Transatlantic goal for a young sailor in training
At just twenty years of age, Meven Flao is embarking on an ambitious ocean racing career with his sights set on the Mini Transat 2027. As a student at ENSTA Bretagne and an apprentice at JPK Composites, he is combining his engineering studies with a rigorous sports program. N e met with him to present a scow project for coastal cruising. His first participation in the Mini Fastnet marks his entry into the Mini 6.50 circuit.
A 600-mile double-handed course to enter the Mini 6.50 circuit
Entered alongside Cédric Marc in the Mini 6.50 Casper meven, a Maxi bearing the number 1025, finished eighth out of fifty-two duos entered in the Mini Fastnet 2024. Run in light winds, this race was the first official step towards qualification for the Mini Transat, with 600 miles validated in the race.
The choice of a proven support and a strategic port to optimize preparation
Meven will take over the helm of Casper in January 2026. Until then, the Raison plan will remain based in Lorient, a strategic home port for offshore training. The Maxi 650 is a proven model, well known on the circuit, offering an interesting compromise between performance and reliability for a first transatlantic production project.
The dual role of skipper and engineer
As a student at ENSTA Bretagne, Meven has developed an analytical and technical approach to the boat, which he implements at JPK Composites. This hybrid profile, between design and navigation, is an asset in the management of a Mini 6.50. His detailed knowledge of materials and structural constraints feeds into boat preparation and dialogue with suppliers.
Physical, mental and administrative preparation
Preparation is not limited to sailing. Meven is already organizing the whole structure of the project: regular physical training, administrative management, budgeting. These non-sailing stages are essential to the viability of the Mini Transat program, whose costs and logistical requirements are rising rapidly.
Like many young skippers preparing for the Mini Transat, Meven is part of a progressive learning and structuring process. The Mini 6.50 remains one of the few accessible circuits in ocean racing, but it demands rigor, anticipation and professionalism from the earliest stages of the project.
