The 47 Figaro riders left Morlaix Bay on Saturday 22 June 2019 for the 4th and final leg of the Solitaire Urgo Le Figaro. On the programme, 500 miles to Dieppe with a first fast Channel crossing under spinnaker to Wolf Rock. The next days will be less "quiet" with chain transitions and wind playing with a top. This test is already proving to be nerve-wracking and exhausting.
It was finally at 4:15 p.m. that the start was given - delayed by a quarter of an hour due to the whims of the wind. On the starboard tack and genoa at the front, it was Yann Eliès (St Michel) who first reached the tip of the Diben, reaching the mark on a single tack, followed by Morgan Lagravière (Sail of engagement) and the Englishman Will Harris (Hive Energy)
The Briochin crossed one hour later, after a tack under a large spinnaker between Trégor and Léon, the Radio France buoy, the end of this initial course in Morlaix Bay
"The stage will be even more complicated in terms of weather, because apart from the first Channel crossing, which is relatively clear, we still expect a lot of transitions, storm phases, it's going to be a nerve-wracking stage, the fireworks of this Solitaire" summarizes Benoît Mariette (Senior Generation).
With varying conditions, this stage - like the three previous ones - has many twists and turns
COURCOUX Alexis
"This stage will be in line with the Solitaire, we're staying in the same strategy, with reliable weather over 24 hours and then it gets worse. We're going to have to be inventive to find the best possible routes and stay vigilant at the end, because it's going to be in areas where there's current, with no real way to hide, and in very light winds. So even if in the first 24 hours there will be a way to gain miles, the gaps will probably be in the last third of the course, the end will be terrible" concludes Loïck Peyron.
