If they attract all the attention, do these technological beasts nevertheless have the capacity to win the race? Jérémie Beyou on Charal has had a great 2019 season, Sébastien Simon (Arkéa-Paprec) has sailed a lot, but is having a lot of problems, Alex Thomson (Hugo Boss) is making the buzz, but we haven't yet seen his IMOCA last in action. Apivia and Advens for Cybersecurity were launched only recently and have not yet given up their secrets.
Here are the 5 new foilers that will participate in the 2018 Transat Jacques Vabre. By new foilers we mean boats designed to fly and therefore built around their appendages. The very first IMOCA of this new generation is Charal euros a VPLP plan euros, launched a year before the others, in the summer of 2018. If his first races were complicated, Jérémie Beyou now masters his mount perfectly, the proof is with his results on the Rolex Fastnet or on the 2019 Azimut Challenge.
It is therefore quite natural that Charal (Jérémie Beyou and Christopher Pratt) is positioned as the great favorite in this double-handed transatlantic race.
"We're eager to keep this spot. On the 2019 Azimuth Challenge, we maintained the gap throughout the race. We sailed cleanly. On the Rolex Fastnet Race, it was less accomplished even if we won. We're not getting the wrong idea, it's going to be tough. We're not getting carried away, but the goal is still to win confided to us the sailor .
Read Jérémie Beyou's analysis of the new foilers .
In its category, there are three other new generation boats, all launched this late 2019. Few have been sailed and it is quite difficult to make a prognosis.
Arkea-Paprec is a Kouyoumdjian design with a very low center of gravity and a completely clear cockpit. If its first two races are a success Grand Prix Guyader and Bermuda 1000 Race euros, the following are less so: withdrawal from the Rolex Fastnet and 11th place in the Azimuth Challenge.
"Upwind and downwind, the foils work very well. After the Azimuth Challenge, we modified them a second time to make them more versatile. We were aware of the problem with our foils." explains its skipper Sébastien Simon who will be sailing with Vincent Riou.
Unfortunately, during the delivery of the IMOCA to Le Havre, the port foil broke this forced the skipper to reconsider his sporting ambitions.
"It's frustrating to have to forget our sporting objectives. We're not going for victory or a podium, we're going to finish the race in good conditions. But even with one foil down, we are happy to be starting this Transat Jacques Vabre."
Hugo Boss has also left the drawing board at VPLP. With his new boat, the British Alex Thomson is off the beaten track. The exterior design, the architectural concept and the on-board technology . Indeed, on Hugo Boss, we are now sailing in the dry, with a maneuvering area fully integrated into the heart of the boat in the bottom of the hold and quite close to the foot of the mast.
If we know that Alex Thomson's main objective is to win the 2020 Vendée Globe, we have no doubt that he will give his all in this 2019 Transat Jacques Vabre. While the official video of the IMOCA boat sailing has been released, little feedback has filtered through on the boat's performance. We will have to wait for the race to know more. It will be in duo with Neal Mc Donald.
Apivia was designed by Frenchman Guillaume Verdier based on the plans of the Super 60, imagined for the Volvo Ocean Race. In collaboration with the architect, skipper Charlie Dalin and his team have developed the hull shape, the deck, the general structure, the cockpit and the roof. But what stands out from the design of the other boats is its closed cockpit. A characteristic that allows to sail better protected while the boats go faster and faster . "I feel like we have a pretty versatile boat. It's never slow, with a speed bottom that's pretty easy to find." confides the skipper .
Even if he dreams of a podium, Charlie Dalin euros who will be accompanied by Yann Eliès euros is aware of the youth of his boat. "We're going to discover a lot of things during the race. If everything goes well, we have the ability to go for good results and why not win."
The objective remains to make the boat sail properly and to manage to cross the Atlantic to reach Brazil.
The last new generation IMOCA in this Transat Jacques Vabre is also the most recently launched. Advens for Cybersecurity euros plan Verdier built by the Italian shipyard Persico Marine in Italy hit the water on September 6. In his first race, the Azimuth Challenge, he finished in 16th place.
"There's a lot to learn before we're able to use it 100%. The boat is solid, and we have not had any breakages since the launch. Our first outings leave us with a very pleasant impression. The boat is well born, fast, and it's hard to find the brake pedal!"
It is also inspired by the Super 60, designed for the Volvo Ocean Race and Thomas Ruyant could see himself racing The Ocean Race on board. In the meantime, on this Transat Jacques Vabre euros that he will race with Antoine Koch euros he hopes to "playing with the very first ones. The boats of the previous generation are at 100% of their potential. We'll have to reckon with them."
The podium of the editors: Charal / Hugo Boss / Apivia
And yours? Who do you see finishing on the podium of the foilers? Share your opinion by leaving us a comment.
