A great start
After a start postponed for a day because of a mistral wind too aggressive for a coastal start, the Ocean Fifty fleet set off from Toulon on Monday, August 2, in a strong westerly flow of about twenty knots. Determined to fight, the six competitors all left under high mainsail, ensuring a great show in the Toulon harbor. With their bows smoking and drifting out of the water, the fleet led by Thibaut Vauchel-Camus and the Solidaires en Peloton ARSEP team headed for the Strait of Gibraltar.
A stage marked by the dismasting of The Arch
The fleet regrouped after passing Gibraltar, to the point where five of the competitors were within 5 miles of each other. But while making progress in 14-18 knots of wind, the crew of The Arch suffered a dismasting on Thursday night off Lagos.
Skipper Benoît Marie was alone on deck at the time of the damage: " We were under full mainsail in 14-18 knots of wind, I was at the helm and suddenly the mast literally broke like a house of cards, we do not yet know the origin ". Big disappointment for the trimaran led by Armel Tripon and Benoît Marie, which was then side by side with Leyton. The crew managed to secure the damaged rigging, then was taken in tow towards the Portuguese coast.
An express crossing of the Bay of Biscay and a tense finale
Benefiting from a small low-pressure system generating 20/25 knots of south-westerly winds, the Ocean Fifty fleet has made its mark over the last 24 hours of racing. After rounding Cape Finisterre, the fleet took off the sheets and headed for Brest, after a fast crossing of the Bay of Biscay.
Thanks to a judicious option at the end of the course, Leyton's crew of Sam Goodchild, Aymeric Chappellier and Sébastien Josse crossed the finish line first. But to make a good winner, you need a good second. Arkema and Arsep were to wage a merciless duel right up to the finish line, as the two trimarans arrived with a 57-second gap between them, after five days of racing!
The success of the first edition of the Pro Sailing Tour
For this first edition, the Pro Sailing Tour, the 50-foot multihull championship, has met its objectives. With an efficient and homogeneous fleet, the show was there at each stage. The public was not only numerous to come and watch the trimarans in the different cities, but some of them were also able to climb aboard to better discover these formidable machines. We can't wait for next season!
