material which will be used during the Vendée Globe so I am very happy with the boat's performance considering. I think we can say that the Lombard design favours these conditions with its narrower beam. The most exciting part of the 1000 milles de Calais was undoubtedly rounding the rock. It was also great being side by side with Bonduelle, hour after hour and day after day. You just learn so much in those kind of conditions. It was an invaluable experience for the Vendée.”

Bruno Dubois (Ecover) : "I've sailed with the crew before on numerous occasions and really enjoy being part of the British team. As boss of North Sails (Vannes) it is good to see that potentially the top three boats are using my sails though it's a pity that one of my employees beat me aboard Bonduelle!”