2015 Solitaire du Figaro – Eric Bompard Cachemire concludes in Dieppe

by Artemis Offshore Academy on 27 Jun 2015 Over the past month, 39 solo skippers and Figaro Bénéteau IIs have raced 1,661 nautical miles between France, Spain and the UK. They have sailed through every weather condition possible, from light airs through to 35 knots and thunderstorms.

In the early hours of Thursday 25th June, the Solitaire du Figaro – Eric Bompard Cachemire was concluded in Dieppe, with Yann Elies (Groupe Queguiner) taking his third Solitaire win. Charlie Dalin (Skipper Macif 2015) was in second, and Xavier Macaire, having initially been declared the winner, dropped to third after taking a 60-minute penalty for entering an exclusion zone – a frustrating end to the race for both Yann and Xavier. Another shortened leg, this time due to light airs, Leg 4 spanned 470 miles between Torbay and France.

In the British camp, Sam Matson (Chatham) sailed his best leg of the race, crossing the line in 10th of 39 boats – perhaps on a high from his home coming to Torbay. First timer Robin Elsey (Artemis 43) also put in another sterling performance, finishing Leg 4 in 13th to see him sit 15th on the overall leader board and take the coveted top Rookie title. Finishing just one minute and forty-one seconds behind Robin in 14th was Alan Roberts (Magma Structures) who took the British honours – ninth overall, the best British position in 40 years. See all of the Leg 4 British results below.

“It was a bit of a tough test!” Winning Rookie Robin explained on the docks. Going into Leg 4, Robin was just 53 seconds ahead of the chasing Benoit Mariette. “We pretty much had it all on that leg, breeze through to no wind. I’m pretty exhausted right now. That was the toughest leg I’ve had by far. I kept having these visions of Benoit turning up a few metres from the finish line and sailing past me! That wasn’t much fun, but once my position started to look secure, I relaxed and enjoyed the leg.”

Arriving in Dieppe, spread unusually over a long time period between 0200 BST and 2130 BST, the Brits reported Leg 4 was the hardest work by far. A perfect 15 knots of wind to take the fleet out of Torbay soon turned into a squally double rounding of Lands End (with a turning mark off St Ives) which gave way to light airs for the remainder of the leg. Already exhausted after three legs of racing, light wind sailing is always a challenge for the skippers. Mentally demanding, often demoralising and requiring long hours on deck, the long drawn out end to Leg 4 was a tough way to conclude the month long race, as Rookie Andrew Andrew Baker explained: “The biggest challenge of this leg was not being able to sleep – there weren’t really many opportunities. In light winds you’re constantly trying to make the boat go fast, looking at where the wind’s going to come from. You’re never really settled, but you just have to make sure you get some food and a little sleep in order to keep going.”

Finishing in 10th place with a time of three days, ten hours, 18 minutes and 26 seconds – just two minutes after three time Solitaire winner, Jérémie Beyou – Chatham skipper Sam was happy to have finished the race, but already thinking about the future: “I’m both sad and relieved it’s over – I’m pretty tired! There’s going to be a period now where I’ll have to think about what I’m going to do next – it’ll be an interesting time for me, not having to race in this!”

Top Brit Alan Roberts continued: “I am kind of relieved to have finished because I’m exhausted, but I’m a little sad as well. I love sailing and it’s all I really want to do, so when you finish a race like this, you’re at a bit of a loss with what to do with yourself.”

Redshift skipper Nick Cherry crossed the Leg 4 finish line in 21st, Jack Bouttell (GAC Concise) in 23rd, to see him go 10th overall, and Rookie Andrew Baker in 31st. For Henry Bomby (Rockfish Red), Leg 4 was a disappointing end to his overall race. Favouring an offshore route along the northern coast of France with a few other boats, Henry’s decision didn’t pay off, leaving him stuck without wind with less than 50 miles to the finish. On the up side, Henry made his grand entrance into Dieppe at 1338hrs to the sounds of cheering crowds in admiration of his perseverance and determination. On the down side, Henry’s Leg 4 result scuppered his goal of a top 15 finish, putting him 30th overall despite his historic fourth place finish on leg 2 into La Cornouaille, France.

Rookie Rob Bunce (Artemis 37) was forced to retire after finding himself in a similar situation. Having made a bad call off the coast of the Isle of Wight, Rob found himself at the back of the fleet. On the back foot coming into the line Rob, like Henry, found himself trapped in a wind hole a few miles from the finish line. As night approached on Thursday 25th June, Rob, Yannig Livory (Lorientreprendre) and Yannick Evenou (Loi et Vin) made the difficult decision to retire from Leg 4.

To race in the Solitaire du Figaro is an overwhelming experience, and just to finish is an incredible achievement. It is on the Classe Figaro Bénéteau circuit that the stars of offshore sailing come to the fore, in a unique class where newcomers can compete with and learn from the Pros. The Solitaire du Figaro – Eric Bompard Cachemire this year showcased the advances made in British offshore sailing since the Artemis Offshore Academy was established in 2010, the British contingent yet again proving they are contenders. As Yann Elies said in his winning speech in Torbay, there are no doubts that in few years it will be a British skipper standing on top of the Solitaire du Figaro podium – the first in history. But for now for the British, lots of hot food, a comfy bed and plenty of zzzz’s!

They said:

Sam Matson (Chatham)

There were a few moments where I just sat back and relaxed. I just wanted to let it happen and enjoy it. There was some quite nice sailing during the leg – 12 knots, flat water – it wasn’t all bad!

Alan Roberts (Magma Structures)

I am kind of relieved to finish because I’m exhausted! But I’m a little sad as well. I love sailing and it’s all I really want to do, so when you finish a race like this, you’re at a bit of a loss with what to do with yourself! I think after a good night’s sleep I’m going to want to get straight back out there. It’ll be weird not doing that.

Jack Bouttell (GAC Concise)

It’s an unreal feeling to finish the Solitaire, whether you come first or last. It’s such a massive achievement. Just to get to the start line is a big job – finding a boat, finding the money, everything that goes into it is such a big operation. Sailing your boat single handed against some of the best skippers in the world is pretty cool. It’s a great feeling to be here.

Nick Cherry (Redshift)

There was never really a good time to rest. There were a lot of transitions and a lot of light patches. It was really hard to predict what was going to happen. At least it was nice and sunny for most of it!

Henry Bomby (Rockfish Red)

I think if I didn’t have that fourth place from Leg 2, I’d be in a much darker place right now! I know I can sail well, I just made a decision that didn’t pay off. It’s frustrating but it’s not the end of the world.

Robin Elsey (Artemis 43)

I definitely want to do it again next year! I am relieved to finish though. It’s been a long month so I’m really looking forward to getting some rest! I can barely even talk right now, I’m so tired!

Andrew Baker (Artemis 23)

The other legs have been quite different, and this leg was pretty tough as there were a lot of shutdowns where there wasn’t any wind. It was really hard to tell when the wind would fill in again. You could literally go from the bottom of the fleet to the top, and generally the fleet was just inside out the whole time. It’s hard to keep sailing fast in one direction when you don’t know if that’s the right direction to sail. You have to sail fast and keep the boat moving at all times when it’s light wind, and just see what happens.

Rob Bunce (Artemis 37)

I’ve taken away so much from this. Patience and that you can’t put enough time into something to perfect it. Loads of different sailing points, but also a few mental points – I’m a lot stronger after this.

Leg 4 results

Position/Skipper/Boat/Time at sea/*Rookie

1. Adrien Hardy/Agir Recouvrement/3d, 9h, 15’, 10”
2. Vincent Biarnes/Guyot Environnement/3d, 9h, 41’, 27”
3. Yoann Richomme/Skipper Macif 2014/3d, 9h, 47’, 11”
10. Sam Matson/Chatham/3d, 10h, 18’. 26”
13. Robin Elsey/Artemis 43/3d, 10h, 20’, 23” *Rookie
14. Alan Roberts/Magma Structures/3d, 10h, 23’, 24”
21. Nick Cherry/Redshift/3d, 11h, 7’, 5”
23. Jack Bouttell/GAC Concise/3d, 11h, 17’, 6'
31. Andrew Baker/Artemis 23/3d, 14h, 31’, 10' *Rookie
32. Henry Bomby/Rockfish Red/3d, 20h, 38’, 41”
34. Rob Bunce/Artemis 37/4d, 8h, 31’, 36” *Rookie

The 2015 Solitaire du Figaro overall results after Leg 4

Position/Skipper/Boat/Accumulative time/*Rookie

1. Yann Elies/Groupe Queguiner – Leucémie Espoir/11d, 21h, 17’, 14”
2. 2. Charlie Dalin/Skipper Macif 2015/11d, 21h, 43’, 0”
3. 3. Xavier Macaire/Skipper Herault/11d, 22h, 1’, 43”
4. 9. Alan Roberts/Magma Structures/12d, 4h, 14’, 4”
5. 10. Jack Bouttell/GAC Concise/12d, 4h, 21’, 50”
6. 13. Sam Matson/Chatham/12d, 4h, 53’, 46”
7. 15. Robin Elsey/Artemis 43/12d, 5h, 16’, 15” *Rookie
8. 30. Henry Bomby/Rockfish Red/12d, 15h, 33’, 5”
9. 31. Andrew Baker/Artemis 23/12d, 15h, 45’, 16” *Rookie
10. 32. Nick Cherry/Redshift/12d, 17h, 56’, 49”
11. 35. Rob Bunce/Artemis 37/13d, 9h, 27’, 18” *Rookie

The 2015 Solitaire du Figaro Rookie results after Leg 4

Position/Skipper/Accumulative time

1. Robin Elsey/Artemis 43/12d, 5h, 16’, 15”
2. Benoit Mariette/Entrepose/12d, 7h, 11’, 8”
3. Aymeric Arthaud/Reel – PGO Automobiles/12d, 7h, 59’, 38”
4. Martin le Pape/Ovimpex/12d, 8h, 42’, 4”
5. Sophie Faguet/Region Basse Normandie/12d, 13h, 17’, 10”
6. Nicolas Thomas/Guadeloupe Grand Large 1/12d, 13h, 35’, 28”
7. Arthur Prat/Guadeloupe Grand Large 2/12d, 14h, 7’, 39”
8. Benjamin Dutreux/Team Vendée/12d, 14h, 47’, 0”
9. Andrew Baker/Artemis 23/12d, 15h, 45’, 16”
10. Rob Bunce/ Artemis 37/13d, 9h, 27’, 18”
11. Tolga Ekrem Pamir/1 Jour 1 Homme 1 Arbre/13d, 16h, 9’, 23”
12. Marc Pouydebat/France AVC/13d, 17h, 25’, 35”