Gerry Roufs

Gerry Roufs ( born November 2, 1953 disappeared January 1997) was a Canadian professional racing sailor who disappeared in the Southern Ocean during the one-handed regatta " Vendée Globe 1996/97 ".

Life

As a child Roufs began with the dinghy sailing in the Hudson Yacht Club Montreal. He was eleven years old Canadian youth champion in his class of boat. At 23, he was a member of the Canadian Olympic sailing team and remained there for seven years. During this time he got his degree at the Law Faculty of the University of Montreal. A year after his graduation, he left the professional world of lawyers and became a professional sailor. In 1978, he finished second at the World Championships in the 470 dinghies.

But now desired the experienced dinghy sailors then to sail larger boats, over oceans. Opportunity to do so he got in 1983, when skipper Mike Birch hired him as a crew member of his catamaran Formule day. Birch wanted that at least one member of the team came from Canada and hired the experienced dinghy sailors. The two became friends and settled in France in südbretonischen sailor town La Trinité- sur -Mer. For three years she sailed together transatlantic race and level to a fifth place in the Transat Québec Saint- Malo (from Quebec to Saint Malo ), a third place finish at the Ruta del Descubrimiento 1984 ( Benalmádena / Spain to Santo Domingo / Dominican Republic ) and the first place at a unique held Regatta from Monaco to New York in 1985.

1986 belonged to the crew of the Roufs Royale, as this twin-hulled boat set a speed record for crossing the Atlantic. Then he sailed three years, skippered by Serge Madec on ​​the catamaran Jet Services V, which twice " Course de l'Europe " ( stage race around the coasts of northwestern Europe ) and the two transatlantic races Transat Québec Saint- Malo in 1988 and Ruta del Descubrimiento 1988 ( of won, both with speed records.

1993 Gerry Roufs was added to the crew of the EPC by Isabelle Autissier. The collaboration with the renowned sailor and his own experience eventually helped him to his dream - his own boat. The French manufacturer for cleaning products " Groupe LG " was looking for a skipper who was to lead the company's own single-handed racing yacht Groupe LG from New Zealand to France. The former skipper, Bertrand de Broc had been instructed during the Vendée Globe 1992/93, in which he was 3rd on his race team to run for fear of problems with the keel of the boat, New Zealand. He was disqualified. Having brought the ship out of the water and found to be in order, de Broc criticized vociferously sponsor and designer. He announced the collaboration with Groupe LG on, flew back to France and let the boat back in New Zealand. Roufs seized the opportunity and was skipper of Groupe LG. After he had played with the boat two single-handed Atlantic race ( 6th and 3rd place), the company to have to build a new ship specifically for the Vendée Globe 1996/97 decided. The new Groupe LG 2, designed by the company Groupe Finot, ran in September 1995 from the stack.

In the Figaro race in 1995 and 1996 Roufs fared poorly and its position as skipper of the forthcoming Vendée Globe was controversial. But the doubts within the company, he was able to remove when in 1996 he the Europe 1 Star Atlantic race won.

So he started on November 3, 1996, one day after his 43rd birthday, with his boat Groupe LG 2 to the toughest single-handed sailing race in the world, the Vendée Globe.

Vendée Globe 1996/97

The single-handed race Vendée Globe is a single-handed non-stop race around the world, ie, without intermediate to enter the country. The route leads from Les Sables d'Olonne in France by the Bay of Biscay to the south, past the Canary Islands, the west coast of Africa along, down to the Southern Ocean. Antarctica is surrounded to the east, then it goes to Cape Horn passing northward again back to France. In 1996, a total of 16 participants with their boats at the start ( see individual listing Vendée Globe ), including Isabelle Autissier with the PRB. A competitor Raphael Dinelli, ran his boat Algimousse except standings, as he had, in the opinion of the race director does not meet the required qualifications.

After a month at sea in early January 1997, had taken the field of the participating yachts on more than 5000 nautical miles apart. Roufs was number two - but after all, 1600 miles behind the leader Christophe Auguin who should win the race in the end.

On 9 January 1997 the Argos satellite-based position detector Groupe LG 2 suddenly stopped to send. The EPIRB distress radio buoys, five of which were of them on board, were not activated. In addition, no more radio link was to Roufs. It was for the racing line several possible scenarios that could explain the situation occurred. These ranged from simple technical defect on mast break with loss of the antennas up to the worst. The boat could have had a serious collision with an iceberg and be broken and fallen apart in no time. Then Roufs might have had no chance to activate a EPIRB. Or he could have been flushed out of a crusher overboard. The boat could be even sailed a while and then capsized. That would have eventually made the Argossender silenced. The fact was that at that time a violent storm raged. In his last message Roufs had sent: "These are no longer waves but mountains as high as the Alps. "

Isabelle Autissier, which had up to 20 miles Roufs Groupe LG approached in recent days, 2, already reported on January 7 that it had no radio contact with him. They also reported by gale-force storm with up to 20 foot waves. " Out here there is war ," she faxed the morning of January 8 to their country team.

The search operation

The Rescue Coordination Centre " CROSS " (Centre régional de surveillance et de opérationnel sauvetage ) in Brittany ordered the search for the missing sailors to. However, the last known position Roufs was at 55 ° 0 ' 0 " S, 124 ° 0' 0 " W -55- 124. That's about 2,400 miles from the Chilean and as far removed from the New Zealand coast. Too far for SAR long-haul aircraft of the type " Lockheed P-3 Orion". Isabelle Autissier was now 150 miles away to the last known position of the Groupe LG 2 itself was in considerable difficulties. Since more than 24 hours she struggled with the heavy storm that had their boat thrown half a dozen times on the page. She had broken a finger. In addition to their boat, the wholesale and jib halyard was broken. The storm jib was rolled out to third and could no longer change, since the rolling device was defective. Although they reported that they had reached the limits of their powers, she tried. They now had to precisely control the wind. After she was checked for 24 hours against the merciless lakes, it was still about 100 miles from the search area. Then it was officially released from the CROSS of their search. Nevertheless, they still tried to cross a while, but finally had to give up and run before the wind. A Panamanian freighter, the Mass Enterprise, reached the search area on the evening of the 9th of January. A day later came another Vendee Globe subscriber, Pierre Thiercelin, do so. The further back sailors and Laurent de Broc also headed for the search area, but had 160 miles before ( 60 knots of wind and very rough sea) turn back due to the catastrophic weather outlook. Added to this was that the sea area in which Roufs may drive, increased from hour to hour.

On January 11, the Mass Enterprise with regard to their becoming scarce fuel supplies had to cancel the search. As expected the new storm hit, also Thiercelin gave up - but only after he had been dismissed by the CROSS, not only out of obligation, but even rely directly due to the bad weather, to leave the area.

On 12 and 13 January, the area was searched by RADARSAT -1, a powerful civilian radar satellite, the Canadian Space Agency. There were taken four picture series and determines eighteen eligible positions. The located near Indian freighter Aditya Gaurav examined this systematically, but found nothing. Without even being able to accomplish anything, he eventually continued his journey.

On January 15, more Radarsat images were made ​​, but were not in question blobs or objects are detected. On the evening of the same day Eric Dumont reached last location with its cafe -le goût Legal Roufs. Despite 45 knots of wind and a lot of floating ice, he was still searching for 24 hours. Then the wind picked up to 50 knots ( force 10 on the Beaufort scale) and Dumont had to retire.

This was the actual search for Gerry Roufs stopped after a week. The Chileans undertook further reconnaissance flights off Cape Horn, in the event that Roufs perhaps under Notrigg still sailed and was on his way to a port of refuge. If he had only had a radio failure, he could at this time quite round Cape Horn. However, these search action was unsuccessful.

Michele Cartier, Roufs wife, was sure that he was still alive. She waited with her daughter Emma in Montreal. After the end of the race she raised allegations against the race organizers, the Rescue Coordination Centre CROSS and individual regatta participants as it was of the opinion that the search had been canceled too quickly.

On June 17, 1997, a cargo ship sighted about 250 miles off the coast of Chile the keel up driving wreck of a yacht. He informed the Chilean authorities. The next day a Navy aircraft flew over the remains of the boat and videotaped it. The hull seemed undamaged. It was seen that the keel fin including Ballastwulst was still present. On the same day put a four day lasting, heavy weather a. The wreck disappeared and a subsequent search by Chilean ships and airplanes was unsuccessful.

After analyzing the video recordings by experts from the engineering firm Groupe Finot and Michele Cartier, it was clear that it was Roufs Groupe LG 2. Even the ship's name was visible. The thesis that the yacht was broken apart and sunk after hitting an iceberg, was hereby refuted.

On September 1, 1997 appeared on the website founded by Michele Cartier ' Association sur la route de Gerry Roufs " the news that the remains of the wreck of Groupe LG 2 on the rocks of the southern Chilean island Atalaya 52 ° 21 ' 0" S, 74 ° 46 '48 "W - 52.35 - 74.78, had been found at the entrance to the Strait of Magellan. The Auffindeort of the wreck ( Atalaya = Watchtower ) moved Michele Cartier later to the title of her book Une Atalaya pour Gerry Roufs.

From Gerry Roufs there is still no trace.

Itemization

Weblink

• Website of the Association sur la route de Gerry Roufs in the Internet Archive

• Regatta
• Athletes (Canada)
• Born in 1953
• Died in the 20th century
• Man