AROUND
THE WORLD
in the Atlantic Doldrums
(May 1998)
+ 70 000 Nautical Miles
+ 100 different boats
(before departure)
I started at the age of 12 on Optimist, 3.20 and 4.20. Several local regattas on 4.20 and Fireballs
1986: Sailing counselor in Maine Waterways, a sailing camp in Maine, USA (dinghies and semi-cruisers)
Until 1994: Cruising with friends as well as dinghy sailing counselor in teen summer camps in France.
1995-97: Preparation for the CNIF's Skipper Degree (Club Nautique d'Île de France)
- Weekly THEORY classes: navigation and understanding of weather, currents and tides
- PRACTICE WITHOUT G.P.S. and boats' maintenance on a Bénéteau F38 and a Kelt 7,60: (English Channel, Bretagne and Ireland)
Certificates Related to Sailing
- IYT Master of Yacht 200 Tons Unlimited - 2013
- RYA Yachtmaster Offshore - Oct. 2005
- CRRT (French VHF/SSB Certificate 1996)
- RYA Restricted Radio Certificate - Oct. 2005
- "Permis côtier" (French Coastal Skipper
permit) - 1996
- "Basic Certification in Marine Weather", Star-
path School of Navigation, Seattle, US - 1998
- RYA First Aid Certificate - Oct. 2005
- RYA Survival At Sea Course - Oct. 2005
France-Canary Isl.: Deckhand on ARAOK, a French OPEN 60 designed for the Vendée Globe of 1988
Canary-Cape Verde: Deckhand on CARRICK , a Bénéteau 39 (Oct.1997)
C.Verde - Caribbean: Deckhand on SYLKEV, a JNB 42, a French steel sailing boat (Nov.1997)
Caribbean: First Mate on OWL, a 55 ft Classic F. Shepherd Design of 1909 (Feb-April 1998)
Antigua in April 97:
- Classic Regatta: Mate on OWL
- Sailing Regatta: Deckhand (backstay) on WIVA/Seac Banche, Italian OPEN 50
Antigua-Rio (Brazil): Delivery crew on INDIGO, a Baltic 58. 1 month, 3.600 NM upwind (May 1998)
Brazil - July to Oct.: Deliveries and regattas (Ilhabela week, Circuito Rio, Recife-F.Noronha, Santos-Rio)
Brazil / Cape Horn: Deckhand on SWAN LAKE, a Swan 60. Preparation of the boat for the South, Sailing from Rio de Janeiro to Punta del Este, Mar del Plata, then Chile (Magellan Strait, Tierra del Fuego, Cape Horn), Falklands and back to Rio. (Nov.98 to March 99).
Antarctica 1999-2000: Crew and First Mate on "Golden Fleece", Jérôme Poncet's 20m motorsailor. 9 months around the Falklands, Tierra del Fuego and the Antarctic Peninsula. Also incl. boat maintenance.
Blue Water Regattas:
- Recife - Fernando de Noronha (300 NM): on a 60 ft carbon fiber trimaran "BAHIA" (former "PARAGON"). All female crew. Navigator & 2nd bow-woman (Sept.00)
Breaking Olympic medalist Lars Grael's 99 record with the same boat by 20 min.!
- F. de Noronha - Salvador (680 NM): Deckhand on "ADRENALINA PURA", a brand new Nigel Irens 20m carbon fiber catamaran built in Brazil. (Sept.00)
Work for important Races: Press and TV intermediary & interpreter for the Mini-Transat (Transat 6.50) + Transat Jacques Vabre in Salvador, Brazil. (Sept.-Nov.2001)
Regattas in Patagonia: Regattas on several boats around Puerto Montt, Chile (Jan-Mar. 02)
Pto.Montt-Viña del Mar: First Mate on AURA, a 46-ft G.Frers Italian boat (Apr.02)
Viña del Mar, Chile: several regattas for the End Summer Series.
Panama-Galapagos: 1st Mate on TAÏMOA, a French Amel 40 from 1982 (July 02)
Galapagos-Marquises: Delivery skipper on TAÏMOA - a 3000 NM cruise (July-Aug.02).
Tahiti-New Zealand: Mate in theory but Skipper in practice on WINDSHEAR, a Saga 43. Double-handing with the owner. In charge of all the navigation and of the boat (Nov.02).
Auckland, NZ: RNZYS Summer Serie on a Townson32 + Classic Y. regatta. (Jan-Mar. 03)
New Zealand - Australia: Mate on TABASCO, a Baltic 76. From the Bay of Islands (NZ) to Brisbane & the Gold Coast (April 2003).
Australia (Great Barrier Reef): Deckhand & 2d Navigator on COPIHUE, a 23m A.Hoek aluminium 1997 neo-classic design (Bundaberg to Cairns) (July 2003)
Australia-PNG (Papua New Guinea): Cook & watch keeper on a 60ft power cat boat. First experience as such... as a cook and on a power boat! A last minute opportunity, to renew my visa in OZ and visit & dive in PNG (Sept. 03)
Australia-Thailand (Cairns-Darwin-Bali- Singapore-Phuket ): 2800 NM on CLARA as a skipper for a couple aged 77 and 70. Certainly my toughest challenge so far as I was the only fit person for sailing, had to face a very late season passage (thunderstorms &
calms, all under sail to save fuel!). Also the boat needed a lot of maintenance... A tough passage with very little sleep! It was very physical and exhausting... but all went well and the owner put me in charge of a major refit upon arrivel in Phuket. Another tough task as much as or dealing with the labor there as for the never ending problems I was to discover on CLARA! (Sept. to Dec. 2003)
South East Asia (mainly Thailand):
- Regattas in Thailand & Malaysia: Regattas (mainly genoa & spinnaker trimmer): Champagne Run, Langkawi Sailing Week, Phuket Race Week, King's Cup, Samui Regatta, Phang Nga Bay Regatta, etc. (from Feb. 2004 to Mars 2006)
- Deliveries around Thailand & Malaysia: Mainly as Navigator or First Mate. The main one being Phuket-Samui (1200NM) on LA SAMUDRA, a 47 ft Swan for the Samui Regatta (April 2004)
- Boat refit in Phuket: Project manager of the refit of CLARA, the 44-ft steel boat I sailed from Australia. New teak deck (involving a lot of cutting/welding of new steel and repair and changes inside i.e. the whole electricity). The boat was finished in janvuary 2006 and took off with a new crew heading to the Med
Singapore - Oman (Gulf): Delivery Crew on the 42m steel Tallship of 1916 LA BOUDEUSE, a French registered 3-masted Schooner. Traditional sailing technics (square & gaff rigger). Singapore, Malaysia (Penang), Chagos, Maldives (Addu Atoll) and Oman (Muscat). 3500NM (June-Aug 2006)
Oman - Mauritius - Reunion Island...
Wrong season, wrong place (too few sail boats or too few likely to need extra hands)...
I had to fly out of Oman...
As a woman, the Red Sea was not the best place to look and wait for a boat to join I thought... so I decided to reach Mauritius thinking that those who would want to sail south to Cape of Good Hope would very likely stop there.
But the Cyclon season came... time passed.... and my visa terminated.
So again I had to leave... and flew "next door", to Reunion Island (close by island).
Reunion Island - Cape Town (South Africa)
1st Mate on MARVANCE, a 2005 Wauquiez PS 40. There I helped a "Single sailor'" on this tricky part of his circumnavigation. All tasks on board were shared but he trusted me very much for my navigation and weather understanding. (Oct.-Dec. 2007)
Cape Town - ...
Skipper and Project Manager on LIFEKLA, an Allures 44 (aluminium 44ft centerboarder). I was given the task ot sailing the boat to Namibia, St Helena then Brazil with the new owner, teaching him on the way how to sail his own boat. But while I was checking the boat prior to departure, I found a few problems (one major being electrolysis in the bilges where the lead ballast lies) and have been busy fixing it all since. (since Feb. 2008)
Cape Town -Rio de Janeiro (Brazil) ...
Skipper on LIFEKLA (renamed SAGA) with the owner. Ocean Passage: 3600MN (Nov.-Dec. 2008)
Rio de Janeiro - Salvador - Joao Pessoa (Brasil)
Crew on CATAMOANA, a 44.5ft Dean cataraman built in South Africa in 2007. (Dec. 2008 - Jan. 2009)
Brazil to Uruguay
Crew on ARTABAZE, an 35ft aluminium centerboard boat, departing in Rio de Janeiro (Feb.-April 2009)
Brazil to St Martin (French Caribbean)
First Mate on CATAMOANA incl. 2 months repair in Trinidad (Hull repair + waranty issues on electronic & electric installations). (Apr. - July 2009)
Sint Maarten (Dutch Antilles)
Captain on CAPT. MORGAN Half-day cruises around St Martin for tourists from the Cruise Ships. (Nov-Dec 2010)
Saint Martin & around (Caribbean islands)
Skipper for charter companies (Sunsail & Moorings). Deliveries and charters. (Oct. 2011-May 2012)
Fort Lauderdale, USA - Saint Martin (F.W.I.)
Captain on ZANZIBAR. Finished the unfinished huge refit of a 103ft aluminium yacht of 1993 and sailed to St Martin (July 2012-June 2013)