4 days of entertainment in Saint-Malo before the prologue
Before the start of The Transat Bakerly, the solo sailors will meet for 4 days in Saint-Malo for a series of events and festivities (April 20 to 23, 2016). The fleet, divided into 4 categories: Ultim multihulls, IMOCA 60-foot monohulls, Multi50 trimarans and Class40 monohulls, will be moored along the quays of the Bourse and Saint-Louis, and the Chaussée Éric Tabarly. The whole fleet of Pen Duick will also be there to pay tribute to Pen Duick II, on board which Eric Tabarly won the 1964 edition.
This will be the first time in the history of the single-handed transatlantic race that The Transat Bakerly will organize a warm-up, a rallying race between Saint-Malo and Plymouth.
While waiting for the prologue (the solo sailors will reach Plymouth on April 23, 2016), the race village opened its doors to the public on Wednesday, April 20. And most of the skippers have already reached the pontoons of Saint-Malo, to the great joy of the inhabitants, but also of the vacationers.
Thus, one can discover the masterly Sodebo alongside the eternal Pen Duick II, but also the powerful Class40 and Multi50, or the robust Imoca. The Race Village is an opportunity for the curious to meet the skippers, but also to participate in many activities, especially for children.
Saturday, April 23rd, time for the prologue
The day before the warm-up, the solo sailors will be presented to the public on April 22nd from 6 pm, in the Fosse aux Lions, Place Chateaubriand. As a conclusion, the boats will set sail on Saturday, April 23 for the lock passage show starting at 5:30 pm: the starting line will be as close as possible to the public, in front of the black mole, in five successive salvos every five minutes starting at 8:10 pm.
As a prologue, the 24 sailors (Vincent Riou will be absent) will have to cross the English Channel to Plymouth Harbour, a 150-mile South-East-North-West course to come to a mooring in front of the Barbican harbour. They will be accompanied by their préparateur, their partners and journalists.
The arrival is scheduled for the morning of Sunday, April 24, and the boats will remain at the dock for 8 days to meet the British public.
PRB absent from The Transat prologue
Vincent Riou (PRB) hit a piece of wood while conveying his boat â?" the Imoca PEB â?" to Saint-Malo. The keel is slightly damaged and needs some repairs. The skipper has therefore chosen not to compete in the prologue and to return to Port-La-Forêt to refurbish his boat. The skipper and his boat will join the starting line of The Transat in Plymouth on May 2nd.
On Wednesday, April 20, the Transat Bakerly village will open its doors to the public while the 29 skippers entered in the race will join the port of Saint-Malo.
B.Stichelbaut/PRB
The program
Wednesday, April 20th
- 10 am - 7 pm: Open public village
- 10 a.m. - 4:30 p.m.: "Challenge des écoles de sport" on the Vauban basin (demonstrations and regattas of windsurfing boards, optimists and Open 5.70)
- 8 p.m.: All the fleet is moored at the Quai de la Bourse and Quai Saint Louis/Discoveries and visits of the Pen Duick III and V for the public
Thursday, April 21
- 10 a.m. - 7 p.m.: Open public village/Discoveries and visits of Pen Duick III and V for the public
- 11 a.m. - 6 p.m.: "Stand Up Paddle Challenge" on the Vauban Basin (Stand Up Paddle demonstrations and regattas), with the participation of the skippers and teams involved in The Transat bakerly!
Friday, April 22nd
- 10 a.m. - 9 p.m.: Open public village
- 11 a.m. - 5 p.m.: "Challenge Muscadets" on the Vauban basin (demonstrations and Muscadet regattas), with the participation of skippers and teams involved in The Transat bakerly! live commentary/Discoveries and visits of Pen Duick III and V for the public
- 6 p.m.: OFFICIAL PRESENTATION OF THE SKIPPERS, and taking of Loïck Peyron's prints, Place Chateaubriand, Fosse aux Lions
saturday, April 23
- 10 a.m. - 8 p.m.: Open public village/Discoveries and visits of Pen Duick III and V, for the public
- Traditional Sailing" day, demonstrations and tours open to the public upon reservation at the Tourist Office
- Ãeuros from 5:30 pm: Show at the Naye lock: the racing boats will leave the Vauban basin to take the departure towards Plymouth
- Ãeuros from 8 pm: Departure of the Warm up of The Transat bakerly from the Plateau de la Rance, between Dinard and the MÃ'le des Noires
The list of skippers participating in The Transat Bakerly
| ULTIMATE | MULTI50 | IMOCA | CLASS40 | INCLUDES |
| François Gabart | Eric Nigon | Armel Le Cléac'h | Anna-Maria Ranken | Loïck Peyon on Pen Duick II |
| Thomas Coville | Erwan Le Roux | Jean-Pierre Dick | Armel Tripon | |
| Yves Le Blévec | Gilles Lamiré | Paul Meilhat | Edouard Golbery | |
| Lalou Roucayrol | Richard Tolkien | Hiroshi Kitada | ||
| Pierre Antoine | Sébastien Josse | Isabelle Joschke | ||
| Vincent Riou | Louis Duc | |||
| Maxime Sorel | ||||
| Philippe Sharp | ||||
| Robin Marais | ||||
| Thibaut Vauchel-Camus |
Photo credits: Daryl Ly
