Orange Arrives In Lorient

The Orange II maxi-catamaran reached her technical base in Lorient at 10:15 this morning following an issue with a coamings for one of her drive units.

Bruno PEYRON explained that the boat will be taken out of the water within the next few days, thus allowing an inspection of the starboard S Drive, which suffered damage and forced the crew to give up on their Jules Verne Trophy attempt. “It’s still too early to talk about the further developments of our campaign. For the time being, the Jules Verne clock stopped ticking as far as we’re concerned, and the whole crew is concentrating on organising the repairs necessary to put our giant back on the tracks, at 100% of her potential”.

“Our little trip to the Cape Verde Islands and back proved that the catamaran sails well, fast, and does not show any major flaw. She’s well conceived and fulfils our expectations. It’s too bad we had to turn back for such a minor problem, yet it was impossible for us to fix it at sea. It’s the tough reality of competition, and we have to accept it, to start again with even greater motivation. Now just stay tuned !”