One, two and now three! VP3 wins the 2011 Transat Jacques Vabre

After having led the race for 11 days, Jean-Pierre Dick and Jérémie Beyou crossed the finish line at Puerto Limon on Friday, 18^th November at 9.15 and 54 seconds (CET – 2.15 and 54 seconds, local time), winning the 2011 Transat Jacques Vabre race.

Their official time is pegged at 15 days, 18 hours, 15 minutes and 54 seconds. They sailed (in real terms) for 5,167 nautical miles at an average speed of 13.66 knots.

Despite difficult conditions, the two sailors maintained a particularly fast pace in the final stages of the race. They not only won the race, but also beat the record for the event established by Safran in 2009. Jean-Pierre Dick and Jérémie Beyou arrived one hour and seven minutes ahead of the previous best time, established by Marc Guillemot and Charles Caudrelier two years ago. Their new time now becomes the benchmark for the Atlantic crossing between Le Havre and Puerto Limon.

This is the third time that Jean-Pierre Dick has won the Transat Jacques Vabre, following on his victories with Nicolas Abiven in 2003 and Loïc Peyron in 2005. He has also won the Barcelona World Race with the latter. With his boat Virbac Paprec 3, christened in 2010, Jean-Pierre is in a winning spiral, as is his co-skipper, Jérémie Beyou, who won the Solitaire du Figaro this summer. This was the first time the two men sailed the high seas together, capping their partnership with a clear victory.

We congratulate these champions and in particular Jean-Pierre who, with this triumph, wins his fifth major title on the IMOCA circuit in 10 years. A veritable exploit!

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