On Saturday 3 November British yachtswoman Dee Caffari and her co-skipper Nigel King will start the highly competitive Transat Jacques Vabre race, from France to Brazil, onboard Open 60 racing yacht Aviva. The Transat Jacques Vabre (TJV) is one of this year's most anticipated offshore races and the two British sailors will be lining up alongside 17 other 60-foot racing yachts off the coast of Le Havre. The 4,340-mile course, following the historic coffee trade route, will be Caffari's first transatlantic race of the Aviva Ocean Racing campaign.

Before the race start Dee Caffari said: "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."

Caffari's co-skipper, Nigel King added: "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."

Since completing her 2006 record-breaking, non-stop solo sail against the prevailing winds and currents, Caffari has had her sights set on a new world record. Her goal is to become the first woman to sail non-stop solo around the world in both directions, by competing in the 2008/09 Vendée Globe. The TJV race will be a further test of Caffari's decision-making skills and tactics as part of her preparations for next year's race.

The TJV has 64 entrants from a number of different sailing classes, the Imoca Open 60 and Class 40 monohulls, and the Open 50 and Orma class multihulls, making the 2007 edition the best subscribed in the fourteen-year history of the race. Joining Caffari in the Open 60 class will be three other British teams - Artemis, Ecover and Roxy - challenging the traditional French dominance of Open 60 racing.

Caffari will be using the techniques and tactics she has developed over the last six months in her training and mid-distance offshore races (the Calais Round Britain and Rolex Fastnet) for the most competitive race of her Open 60 career.