Caffari and King ready for the off in the TJV
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Article Date: 2007-11-02
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British yachtswoman Dee Caffari and her co-skipper Nigel King are making their final preparations for the hotly anticipated Transat Jacques Vabre (TJV) race from France to Brazil, which begins on Saturday.
Sailing the Open 60 racing yacht Aviva, the pair will be taking on 17 other teams in their class in the 4,340-mile course, which follows the historic coffee trade route, in what is Caffari's first transatlantic race of the Aviva Ocean Racing campaign.
Caffari - who broke records in 2006 with her non-stop solo sail against the prevailing winds and currents - said of the race: "The TJV is a hugely significant race for myself and Aviva as it's the last time we'll be racing with the knowledge and experience of a co-skipper onboard.
"Nigel and I have trained really hard and we're anticipating a tough and competitive race, especially against the boats that are of a similar generation. It will be a fierce battle on the water."
The pair will be hoping to challenge the French's traditional dominance in the event, with King commenting: "We've been pushing ourselves pretty hard these last few weeks and now it's time to put the training into practice.
"There's a lot of competition out there and we'll have to be on top of our game to stay in touch with the new generation boats.
"That said, Dee is a gutsy sailor and we are both looking forward to the job at hand. We can't wait to get started."
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