Arkea Ultim Challenge-Brest: what resources have been deployed to guarantee safety?

Guillaume, 03/11/2024 – Replays on the links below are in French

Between coordination, pathologies, unseaworthy zones and UFO detection, the theme of safety during the Arkea Ultim Challenge was explored by Guillaume Rottee, race director, Renaud Bañuls, founder of Share The Ocean, Laure Jacolot, race doctor, and Fredéric Renaudeau, president of the Pôle Mer Bretagne Atlantique. Here are some of the highlights of the podcast (in French sorry!).

A year of preparation

Fifty days and as many nights – that’s what the skippers setting out on the Arkea Ultim Challenge-Brest set sail for on January 7, 2024. It’s also the equivalent of the common life led by the safety team organized around Guillaume Rottee, the race director, for the time of this first round-the-world race dedicated to Ultims. Laure Jacolot, race doctor, Pierre Hays, deputy race director, Guillaume Evrard and former skipper Fred Le Peutrec will keep a continuous watch in the form of a routing cell, in a small apartment rented especially for the occasion in Brest. “We are also supported by specialists in weather, ice and protection zones,” explains Guillaume Rottee.

To prepare for any eventuality, Guillaume Rottee and his team contacted Maritime Rescue Coordination Centers (MRCCs) around the world. “We discussed the resources we could have at our disposal, the operational phases, how long it would take, etc. in a somewhat anticipatory way, so that we would have all this data to be able to respond as quickly as possible on the day when there is indeed an incident at sea”. These MRCCs, used to dealing with the Vendée Globe organizers, have also had to adapt to the demands of the Ultims, giants of the seas. “It was a good thing, because it gave everyone a bit of a spice and motivation because of the newness of it all. Everyone had to take another look at the files to see if anything needed adjusting. And this was the case, because it’s a different race with atypical boats. This has whetted the curiosity of our friends on the other side of the world.”

See also “Arkea Ultim Challenge-Brest What resources have been deployed to guarantee safety? Generally, there is no direct information except in emergencies and serious cases.”

Different pathologies from a Vendée Globe

The issue of trauma and pathology is becoming increasingly important in the preparation of ocean races. The Arkea Ultim Challenge is no exception. “The medical work is not the same as on a Transatlantic race,” says Laure Jacolot. We’re more concerned with prevention than with anticipating potential problems.

This work is also different from that carried out during a Vendée Globe, not least because of the differences in the size of the boats. “In terms of energy, Ultims require an enormous amount of work on the spine. This can lead to pathologies such as tendonitis due to repetitive maneuvers. We’re going to anticipate a lot more than we would in an IMOCA.”

The higher speed of Ultims compared to IMOCAs can also lead to different ailments. “Abrupt deceleration and collision are the main risks with Ultims. Sudden deceleration can be like a road accident without a seatbelt, with serious consequences. There are more repetitive stop-and-go situations. There are no regulations governing the wearing of helmets. Skippers now systematically bring them along, but don’t wear them all the time.”

The Hippocratic oath even applies to ocean racing. So there’s no question of breaking medical secrecy. “WhatsApp and Telegram groups are set up with the various doctors. Generally, there is no direct information except in emergencies and serious cases.”

Read also “What could the Ultim of the future look like?”

When AI helps detect UFOs

Collisions are every skipper’s nightmare. Causing material breakage or even damage, they can ruin all the preparatory work carried out by the teams. To reduce the risk of collision with UFOs, ships are already equipped with a system for detecting unidentified floating objects. Already tried and tested, OSCAR (SEA.AI) is installed on the mastheads of sailing yachts. Frédéric Renaudeau, President of the Pôle Mer Bretagne Atlantique, presented its extension, entitled Exos 2024. “Based on OSCAR technology with chronic detection and artificial intelligence, the aim of the project is to have a reliable tool for what needs to be detected above the surface for the next Vendée Globe. We’re continuing to improve it with sea trials where we simulate all kinds of floating objects in the identified, whether they be logs, drifting buoys, containers, etc.”

The future challenge for Pôle Mer is to detect what lies beneath the surface. “Fortunately, we can rely on statistics for this. Under the sea, the best mode of propagation is still sound, but it doesn’t spread in a straight line. The 0-10m range remains the most complicated in terms of the geometric character of sound ray propagation. For underwater detection, it won’t just be a technological solution. We’re going to combine above-surface detection with statistical integration.

Determined non-navigable zones

Cetaceans are a species to be protected during a round-the-world voyage. In order to avoid as many collisions as possible during the Arkea Ultim-Challenge, it was decided, in collaboration with Renaud Bañuls, founder of Bañuls Design and the scientific consortium Share The Ocean, to delimit zones where sailing is prohibited.

To do this, the race management relied on the work carried out by Share The Ocean, which brings together the PELAGIS Observatory, the Ecole Polytechnique, INRIA and CNRS. “We developed these collision models based on collision density and probability when we cross-referenced habitats, abundances and known cetacean migrations along the ship’s route. These areas depend on a number of parameters: the season, the type of species, and the data available on these areas. It may be that, for certain regions of the globe, there is no information at all.”

To materialize these data, the consortium relies on statistical work on “observation data from research organizations around the world. This work is transdisciplinary. It brings together environmental biologists, specialists in marine megafauna density and statistical specialists.”

The design of these zones gave rise to debate between the race directors and the competitors, as Guillaume Rottee points out: “Our role was to place the cursor in the right place between the convictions of Share The Ocean and the constraints of the competitors. I think there’s been a general awakening. A year ago, these DSTs (traffic separation schemes) were not part of the race instructions and were not prohibited zones. Today, they have the merit of existing, and that’s a positive thing.” A system that will be renewed for the VG 2024. To minimize the risk of collisions between boats and marine megafauna, several Biodiversity Protection Zones identified as important breeding and feeding sites for cetaceans will be introduced along the round-the-world route from 2024. . Funding from the VG’s endowment fund will help improve research and collision modelling to refine these zones from edition to edition.