Top 10? Check Vendée 'bros' Dutreux and Boissières on the dock

For the Les Sables d’Olonne based sailor best known as ‘Cali’ this partnership with the often underrated Dutreux has brought him his best ever finish on the Coffee Route on the boat which was first launched as Alex Thomson’s IMOCA which he sailed to second in the 2016 Vendée Globe and which ‘Benj’ sailed to 10^th on the last one. 

For Dutreux this was his last race on the boat which is going to Boissières, so there was a tinge of emotion for the sailor who is building a new IMOCA and the arrival represented a measure of triumph, a minor exorcism for Cali who lost his mast on the last Vendée Globe and sailed under jury rig all the way to Martinique. 

They had a solid race during the tactical, strategic phase down the Atlantic but were outpaced in the tradewinds, though for their vintage of IMOCA, they have done well, Dutreux again proving he has the skills to get a good result from an older boat. 

This is the duo on the dock last night

Benjamin Dutreux : That was quite a workout. We've been in heavy squalls and strong gusts for 24 hours now, so it's true, it's quite a workout. And it's good, it gave us a bit of a boost, because otherwise we were feeling a bit alone, so it was cool. (coming in in strong breeze) 

How it went…..

Arnaud Boissières: Really great, yeah, it's good. The advantage of having sailed together early in the season was a huge benefit, especially for me, to be able to get to know the boat. We knew each other from the before, so we understood each other, it was pretty great.

It's special for me, coming back to Martinique, because the last time I was here, I was supposed to finish in Les Sables d'Olonne. So no, but that was the goal. My objective here was to finish in the top 10, and we did it. It wasn't easy, but for a long time, we were with the main group, it was great.

BD: In fact we had a great battle all the way to Morocco, it was incredible, we had a blast, we really pushed each other. Afterwards, it's true that the newer boats got off to a slightly better start than us, with impressive speeds, it was amazing to see.

But as a result, we were kind of a bit downhearted in own little corner. But that didn't mean we weren't trying to push the boat to its limits, because we also knew there were two newer boats behind us, and they were coming back at full speed. So we thought, if we want to keep them behind, we'll have to push the boat a bit harder.

Then we tried a lot of different configurations on the boat, it was great. For me, it was my last transatlantic race on this boat. So, I'm happy to bring it back into the top 10 again here with Cali this time. And I've spent some wonderful years on this boat. So, it's also very emotional to be doing my last race on this boat.

On bidding farewell to his boat.

BD: I think it brings back a lot of images. I already had a lot of images in my head of moments spent on board. Moments of joy, but also quite a few tough times I had with this boat and everything, but which we overcame little by little with the team and all. For me, it's been an enormous experience. I've had three incredible years with this boat, because it's given me a huge amount of experience. Me, as a sailor, but also the whole team that was with me. And so, for that, I thank her very much. And I'm very, very happy that it's going into Cali's hands, because that means I'll be able to see the boat regularly. I'm already trying to negotiate a few more sailing trips.

AB: That's the whole essence of the project. When I retired from the last Vendée Globe, I wanted to continue, but not really continue, I wanted to mark a turning point. So, I was looking for an interesting boat and project. A boat, obviously, that was more high-performance, with a more aggressive approach. And that's what I found both in the boat and in Benjamin. I think the trajectories we sailed were very, very close. And that's what I wanted. I really wanted to bounce back in a great way to get going again. And both the boat, Benjamin, and the team around him are a perfect match for what I want to do. So, I think this is the beginning of a great adventure. I think it's a good start, anyway.

BD: We, for one, are happy to close a chapter. And then, Cali is opening another one. Besides that, there's also a beautiful friendship developing. So, it's great, you know.

AB: There's no mogette bean (ndlr Vendée culinary speciality white bean dish), there's no beer.

BD: There's still a beer, if you like. Because Cali promised a young woman from Normandy before we left that he'd bring a beer with us and get it across the Atlantic for her. And so, we have a beer that was right in front of us all the way and that crossed the Atlantic with us. On the other hand, it smells a bit like adulterated mogette beans inside the back of the boat.