1000 miles des Sables: Victory for Sam Goodchild on Leyton
by Leyton Sailing Team 13 Apr 2022 03:54 PDT
Sam Goodchild, Leyton Sailing Team - 1000 miles des Sables © Vincent Olivaud
This afternoon, at 16:50 hours local time, Leyton took line honours in the 1000 milles des Sables after three days two hours and 50 minutes of racing.
Sam Goodchild is savouring this result in what is his very first singlehanded race in Ocean Fifty and with it his entry ticket for the Route du Rhum - Destination Guadeloupe.
After a fantastic start offshore of Les Sables d'Olonne on Saturday, Sam Goodchild quickly moved up to the head of the Ocean Fifty fleet. The first 24 hours were intense for the skipper of Leyton, who had precious little sleep as he dealt with the numerous sail changes and strategic choices.
The climb up towards the north-west tip of Brittany was no calmer either with heavy seas, gusts in excess of 30 knots and numerous cargo ships. However, Sam was able to manage his race well to hold onto the top spot, even managing to extend his lead over fellow rival Éric Péron (Komilfo) all the way to this afternoon's finish in Les Sables d'Olonne.
This victory also means that Sam and Leyton have managed to qualify for the Route du Rhum - Destination Guadeloupe. The British skipper will take the start of his next singlehanded race in Cherbourg on 17 July. In the meantime, he'll be sailing in crewed configuration in season 2 of the Pro Sailing Tour.
Sam's statement at the finish
"It's job done, we've qualified for the Route du Rhum and I've completed my first singlehanded race on Leyton! It wasn't quite what we were expecting as only two of us have finished the race and I'm sorry for my playmates who have had to retire.
Conditions were very shifty and it wasn't an easy race. Even at the end, when you think you're nearly there, that's not actually the case! I called the shore crew this morning to tell them that I was going fast and ultimately I got in at 17:00 hours!
The race involved a very steep learning curve and I really stepped up my confidence levels. I needed to test the autopilot and the trimming in solo format so I could feel reassured. After the BXA mark in the Gironde estuary, I was going faster than Eric Péron. I was more comfortable in the fairly boisterous conditions. That was a massive confidence boost in terms of my ability to handle the boat and see just how far I could push her without taking risks.
I'm all the happier given that these past three days were really full-on and we've had no technical issues. That's really great news; the team's worked fantastically well."
Ocean Fifty Results:
1. GOODCHILD Sam / Leyton - 3 days 2h 50min 40 sec
2. PERON Eric / Komilfo - 3 days 5h 09min
ROGUES Sébastien / Primonial - retirement
TRIPON Armel / Les P'tits Doudous - retirement
LE ROUX Erwan / Koesio - retirement