Ready, set, go! The 10th edition of the Vendée Globe got underway on 10 November (ah, the magic of numbers), bringing with it the load of dreams, ambitions, projects, and desires of each of those 40 sailors who are now engaged, solo, in tackling the 45 thousand miles of route that awaits them. Not exactly a walk in the park. Yes, because there is only one Vendée Globe. Not without reason is it considered the marathon of the oceans, the Everest of sailing. Three oceans, as many capes to round, all with resounding names: Cape of Good Hope, Cape Horn and Cape Leeuwin. A dream come true. A sporting challenge but also, and above all, a human one. Like that of Alan Roura.
The Swiss sailor is in his third participation and at this 10th edition he is, for the second time, at the helm of the Imoca 60 Hublot whose hands are marking the most salient moments. Not only that. The Nyon-based house presented a new limited edition for the occasion. The Big Bang Unico Sailing Team is no ordinary watch. Yes, because Alan Roura himself contributed to the development of the timepiece, who is credited with giving the watch a unique sailing soul. We met the Swiss sailor on the eve of his departure from Les Sables d’Olonne on which occasion he granted Sea Time this interview.
This is his third participation in the Vendée Globe. In what spirit are you approaching this new sailing adventure?
First of all, I am very happy to do it and I have a totally different approach between the first one and this one, in the way I prepare myself, the way I prepare the boat, the way I sail and the way I am competitive. I am really happy to show everyone what I can do. It took two years to do this project, a long and difficult job, but I am really happy to have done it.
Why is the Vendée Globe a different regatta from the others?
The Vendée Globe is a very different race from all the others: you sail around the world and you sail in the Southern Ocean and that’s what we are looking for, it’s not just about circumnavigating the world, it’s also about tackling the Southern Ocean. The feeling of being completely alone, on your own little boat is total freedom, and that is really nice.
How have the two previous participations helped you to perfect your preparation for this new edition? For you, is sailing just competition or is there more to it?
The two previous editions have helped me a lot to prepare myself and my boat, now I know what I want and what I don’t want, I made this project around my two previous Vendée Globes. The first one was very nice, I had a lot of fun and I had a good race, but the second one was complicated, I broke some parts of the boat and I had to decide to continue sailing but not to compete against others and that was very difficult to digest. So I changed my mind about the preparation, what I wanted and how to achieve it, how to make the boat work and the aspects of running it as a sailor.
Of all the regattas you have participated in, is there one whose memory is still strong or to which you feel most attached?
The most vivid memory is about the first time I rounded Cape Horn. It is the proof that you go round the world, that you have made it, that the planet is so big and that even if you are so small you can go round it on a boat pushed by the wind. I remember this moment because it allowed me to see the coast or a strip of land after 50 days in the middle of the sea. I was quite proud of myself. This is an image I have in my mind and cannot forget, so yes, it has a special place in my memory album.
In a solo race like the Vendée Globe, the time factor plays a central role. Can you tell me what a typical day is like in this regatta?
On the Vendée Globe, my reference time is UT. I try to have a fixed time, I don’t change the hands while I’m sailing and I do it just to keep the same level of organisation on the boat: what time you sleep, what time you eat, well to sleep you sleep when you can. On a typical day on the boat I try to eat at 6am, 12pm, 6pm. In the evening and sometimes at midnight I add something to the daily diet. Then you try to sleep, like little 20-minute naps that you add up, one plus one plus one, and in the end you get four or five hours of sleep for 24 hours, it’s not a lot but in the end I try to make do with it. Then you spend a few hours at the computer making decisions on the best strategy to adopt and writing the route on paper. And then you spend the rest of the time changing sails, trying to make the boat go as fast as possible. Actually, if you have one free hour a day, it is already fine even if it is not that much.
How does your perception of time change when you are in the middle of the ocean?
When I’m sailing I’m very careful about the time I set myself and which governs life on board. For the rest, when you are sailing, you have the feeling of being in a different world than on land. The perception of time is incredible, because you know what time it is, but you don’t remember what day it is, and that is what a sailor experiences.
Did you personally contribute to the development of the new Hublot Big Bang Unico Sailing Team?
For the Big Bang Unico Sailing Team, the team and I worked with Hublot to build this watch. We sent them some parts of the boat, to have the same design. In addition, we picked up the colour of the boat, whose yellow tones can be found in some of the elements inside the timepiece. There is a reference to my sail number SUI 7 inside one of the two counters, complete with a Swiss flag. Over all is the carbon material used to build the boat’s hull and echoed in the watch case. All these elements put together give an idea of the boat, we talked a lot about making the watch look like this and I am really proud of how it looks now. I may be biased but for me it is the most beautiful watch I have ever seen.
What is the aspect that most intrigues you about this watch?
I think everything, because it’s a little bit like a racing boat, you see a lot of little pieces and if one doesn’t work right you crash the whole thing, and a sailing boat is the same thing. And I like the quality, the design, the idea that it’s handmade. I mean, a watch is not just an instrument that tells you the time. It’s much more than that. Behind it is human ingenuity and skill, which, in this case, is manifested in the skill and ability of Hublot’s watchmakers in fine-tuning the mechanics that give life to the timepiece itself. All this really impressed me.
Matteo Zaccagnino
