(Note: Press Release is as supplied by Jaeger-LeCoultre, for our analysis of this news item, please see http://www.revolution-press.com/news/?p=77 )Jaeger-LeCoultre and Valentino Rossi, united by the values of expertise, performance and a quest for perfection, have decided to join together in a partnership for two years. Combining their two worlds, Jaeger-LeCoultre and Valentino Rossi are forming a connection between high-quality watchmaking and state-of-the-art engineering.
Jaeger-LeCoultre, the elite Swiss watch Manufacture, and Valentino Rossi, the remarkable racing motorcyclist, have decided to work together for the next few years. Far from being simply an ambassador, Valentino Rossi will bring all his technical experience as the world’s best motorcycle rider to the Great House of the Vallée de Joux for the development of a sports range in the Master Compressor series. "We will listen very closely to his suggestions; not everything may be possible, but many things can be done", declared Jaeger-LeCoultre's Managing Director Jérôme Lambert, pointing out that "Jaeger-LeCoultre has always been the most innovative of the great Swiss watch houses. In the search for new and ever more extreme solutions, we are sure we will draw much inspiration from Valentino Rossi"
The idea of cooperation between Jaeger-LeCoultre and Valentino Rossi arose during the visit of the seventimes World Champion to the Manufacture of Le Sentier on 26 April. What is more, on that occasion he was wearing "The" sports watch of the House, a Master Compressor Exteme World Chronograph. For more than two hours the rider, accompanied by Jérôme Lambert, visited the various departments of the Manufacture, arousing ever-increasing enthusiasm among the women and men responsible for the creation of the timepieces of the House. This enthusiasm was returned by Valentino, who has identified in the world of Jaeger-LeCoultre the same passion that there is in his field and the same maniac attention to detail. "It is astonishing that there should be workmanship of this kind behind every watch: it is just like one of my motorbike engines, except that the mechanism is miniaturised." First fascinated by the lacquer workshop, where 80 to 100 hours are spent in personalising the dials and casebacks of the most exclusive watches with the finest brushes, Valentino then wanted to try using the machine which ornaments the movements of Jaeger-LeCoultre watches with a tiny percussive pin controlled by a lever. With eyes fixed to the microscope, after the first tentative strokes he acquired the correct pace: concentrating as he would when taking a corner at 125 mph, he pressed the lever with two fingers of the right hand just as he would the front brake lever of his motorbike, delicately but decisively. “Am I quick enough yet?” Valentino Rossi asked the expert who had given him his chair. But it was Jérôme Lambert who replied, "Perfect, we would take you on here. And if they ask you what you will be doing next year, you can say that you have a guaranteed place decorating watches at Jaeger-LeCoultre".
Less successful was Valentino's attempt at using tweezers to pick up one of the microscopic screws which are used in the assembly of the balance. After several tries he said "It is not difficult, it is impossible." And, in response to the woman who invited him to try again, having indicated that there are only a couple of seconds to carry out the operation, the Champion replied by pointing a photograph in which he was leaning his powerful bike as far as possible and saying "I feel more comfortable there".
For the visit, Valentino Rossi wore one of the watchmakers' white coats. He asked for "a size 46", which fitted him perfectly – of course, since 46 is his lucky number, the number which he continues to carry on his motorbikes even though as World Champion he has the right to number 1. Indeed, in his honour the whole manufacture was covered with little posters on which the number 46 had been printed in yellow. By the end of his visit Valentino had signed nearly all of them for the staff.
Recalling the values shared by Jaeger-LeCoultre and Valentino Rossi, Jérôme Lambert stressed at the end of the visit that "the talent, the personality, the continual facing up to challenges and the professionalism of Valentino Rossi in his work will be a new source of inspiration and energy in our quest for ever more extreme challenges. Our technical research has never stopped aiming at the future, having been successful for 170 years, with over 200 patents, 40 specialist crafts and 20 state-of-the-art technologies. Valentino has demonstrated that he knows how take something up and turn it into a success. Our work will be a synergy of success."
This enthusiasm is shared by Valentino Rossi who, with the eye of an expert mechanic, noticed a remarkable similarity between the Jaeger-LeCoultre logo and the anchor, the key component of the balance controlling the timekeeping of the watch. At Le Sentier the great Champion found many affinities with the world of motorbikes. "Here too there are very talented people who carry out their work with passion. I find it fascinating that at the Manufacture the process starts with the raw material, a simple piece of metal, and ends with the construction of an extremely complicated watch. The final finishing operations are carried out with incredible precision. Let us say this: it can be compared to the precision which is needed to ride a motorbike."
The Jaeger-LeCoultre Manufacture is proud to associate its 170 years of history and its watchmaking knowledge with the expertise of young talents. There is no doubt that the association of high-quality watchmaking and state-of-the-art mechanical engineering will give birth to some fabulous projects which will begin to appear at the end of 2006.
For the details regarding the First Valentino Rossi Limited Edition, the Jaeger-LeCoultre Master Compressor Extreme World Chronograph "46", see http://www.revolution-press.com/news/?p=125
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