The Maxi Banquepopulaire V Sets A New Record And Wins The Trophee Jules Verne Record Time, The Record Of All Time

Sponsored by the House of Corum, the Maxi BanquePopulaire V completed its round the world trip in record time. End Quote

(1888PressRelease) January 12, 2012 - Mastery of weather hazards, technology and tactics, along with a strong team spirit, were the keynotes of this victory, but it was well and truly the mastery of time that was behind the record, making the partnership with a watch brand a truly excellent idea.

Antonio Calce - CEO, Corum - declared: "Well done to Loïck and his team for this great record. I would like to thank them for having taken Corum with them aboard the Maxi BanquePopulaire V for this great human and sporting adventure. It is the first time in the history of the Trophée Jules Verne that a watch brand has partnered a world record attempt and given the result, it was quite a success! We can safely wager that the accompanying horological rhythm helped the team through all their trials during the last 45 days and gave time an even sharper edge."

In its role as official timekeeper, Corum offered each team member a dedicated watch in the shape of an Admiral's Cup Seafender 48 Chrono Centro, personalized with their names. The model bears the inscription "2011 Trophée Jules Verne" on its dial, while the back of the piece is engraved with the outline of the route.

By partnering this new record, Corum has also laid a new milestone in the history of sailing.

Excerpt from Mer&Média Agency press release - Saturday 7th January 2012

Three and a half years after being launched in August 2008 and after her second attempt, the Maxi Banque Populaire V has entered records' history by taking the Jules Verne Trophy at the end of a navigation of 45 days 13 hours 42 minutes 53 seconds around the globe. Arrived in Brest this morning under the cheers of hundreds of supporters, Loïck Peyron and his crew have just completed an unprecedented exploit, covering 29 002 miles at an average speed of 26.51 knots. After more than twenty years of involvement as a shipowner, the Group Banque Populaire sees once again his loyalty being rewarded. This performance, the holy grail of offshore racing,

is the result of the immense work undertook by an outstanding technical team and the cohesiveness of a strong and united group. Congratulations and thank you gentlemen!

Just gone and already back; that is the impression that dominated this morning when the giant trimaran of 40 feet came to moor at the pontoon of the Marina du Chateau. On the morning of November 22nd, the Team Banque Populaire triggered the countdown by crossing the starting line of the Jules Verne Trophy between Ushant and Lizard Point. Aboard the big multihull, Loïck Peyron and thirteen crew members, including eight rookies from around the world, pointed the bows of the Trimaran to a unique challenge and attacked the reference time of 48 days 7 hours 44 minutes and 52 seconds held since March 2010 by Franck Cammas and Groupama 3. From the beginning, a northerly wind of 30 knots propelled the crew to Equator and plunged the men into the heart of the subject. After two days at sea, the multihull already had the Canary Islands behind her. After Doldrums express, the Maxi Banque Populaire V entered the southern hemisphere a week after her departure. With a great curve in the Atlantic, she improved the time of passage at the Cape of Good Hope, and made her entry into the Indian Ocean less than twelve days after kicking-off, reaching a lead of 2364 miles of advance, what would be the largest delta on the entire race. Once entering the South, ice became a paramount factor, imposing the crew to be very cautious with their machine. At midway, the Pacific inflicted harsh sailing conditions, with very strong winds, an extremely uncomfortable sea.

A month after departure, Loïck Peyron and his crew came up against a ridge implying a significant brake on their progress, witnessing their speed drop below 15 knots. On December 23rd at 7:50:30am , after a month of racing, the fourteen sailors crossed Cape Horn, the last of the three race Capes, allowing Ronan Lucas, Thierry Chabagny, Yvan Ravussin, Pierre-Yves Moreau, Emmanuel Le Borgne, Kevin Escoffier, Xavier Revil and Jean-Baptiste Le Vaillant to be promoted on their first race around the globe. As a Christmas present in the Atlantic, the Maxi Banque Populaire V began an express ride to the Equator, making the return into the Northern Hemisphere a formality. Getting back into the heat and winds, after a manly and agonizing confrontation with ice and cold, the crew spread their wings before the final sprint. After a particularly stormy first night in the Northern Hemisphere, the multihull undertook a great ride of the Azores by the West, which was the ideal compromise between progress and boat's preservation. After an Irish conclusion, Loïck Peyron and his crew stopped the watch last night at 23:14:53 (Paris Time), and signed a new reference time of 45 days 13 hours 42 minutes 53 seconds, improving the previous record by 2 days 18 hours 1 minute 59 seconds.
With this victory on time, the Team Banque Populaire signs a great human adventure, carried by fourteen sailors who have shared an unforgettable slice of their live during a month and a half.

Loïck Peyron says :
Loïck Peyron, skipper of the Maxi Banque Populaire V : "It is not only 45 days at sea that we have just done, but decades of work, and years of commitment from Banque Populaire into sailing. We must also pay tribute to Pascal Bidégorry who designed this boat, to Hubert Desjoyeaux who built her and sadly passed away recently, and to the whole team of course. We had this great opportunity to rest on each other. The confidence we had one in the other makes us paradoxically rested. Surprisingly, this race is not the most tiring. All records are made to be broken and this one will be one day. If there is a boat that can beat it, it is this one!".

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