Transat Québec Saint-Malo – All bets are off for these final 24 hours

by Dominique Jobin on 21 Jul 2016 The Class40 fleet entered the English Channel this morning, and the leading group is so tightly packed that all bets are off as to the sporting outcome of this ninth edition of the Transat Québec Saint-Malo presented in collaboration with the City of Lévis.

The leader of the pack and undisputed victor of the Atlantic leg of the race, Santander native Gonzalo Botin (Tales II) couldn’t be more modest as he heads into the final hundred nautical miles of the race, adamant not to claim victory until he’s crossed the line. He’s expecting things to slow down drastically by this evening and steeling himself for the night terrors with a tightly-packed group of ambitious, determined hopefuls snapping at his heels, all vying for the top spot.

Although the Spaniard was leading by more than 50 nautical miles this morning, his rivals will be taking advantage of the fluky conditions to close the gap. No fewer than eight of the contenders in the Class40 fleet believe they have a shot at the podium with an ETA in the next 24 hours. Glued to their chart tables, the navigators are poring over and dissecting the grib files, trying to get the better of the weather and map out a miracle route through in the hopes of dethroning the leader and crossing the line below the ramparts of Saint-Malo ahead of the pack—probably by late afternoon tomorrow.

Hopes and fears
“We’ve carved out the lead, but I’m not certain it will be enough.” Modest and humble words indeed from Gonzalo Botin aboard Tales II as he and his three teammates from Santander’s Real Club Maritimo carry their impressive run into the final hundred nautical miles of the race. His fears are compounded by the dying winds ahead in the English Channel and the dogged determination of the contenders in his wake.

The Spaniard has some stiff competition to fend off, with a veritable who’s who of offshore sailing—renowned for their round-the-world, Mini Transat, Figaro, and Tour de France prowess—all chomping at the bit. After fighting out a short Transatlantic leg downwind and reaching, the fleet is now in for conditions more reminiscent of a stage of the Solitaire du Figaro—this time jousting with Class40s and crews at the top of their physical game after 11 days of exceptionally intense racing.

For the next 24 hours, they can expect to get little or no sleep, change tacks and switch sails incessantly, and heighten the surveillance on their rivals on the radar screen or by the naked eye. Not to mention having to deal with flagging morale in the face of tacking back and forth like yoyos all night long and getting practically nowhere. According to the latest estimates, there’s no end in sight for the race before the end of tomorrow afternoon. A tightly packed group of no fewer than seven Class40 boats now have their sights set on the sealock guarding the entrance to Saint-Malo harbour when it opens again at 7:30 p.m. tomorrow, eager to dock at the race wharf on Quai Duguay-Trouin.

An expert eye
After crossing the finish line at five in the morning yesterday aboard the Multi50 La French Tech Rennes St-Malo after ten days of racing, here’s what Yvan Bourgnon—sponsor of the Class40 boat V and B—had to say about what skipper Maxime Sorel and his crew are going through.

“It’s a classic line, the closest to the original route, that V and B is sailing with the Class40s. It’s a smart, conservative choice, and for sure it’s what (Éric) Tabarly would have done back in ’76. I’ve looked at the geotracker and I think they’re in a better position than the pack further north, because they’ve got a better angle of attack for the finish. They’ll be sailing downwind and are probably hoping to move up a few places. Clearly, the end of the race is going to unfold in some very light winds, and finishing in the top 8 would be a great achievement for the crew. The generator failure they had is a real learning experience because you have to sail on intuition. Sailors today have their heads buried in their computers too much. These guys are in observation mode now, though, are they’re closer to their surroundings. They have to study the sea conditions and the clouds, and they have to capitalize on the slightest of gusts. It was good to see that Maxime didn’t throw in the towel. Other competitors might well have turned around after the pit stop in Saint Pierre. V and B has sailed a consistent race, and if she finishes behind the leading group, that’ll be a good performance”

Here’s what the competitors had to say :

Manuel Cousin – Groupe Setin
“We’re sailing a fast reach. It’s windy, 25 knots, and it’s really wet. We’re permanently soaked to the skin, and trying to dry out is getting problematic. We’re looking forward to seeing the sun again. We’ve just finished skirting around this little low pressure centre to our south that’s been the thorn in our side for the last few days. We’re stoking the fire now to make it home as quickly as we can. We’re still putting up a fight and hoping to close the gap a little on the boats ahead of us. we have the oldest boat in the fleet, so we’re where we should be. This is a fantastic Transat. haven’t always gone our way, and the wind lines around Matane and Gaspé shut down in front of us. We’re not sailing the same race as the front-runners any more, but we’re giving it our all to make it home by Sunday.”

Louis Duc – Carac
“We’re screaming along on a reach, flying the gennaker and heeling to the max. We’ve got 20 knots of wind here, and right now we’re ranked the highest of the three Norman boats, ahead of Brieuc Maisonneuve (Ellipse) and Benoit Charron (Région Normandie). The southern route we chose is the closest to the way the crow flies. For sure I was expecting more in the way of gains, but the newer boats are a good two knots faster than we are in the same conditions. Things are going to hot up in the English Channel, not enough for us to really get back in the running, but it’s going to squeeze us in tighter at the finish line. This has been a fast Transat for us, but nothing apocalyptic. We had some strong wind for a long time, but it was manageable. Coming into the Channel is tricky, having to navigate around the shipping lanes. We’re working hard with the wind forecasts. We have a pretty good idea of what we’re going to do, but ultimately the wind will decide which course we sail. All of us on board are really pumped and we want to make it through the sealock on Friday night.”

Gonzalo Botin – Tales II
“Just as forecast, the wind has dropped here in the English Channel. The Atlantic crossing was a fast one. We stayed ahead the whole time and that’s really satisfying. The boat is doing well. She’s ultra-fast in these kinds of downwind and reaching conditions. We’ve carved out a nice little lead in the last couple of days. The other boats didn’t follow suit when we gybed two days ago. It’s good to have this lead, but I don’t know whether it’ll be enough. There’s not much wind in the Channel and if we’re at a standstill for more then three hours, they’re going to catch up. Right now, nothing is certain. Anything can still happen. However it turns out, this has been an amazing race for us to experience!”

Pierre Loïc Berthet – Eärendil
“We still have the wind this morning, but it’s forecast to drop by this afternoon. We’ve worked our hardest for the last four days to make it back into the leading pack. For two days we’ve been sparring alongside Generali Horizon Mixité. Tales II seems out of reach, if you ask me, but there are four or five boats jostling for a spot on the podium. We’re going to have to factor in everything there is to deal with in the English Channel—currents, coastal effects, night sailing, you name it—as well as fending off the competition. We won’t be able to beat them all. The other boats have a lot of Figaro sailors on board, and we’re pretty much heading into a stage of the Solitaire here. As the wind drops, we’re finally getting to dry out a little and get some rest. We’ve got a lot of repairs to do as well, to fix our big spinnaker that’s been ripped ever since we cleared the ice field. It’s really been a hard, cold, and exhausting Transat.”