Ian Lipinski (Griffon) crossed the finish line of the first stage of the Mini-Transat La boulangère on Wednesday 11th October 2017 at 15 h 22 min 12 s (TU+ 2) after 9 days 23 hours and 22 minutes to cover the distance La Rochelle - Gran Canaria at an average speed of 5.64 knots. He is just 113 seconds ahead of Arthur Leopold - Léger, who has given him a hard time over the past few days in light airs. This marks his 16th victory in a row in the Mini class, unbeaten for two years, but mishandled on this leg by one of his rivals... He had almost lost the habit...
It all came down to gybing less than two miles from the finish in Las Palmas, when the routes of the two leaders crossed. This first leg will remain marked by a large zone of calm, encountered from 6th October off Portugal, which only intensified between the African coast and Madeira.
"For the past four days, I've been doing my math. I was wondering how far behind I was going to be on Arthur Leopold-Léger. I was counting on being 6 to 12 hours late! When I learned this morning that I had regained my head, I couldn't believe it. What good news! I got caught up in the game at the end when I arrived elbow to elbow, but the main thing was really not to win, but to finish with as little delay as possible. Now that it's done, I'm happy to take it! Yesterday, I even saw my pursuers coming back, they were going faster. It was a really difficult calm, not necessarily because of its effects, but mainly because I couldn't stop thinking about the rankings and the result. We lived three days with gusts of 3 knots. At 3 knots, you're even happy. The first 900 miles have been great to live. I had a lot of fun and I still discovered things on my Griffon.fr. In particular, I've formalised the stories of "foiling" on the keel! At times, my proto never stopped in the waves. Anyway, I really didn't like the last days in the dead calm. I need 20 knots!" ian said when he arrived.
Arthur Léopold-Léger arrived at 15h 24mn 05s (TU+ 2) TU that is only 2 small minutes behind the winner.
"For the first two days, I was sick. Under these conditions, it's hard to keep the boat running properly. I listened to the rankings, I was tenth in the prototype, far from my ambitions. As a result, I decided not to listen to them any more, to race as best I could. I pushed the boat to the limit when the DST passed by in rough seas and that enabled me to get back up to the front of the field. I don't forget that I'm a racer above all else. Then, the end of the course was more peaceful: personally, the light weather doesn't bother me, I manage to stay calm and concentrated. It wasn't until I knew I was on board with Ian that I realised I was in a good position."
Competitors will be able to rest and prepare for the start of the next stage which will take place on November 2nd.
