IMOCA boats
Estimated race time: 11 days
First arrivals expected around November 15, 2018
In three years, the IMOCA has made a real change with the addition of foils that allow them to fly. While in the 2016 Vendée Globe, we were in the midst of thinking about the potential of these appendages, today their benefit is proven! As Vincent Lauriot-Prévost confided to us, "the foil we can no longer do without!"
Out of the 20 starters of the Route du Rhum 2018 the 10 of them are equipped with these large whiskers which offer a proven gain in speed, with the possibility of taking off from 15 knots of wind and reaching a top speed of 30 knots!
In the Vendée Globe, Alex Thomson euros, second in the euro race, achieved the 24-hour record in a single-handed monohull with 536.81 miles covered!
With an estimated crossing time of only 11 days, François Gabart's reference time on Macif (12 d 4 h 38 mn 55 s) should be largely exceeded!
CLASS40
Estimated time: 15 days
First arrivals expected around November 19, 2018
The Class40 brings together monohulls of 12.19 m in length within a very tightly defined rule: 115 m2 maximum upwind, a minimum displacement of 4,500 kg and a draft of 3 meters. However, architectural concepts continue to evolve and recent boats look more and more like their big 60-foot brothers, even if they cannot use foils or canting keels. So watch out for these little rockets that could even compete with the IMOCA boats of the 2000s!
At unbridled speeds and crosswinds, the most recent Class 40s can expect to sail more than 350 miles a day.
And based on the last three editions, the race time is getting shorter every year: Phil Sharp mit 18 d 10 h 21' 18" in 2006, Thomas Ruyant arrived in Guadeloupe after 17 d 23 h 10' 17" in 2010 and Alex Pella after 16 d 17 h 47' 08" in 2014, setting a new reference time. So based on this downward curve, the 40-foot class should gain another day!
RUM MONO CLASS
Estimated time: 20 days
First arrivals expected around November 24, 2018
All monohulls that do not fit into either the IMOCA or Class40 classes will be included in the new category Mono Rum . With 17 participants in disparate boats, it is difficult to establish a ranking or to predict finishes. Indeed, what is similar between Éric Bellion's 21-meter schooner (Commeunseulhomme) and Jean-Luc Nizien-Jaglin's Opium 39 (Transports Groussard)?
The two Euro favourites Sébastien Destremeau (Alcatraz IT FaceOcean) on his lightweight IMOCA Open 60 and Sidney Gavignet (Café Joyeux) on a particularly sharp 52 footer have powerful boats.
for comparison, in 2014, it was Andrea Mura on the Open 50 Vento di Sardegna launched in 2000 who came first in the Rhum Class monohulls and 2nd in the class with a race time of 20 d 2 h 19 min 36 s.
