The Transat Québec Saint-Malo (TQSM) was organized for the first time in 1984 and is one of the oldest ocean races from west to east, non-stop and with a crew. Organized every four years, it brings together monohulls and multihulls in two races in one: the crossing of the St. Lawrence River between Quebec City and Levis, where you have to beat the currents and tides, and the crossing of the Atlantic by the north, where you have to avoid icebergs and cross the English Channel through the sea current.
In 2016, it will be the 9 e edition of the Transat Québec Saint-Malo with 26 participants, including 2 ultimates, among which the trimaran Spindrift 2, from six countries and as far as Oman and Japan. The edition promises a great fight on the water with the participation of great skippers such as Gilles Lamiré and Thibault Vauchel-Camus, winners of the last Transat Bakerly in Multi50 and Class40 respectively.
The 19 Class40 boats, the four Multi50s and the two Open Mono boats left on July 10th at 1 pm, while the two Ultime class trimarans left on July 12th at 3 pm and will try to beat the record of the event of 7 days and 20 hours, set in 1996 by Loïck Peyron on Fujicolor II âeuros a 60 feet Orma trimaran
The first days of the race can be followed from the banks of the river thanks to the 5 towns, 5 buoys circuit.
What course?
The sailboats competing in the Transat Québec Saint-Malo must travel 2897 nautical miles from Quebec City, including 376 miles on the St. Lawrence.
The multihulls follow a different course from the monohulls and must âeuros in addition to the four passage marks âeuros around the Magdalen Islands and the Fastnet Rock in the south of Ireland, before entering Saint-Malo.
As for the monohulls, they have to pass the four marks of the St. Lawrence River as well as Saint-Pierre-et-Miquelon before starting their transatlantic journey to Saint-Malo.
Who is participating?
The Transat Québec Saint-Malo brings together monohulls (Imoca60, Class 40 and Open over 45 feet) and multihulls (Ultimes, Multi 50 and Open between 39 feet and 70 feet). The race is run with a minimum crew of 3 people.
In 2016, there are 19 Class40, 4 Multi50, 2 Open and 2 Ultimates.
What's special about it?
The race record has been held by Loïck Peyron since 1996 on the trimaran Fujicolor, who completed the crossing in 7 d 20 h 24 min. He has been the undisputed leader for 20 years, even though Karine Fauconnier on Sergio Tacchini missed the record by 36 min (7 d 21 h).
In order to balance the arrival dates, the Transat Québec Saint-Malo has two different starts: one for the monohulls and Multi50s and one for the Ultimes. The course for the multihulls is also different from that of the monohulls.
