Please select your home edition
Edition
Zhik 2024 December

Artemis Transat underway from Plymouth

by OC Events on 12 May 2008
Fleet at the start - The Artemis Transat 2008 Vincent Curutchet/DPPI/ The Artemis Transat http://www.theartemistransat.com
Sébastien Josse's BT took the best start of The Artemis Transat with French rivals Michel Desjoyeaux (Foncia), Yann Elies (Generali), Vincent Riou (PRB), Armel Le Cléac'h (Brit Air) and Marc Guillemot (Safran) were only half a boat length behind. But, at the Eddystone Omega race gate Loick Peyron (Gitana Eighty) took over the lead.

The start of The Artemis Transat on Sunday was watched by 1,000 spectator boats. Heading off towards Eddystone - first race gate of the course - at nine knots of boats speed, the skippers fought a close battle as soon as the gun went off... Peyron was the first skipper at the Eddystone Omega race gate, and will be presented with an Omega Seamaster timepiece. But for now, there is an ocean to cross, and the first night at sea might prove tricky.

It was a fantastic start - the kind one would expect to find in a textbook! The gentle breeze certainly did not prevent the 13 skippers putting up a fight on the line, and in pure Figaro one-design fashion, bows were aligned and sails perfectly trimmed at the right moment.

Handling powerful 60-footers on their own within hearing distance of each other, the sailors displayed great timing and fantastic maoeuvring skills, despite the lack of space at the crowded western end of the line. Peyron, at first locked behind the first row, managed his way to windward and caught some fresh air before benefiting from a slight shift to the west allowing him to take over the lead from BT, and to eventually cross the the Eddystone Omega race gate in first position!

Armel Le Cléac'h aboard Brit Air tacked very early and found himself in third place at Eddystone, just 23 seconds behind Marc Guillemot's Safran, proving very fast in the light conditions. The very choppy sea state generated by the fleet of spectator boats penalised the boats at the back, such as Aviva (Dee Caffari), Akena Verandas (Arnaud Boissieres) and Roxy (Samantha Davies), who seemed to have suffered head sails problems right after the start.

Until Land's End, the fleet may have to cope with light patches, and as Yann Elies predicted two days ago, the first night will be a sleepless one - in fluky conditions, every single puff is crucial and the Open 60s require a lot of fine tuning to make the most of the weak breeze.

Eddystone Omega race gate ranking
1- Gitana Eighty at 15:16:17
2- Safran at 15:19:23
3- Brit Air at 15:19:46
4- BT at 15:21:01
5- Foncia at 15:21:44
6- Generali at 15:26:58
7- PRB at 15:28:59
8- Roxy at 15:51:21
9- Cervin EnR at 15:51:21
10- Aviva at 16:09:58

The weather situation is somewhat unusual on the North Atlantic at this time of year, and is due to a low pressure system over Spain, gradually filling up, while an 'anticyclonic belt' stretches from Madeira to Scotland. Two lows are positioned in the middle of the Atlantic. Sailing downwind for the first days at sea, the 13-boat fleet will have to cope with capricious winds, alternating steady breezes and areas of light airs.

A big part of the Atlantic crossing in itself (from Land's End to Newfoundland) should be sailed under spinnaker in moderate winds, and the boats could reach Newfoundland as early as Monday week! But for the last 900 miles, things will be a bit different, with a series of disturbances forming over New York and their associated fronts generating sudden shifts.

Skippers can also expect strong rain, variations of temperature, local gusts (sometimes exceeding 30 knots) and temporary light patches. All this, of course, in the middle of a zone where fishing boats traffic is important, where growlers and thick fog can be encountered! According to the routing gurus, a close-fought finale can be expected in Boston.

Weather forecast by MeteoStrategy

Monday 12 May- 12:00 GMT
ESE 7 to 12 knots decreasing and shifting slowly North 2 to 7 knots.

Wind is picking up N 10/15kt in the evening. For the following night, the wind is expected to decrease once more and to shift ENE 7 to 12 knots tomorrow morning. Monday, wind will be from sector East to North-East around 10kt.

Outlook for next 24 hours: Moderate easterly conditions


[Sorry, this content could not be displayed]

http://www.theartemistransat.com/60/home.asp

Hyde Sails 2024 - One DesignNorth Sails Loft 57 PodcastHenri-Lloyd Dynamic Range

Related Articles

Aussies hunt 'Ashes on Water' win
The BONDS Flying Roos are looking to bounce back with a vengeance in Portsmouth Fresh off a bruising weekend in New York, the BONDS Flying Roos are looking to bounce back with a vengeance as they take on long time rivals Great Britain in their home waters at the Emirates Great Britain Sail Grand Prix, held in Portsmouth.
Posted today at 9:27 pm
4 Ultim rocketships to contest Rolex Fastnet Race
The giant 32m long by 23m wide flying trimarans are taking part in the 100th anniversary edition While the 50ft flying catamarans competing at SailGP Portsmouth this weekend will be impressive, charging out of the opposite western end of the Solent will be giant 32m long by 23m wide flying Ultim trimarans taking part in the 100th anniversary edition.
Posted today at 6:45 pm
SailGP comes to Portsmouth!
We speak to the sailors ahead of the weekend The Emirates Great Britain Sail Grand Prix | Portsmouth takes place this weekend, with the 12 teams competing in F50 catamarans close to the waterfront, where a massive grandstand has been built for the spectators.
Posted today at 5:41 pm
SailGP: No practice racing at Portsmouth
The Practice Race was a fizzer, however the future of the SailGP fleet development was revealed. The scheduled Practice Day failed to fire at SailGP Portsmouth, after the forecast, admittedly light, breeze failed to male an appearance. The self propelled start marks were making a much better speed than the F50s.
Posted today at 4:14 pm
Elite Training at New Sailing Centre
Canash Beach, St Vincent, hosts international sailors The SVG Sailing Association held a successful High Performance Race Training Clinic, at the newly established High Performance Centre at Canash Beach, St Vincent. The four-day event ran from July 13th to 16th.
Posted today at 1:51 pm
McIntyre Mini Globe Race Leg 3 Preview
The race to South Africa starts from Vuda Marina Fiji on 26th July In a world-first sailing challenge, 15 solo sailors from eight countries are navigating identical 5.8-meter (19-foot) self-built plywood yachts around the globe— The fleet has enjoyed a five week stopover in Fiji at the end of Leg 2.
Posted today at 1:26 pm
Third time Finn World No.1 for Alessandro Marega
Maintaining the top spot in the Finn World Ranking List Italy's Alessandro Marega maintains the top spot in the Finn World Ranking List for the third consecutive release. He remains World No. 1 with an 80-point lead over France's Laurent Hay.
Posted today at 1:18 pm
World Sailing Nations Cup to make grand return
After a seven-year hiatus, World Sailing has officially opened the bid process for host cities After a seven-year hiatus, the World Sailing Nations Cup, the ultimate event to crown the world's top match-racing nations, is making its much-anticipated return.
Posted today at 9:08 am
2025 WASZP Pre-Games in Weymouth Day 2
A classic British summer's day as sailors launched beneath a blanket of grey cloud and drizzle The second day of the WASZP Pre-Games served up a classic British summer's day as sailors launched beneath a blanket of grey cloud and with a hug of fresh drizzle.
Posted today at 5:25 am
Moth take a big step forward at Garda Worlds
The just concluded Int Moth Worlds at Lake Garda, Italy were technically much more complex than NZ The just concluded Int Moth Worlds at Lake Garda, Italy were technically much more complex than the 2024 World Championship, held just six months ago in New Zealand.
Posted on 17 Jul