October 14, 1995, eleven boats leave Le Havre to do battle with the Atlantic. Their objective: Cartagena, in Colombia, in the traces of the conquistadors' coffee route.

Paul Vatine, a native son of Le Havre, knows he is under a watchful eye: like all the competitors, he is carrying an Argos transmitter.

On the Topex/Poseidon map, see how Paul Vatine carefully avoids the storm zone, in red, with over five-metre waves. Thanks to the data, he sails along the edges of the blue zone to take advantage of fairer winds and smaller waves.