Le Défi Areva is planning to get back to sailing in Lorient this coming Spring despite a disappointing quarter-final elimination by Victory Challenge in the challenger series.

"We are taking all our equipment back to Lorient, the base is waiting for us there with all the infrastructure necessary to get the boats operational again", said Pierre Mas, the Sports Director. "There will only be ten people there to unload the cargo in January".

Pierre Mas insisted this campaign had laid solid foundations for future success and he was determined to take le Défi to the next America's Cup.

"There's still plenty to learn from these boats before we start designing any new ones", he said. "We haven't yet seen them perform to their potential, so we will have to carry out more tests on their keels, bottoms, rigging and sails to confirm what we're after when we start work on a new boat".

Now, if there's any lesson it's to start early and to get the boats in the next venue early.