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10:04 AM Sun 9 Nov 2008 GMT
 | | 'Early morning Sunday - Race start day for Vendee Globe 2008'
Vincent Curutchet / DPPI / Vend?e Globe ©
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By six o'clock this morning, the shore teams were already busy down on the Vend?e Globe pontoon putting the final touches to the preparation of the boats before the start. The spectators, too, began to arrive from first light, taking take up their places on the harbour walls to get one last look at the thirty skippers before they leave Les Sables d'Olonne for three months.
Long before the sun was due to rise, the streets of Les Sables d'Olonne and the Vend?e Globe Village were thronging with security, organisers, skippers, the shore teams, the Zodiac pilots, the lifeboat service volunteers, and thousands and thousands of members of the public here to see the spectacle.
In Les Sables d'Olonne the skies are dull and overcast with a few drops of rain, but a very mild day is forecast. The cold front went through during the night and the westerly wind which built overnight is due to ease off by midday, with a moderate south-westerly expected for the start at 13h 02 (European time), making for reasonable conditions for the boats.
British skipper Dee Caffari was the first sailor to cast off the dock at Les Sables d'Olonne. She and Aviva were sent off by Race Director Denis Horeau and Philippe De Villiers, president of the Vend?e region, as well as a host of supporters.
The front is likely to return tonight for the solo sailors, who will have to deal with four metre high waves and SW'ly winds in excess of 45 knots. However, this rough weather is not expected to last long, as a new front moves in by Tuesday - by that afternoon, the wind will be veering north-westerly as the boats approach Cape Finisterre to begin the long voyage down the Atlantic. Then, there will be a long wait for those ashore, before they can welcome the sailors back through the harbour entrance in Les Sables d'Olonne at the end of January.
by Event media
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Hamilton Island, QLD
