15th Défi Azimut Lorient Agglomération - Uncertainty reigns across Biscay
by Azimut 19 Sep 22:41 AEST
15th Défi Azimut Lorient Agglomération © Jean-Marie Liot
Doubt lingers this Thursday regarding the intentions of the wind gods off the coast of Lorient, Brittany. Will the fleet have enough breeze to fill their sails throughout the rectangular course concocted by Race Management? Nothing could be less certain amidst a context of high pressure in every sense and the potential arrival on Saturday of a front moving very slowly across the Bay of Biscay.
- Light airs start in the 48H Azimut for the 12-strong IMOCA fleet, which is fairly bunched as it makes for the Occidentale de Sein.
- On the cards is an intense 250-mile race and the playing field is wide open given the shifty conditions in the Bay of Biscay.
- A cracking start for Charal (Beyou-Lagravière), leading the fleet off the Glénans archipelago.
Great uncertainty, short course
"The weather forecast is far from settled." stresses Francis Le Goff, the Race Director, who has been particularly focused on Météo France's models (Arome, Arpège) in his design of the 250-mile course, which will encourage the fleet to play around with the local effects on site. As such, a short course has been chosen, which is nearly half the length of last year's 455-mile racetrack. Indeed, the team had to rely on the current files dishing up an average breeze of just 7 knots, which may well fade to nothing at times, plus there is still a great deal of uncertainty about when the wind will kick back in from the west.
Suffice to say that the situation bodes well for a tactically intense battle for the fleet. The gentle yet complex conditions will ensure it is an open playing field for each and every one of the duos, including those on the old daggerboard IMOCAs, whilst providing the perfect opportunity for them to see what their boats are made of and find the best trim. Armel Tripon on the brand-new Les P'tits Doudous, and Manu Cousin making his racing debut on a foiler, Coup de Pouce, certainly agree.
Lois Berrehar is equally thrilled with the standard of competition expected: "It's bound to be action-packed on what is a predominantly coastal race. It'll be important to look at what's going on around us and see what the sky is telling us," confirmed Sam Goodchild's co-skipper on Macif Santé Prévoyance prior to the start. "In light airs, you need to remain very focused so you can play around with the wind shifts and the small transitions," echoed Xavier Macaire, who is paired with Justine Mettraux on Teamwork-Team SNEF.
Champing at the bit as far as Sein
No sooner said than done because when the starting gun fired at 3:30 pm in a 7-8-knot SE'ly breeze, the mixed duo timed their escape to perfection, just astern of the Beyou-Lagravière (Charal) duo, who were nicely positioned at the front on the line so they could latch onto the first short, gentle gusts. The challenge now is not to dawdle over the 80-mile section leading to the Occidentale de Sein. Indeed, the most pessimistic routing shows the boats not making the first course mark until the early hours of tomorrow!
As a result, it will be vital to keep a cool head and not lose patience, particularly in the early hours when the stronger current decides to spice things up off the north-west tip of Brittany. This evening, to the north of the Glénans archipelago, Charal was continuing to lead the fleet, tailed by Teamwork Team Snef and 4Cad La Mie Câline (Benjamin Dutreux- Arnaud Boissières), whilst the second part of the fleet seemed set on dipping below the islands. Lois Berrehar has already shared his thoughts on this first traffic separation scheme: "In this 48 H race, it's important not to fear anybody but to be wary of everyone!"
The skippers' words before departure
Nicolas D'stais (Café Joyeux): excitement, delight, humility
"It's our first race on the IMOCA circuit. We're not going far. I'm familiar with the racetrack but I don't know the boat or our rivals. Safe to say we're playing in the big league now! The lighter the breeze, the more the fleet will compress... As a result, we have an opportunity to compete against the fastest boats of the fleet.
This will be our 6th outing on the boat for me and Simon (Koster). We're so far off the pace that there's zero pressure on our shoulders for a result. Initially we should be sailing downwind, which is quite a positive thing because we have a spinnaker and the boat is pretty good in light airs. Then we link onto a beat before the wind kicks in with the arrival of a front at the end, which should also be pretty good. Until the front kicks in, we're really in with a chance of posting a good performance as we have a great weapon... The primary objective is not to really stuff up. Simon and I will also have an opportunity to get to know one another and we're entering into this with a great deal of humility."
Armel Tripon (Les P'tits Doudous): we're going to gradually get our bearings
"Tanguy and I are very happy not to be setting sail with this new boat in breezy conditions. We're going to gently get into the swing of it and gradually get our bearings. It's the perfect time to size up the
competition, try out a few moves and gain a better understanding of the boat. We've brought a spinnaker for the first night. We're really inside the sail's range for the run and I think all the teams will have one of these aboard. We've never tried it before. It's second-hand so it'll be a journey of discovery!
Yesterday's Speed runs have given us confidence. We knew the boat handled well but the forecast wasn't necessarily the most favourable for our hull. She did great though. Our third place was a real bonus for all the team, the guests, the association and the sponsors. It's a great reward for all the effort required to bring this lovely boat into the world."
Louis Duc (Fives Group Lantana Environnement): excited to be competing in this Défi together
"It's fair to say that these conditions are better for our daggerboard boats than a 25-knot reach! That said, we'll have to watch out for the foilers. A two-knot difference in wind speed and they sail double the speed. The forecast shows things really easing up for the front of the pack, which may give those behind a chance to catch up. I don't have any hopes of overtaking the foils but it would be great to finish en masse rather than ten hours after everyone else. On top of that, sailing in light airs is a risk-free way of getting the boat nicely trimmed in race format. I make the most of all the races, all the opportunities we get to sail on these IMOCAs. They're special moments both as a crew and as a skipper.
You often only appreciate these times at the end of a campaign so it's important not to deny yourself a good thing, especially as it's probably our penultimate race on this boat. The duo Marie (Tabarly) and I have formed works really smoothly. We're excited to be competing in this Défi Azimut together. We were supposed to do it four years ago but the boat wasn't ready so we each got on with our own thing separately as we each had something to prove. Coming back to this competition now, we each have a circumnavigation of the globe under our belts and we've forged a real bond so we're thrilled to get going."