DOUCE FRANCE

The largest catamaran of her time, of which Eric was captain from 1999 to 2002.

Douce France

Lenght: 42,2m / 138ft
Breadth: 15,4m / 50ft
Draft: 2,5m / 8ft
Air Draft: 36,4m / 119ft
Sail Area: 341 m2
Engines: 2 x 300hp
Speed under power: 11 knots
Transatlantic range (20.000 Liters)
Speed under sails: 15 knots
Top speed under sails: 24 knots
Designer: VPLP Design (Paris)
Shipyard: Alumarine (Nantes)
Year: 1998
Crew: 8
Guests: 12

Douce France was the largest catamaran sailing yacht in the world when she was launched. She received the award of the most innovative sailing catamaran by ShowBoats magazine during the 1999 Monaco Yacht Show.

Eric was appointed as her captain in 1999, at the age of 26.

Extrait du livre « A la barre de ma vie »

Lulled by the steady hum of the engines, I let my thoughts wander. The die is cast: thirty thousand feet above the Atlantic, there is no turning back. It's not that I'm thinking about it; it's more that I'm wondering how I got here, on this plane en route to Miami. What awaits me on arrival makes my head spin, a mixture of in-tense excitement and a touch of apprehension. I've never sailed a catamaran before. Yet I'm about to take command of the largest cruising catamaran in the world: Douce France.

The luxurious glossy brochure unfolded on my tablet catches the eye of my neighbours. Even on a prospectus, Douce France cannot leave anyone indifferent. Forty-two metres long, fifteen metres wide, two long tapering hulls topped by a roof with elegant, modern curves, all topped by a generous schooner rig. While cat-amarans have many advantages, they are usually not very aestheti-cally pleasing. Douce France is clearly an exception to this rule: she is truly beautiful.