Solitaire Bompard Le Figaro – Roberts leaves Cowes in a blaze of glory

by Artemis Offshore Academy on 26 Jun 2016 Today the Artemis Offshore Academy Brits made an emotional procession out of Cowes Yacht Haven, the pontoons sinking beneath the weight of friends and family cheering them on their way to Paimpol.

Starting Leg 2 of the Solitaire Bompard Le Figaro from the famous Royal Yacht Squadron start line, Cowes seafront was lined with the public armed with binoculars and cameras for the spectacle.

Cutting through a mass of coloured sails and hulls piling through the choppy Solent, British skipper Alan Roberts aboard Alan Roberts Racing looked set to take an early lead in the 430-mile race as he set himself up on an epic port flyer over the start line to the excitement of the British crowd.

The closest boat to the historic Royal Yacht Squadron, the UK’s most prestigious yacht club, out of nowhere Roberts came plowing upwind, spray flying off his Sea Cats-branded hull. Cutting across the fleet, Roberts flew across the line and extended away.

It was almost the perfect moment to end this year’s UK stopover, Britain’s top 2016 Solitaire hope leading the 39-boat fleet out of Cowes. But it wasn’t to be. A second cannon sounded and Roberts returned to re-cross the start line, his moment of glory dashed. Ever the fighter, Roberts now continues to push his way back through the fleet.

Deemed this year’s British favourite, there is a six-hour gap between Roberts and Leg 1 winner Erwan Tabarly racing Armor Lux. Speaking before the race start, Roberts was looking forward to getting back out on the water.

“Leaving through the Solent will be really fun with the wind and the current,” he said. “I learned a lot about decision-making in that first leg. This leg I need to think more long term. It’ll be interesting taking on the south coast of England again now we’ve all raced it once.”

Frenchman Vincent Biarnes aboard Guyot Environnement once again took an early lead on the leg, but it is now Gildas Morvan racing Cercle Vert who leads the fleet out of the western Solent towards Portland Bill, the first big tide gate of the stage. The first British name in the rankings after the great Solent re-start, is Redshift skipper Nick Cherry in sixth place, with Sam Matson aboard Chatham just behind in ninth.

After suffering auto-pilot issues that set him back on Leg 1, Cherry is gunning for a good second leg position: “My autopilot is now fixed, but I’m now looking at the race leg-by-leg rather than the overall results. It’s unlikely I’ll produce a star performance this year now, but I’m going to do my best. It would be nice to get a good result on a leg; I’ll be sailing as hard as I can,” he said, now racing his fifth Solitaire.

Finishing second Rookie on Leg 1, Will Harris racing Artemis 77 is looking forward to battling current Rookie leader Pierre Quigora sailing Skipper Espoir CEM for the top spot. Just five minutes separate the ambitious young skippers: “I’m really looking forward to getting out there with Pierre again,” he said before the race. “It’s made the race really interesting and I think the battle will be raging for the rest of the Solitaire.”

Leaving Cowes after just three days on shore, the Solitaire skippers face a fast but tiring leg. Zig-zagging their way out of the Solent in 20 knots on the nose with the tide on a magic carpet ride, the fleet can expect to stay in the express lane for most of the way to Paimpol, as Race Director Gilles Chiorri explained.

“On this leg, the fleet will face all of the difficulties associated with the Channel – current, wind and lots of tacking. Another difficulty will be the length of the leg, 430 miles solo is again long to race alone, the current routing shows them spending three days and three nights at sea. There will also be a lot of tactics involved. The skippers who are further back in the ranking after Leg 1 will be on the attack. The Iroise Sea will be one of the most challenging areas of the course, with big wind, big waves and lot of rocks – it will require bravery,” he concluded.