[MHml] GROUPAMA 3 READY FOR JULES VERNE ATTEMPT

[brian eiland]

GROUPAMA 3 READY FOR JULES VERNE ATTEMPT

Skippered by Franck Cammas, Groupama 3 team went on standby Thursday,
December 6th for their Jules Verne record attempt. Based in Lorient, NW
France, its home port, the 31.50 m trimaran with four records already under
its belt, will submit itself to waiting for favorable weather conditions to
begin its attempt at the record for a crewed circumnavigation around the
three capes.

Bruno Peyron, aboard the maxi-catamaran Orange 2, set the current record
March 2005, when his team sailed the course in 50 days, 16 hours, 20 minutes,
and 4 seconds at an average speed of 17.89 knots. Cammas' crew will need to
eclipse that pace for the 21,760 mile track, which begins and ends from a
line that is virtually defined between the island of Ushant and Lizard Point
lighthouse (UK), and leaves the Capes of Good Hope, Leeuwin, and the Horn to
port.The specs for Groupama 3 are:

Length, 31,50 meters
Width, 22,50 meters
Mast height, 39 meters
Mainsail surface, 356 sq meters
Solent Surface, 201 sq meters
Gennaker surface, 472 sq meters
Draft, 5,70 meters
Weight, 18 tons
Architects: Van Peteghem - Lauriot Prévost
Built by: Multiplast and Lorima
Construction beginning: December 2004
Launch: June 7th 2006
Team website: <http://www.cammas-groupama.com/en>