Multi50 Arkema in Brittany for opening of Grand Prix Guyader

by Arkema on 4 May 2017 Following a five-month refit for innovation and performance enhancements, Lalou Roucayrol’s Arkema trimaran went back in the water in Verdon-sur-Mer on 25 April.

Sporting a new livery, fitted with new rudders, and ready to accommodate its appendages, the 50 ft multihull was moved quickly last week from the Aquitaine region to Finistère via Lorient to take delivery of one of its foils. Now moored in the port of Douarnenez, the Arkema trimaran is taking part in the Grand Prix Guyader four-day racing event from Thursday 4 May with an experienced crew on board assisting its skipper Lalou Roucayrol.

From in-depth innovation to top livery!

Since the trimaran was first launched in 2013, the Arkema – Lalou Multi crew has continued to innovate and amaze. Always looking for novel developments, Lalou Roucayrol will have his work cut out in the 2017 season on board his Arkema trimaran. “The winter refit was quite complex”, explains Fabienne Roucayrol, the project’s manager. “In addition to the alterations needed because of the new foils, we checked the boat over completely. The power supply was reviewed, the nets changed, and every Piano system on the roof was revisited. Last winter, we also installed three new rudders based on Lalou’s feedback following the Transat and the Transat Québec-St Malo races. They have the same length, but we did away with the winglets and altered their shapes. Whereas they used to be straight, they are now shaped like the fins of a whale, or like a comma. We are now going to test this new design.”

Another visible change made to the trimaran last winter: its decoration. “We wanted a consistent image between the Multi 50 Arkema and the Mini 6.50 Arkema 3. Over and above the colors, the branding of our partners now includes Bostik, which is part of the Arkema Group. We have used a new type of self-adhesive graphics on the trimaran’s hull, designed by the company Uniflow: slip-resistant and antifouling stickers”, concludes Fabienne.

First stage: Grand Prix Guyader

Marking the kick-off of the 2017 Multi 50 season, the Grand Prix Guyader will be staged more like an event allowing the crews to settle in, both Lalou Roucayrol’s crew and all the other crews in the running whose boat, like the Arkema, have a single port foil. “Like the other competitors, we only have one foil for this event because of a longer delivery period from our monotype supplier” explains Lalou Roucayrol. “We are all in the same boat - pardon the pun. By beginning the season with a single appendage, we will be able to record significant data and save time when the second foil is delivered, now scheduled for mid-June. The objective of this Grand Prix Guyader is also to put our crew back in working order for the 2017 season, making sure we are absolutely ready with Karine for the next Transat Jacques Vabre race.”
Etienne Carra – member of the technical team, César Dohy – from Incidences, Karine Fauconnier, and Raphaël Lutard – apprentice at Lalou Multi -, are accompanying Lalou for the 4-day Grand Prix Guyader event.

Meanwhile, Quentin Vlamynck has now sailed from the port of La Rochelle on board his Mini 6.50 Arkema, heading for La Trinité-sur-Mer. On 9 May, the skipper will be off on the Mini en Mai, a 500- nautical mile qualifying course for the upcoming Mini Transat 2017.