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In the IMOCA category, which has been waiting for eight days in the Paul Vatine basin, the list of favourites was long in the early hours of Tuesday 7 November. Holders of the title, Thomas Ruyant and Morgan Lagravière are inevitably among them, even if the structural damage which occurred at the start of the Fastnet raises questions in some quarters as to the commitment they will show at the start of the race. Their For People has undergone a long refit and the programme for the first 24 hours promises a very tough start.
Already in the Bay of Seine, the 40 IMOCA boats set off live at 9:30 am. All the favourites are lining up. It's all smoke and fumes for For People, who are quick to reassure everyone of their intentions, well ensconced in the wheel of Charal, on which Jérémie Beyou and Franck Cammas are leading the hostilities. A word that rings true, as the exit from the English Channel is wreaking havoc on the fleet. Five boats ended up retiring due to various types of damage (in addition to MACIF Santé Prévoyance for medical reasons announced before the start) and three other IMOCA boats resumed their race after a pit stop.
A SOLID START
The day after the start, Samantha Davies confirmed during the radio session that she was experiencing ‘huge seas and horrible noises’ as the front passed over. ‘Now, we're sailing very fast in the south, sometimes a little too fast, and we're trying to control the pace,’ explained the British sailor, who is well established in the top 5, which her Initiatives Coeur will almost never leave during the race. Immediately in the match, the leading pack also included Paprec Arkéa and For People, the two almost sister ships.
After a wild descent of the Bay of Biscay, during which For People pulled back the helm to shift eastwards, the fleet approached the coast of Galicia, where the wind died down fairly quickly. This was the start of a placement race in which Charal controlled the fleet perfectly until she was the first to hit the ridge of high pressure and see the boats shifted to her east line up in her wake. Slightly behind, For People came back into the match at this point. A three-way battle began with Charal and Paprec Arkéa, which took the leaders across the Canaries before finally finding a gybe less than 100 miles off the Moroccan coast before setting their sights on the West Indies. Our transatlantic race really kicked off there,’ said Thomas Ruyant at the finish. I found a new rhythm. Momo took the helm more regularly in attack mode (...) We looked at each other and said to ourselves that we were sailing on one of the fastest monohulls on the planet. What a thrill!
A MÉNAGE À TROIS UNDER PRESSURE
But what a long way to go! In the end, the leader will cover more than 5,425 miles for the theoretical 3,750 on the direct route. This is exactly what Justine Mettraux and Julien Villion anticipated off Portugal when they simulated this southerly option, which favours slippery conditions but promises to be mile-hungry. In comparison, the routing which takes them above the high promises a 24 hour lead to Fort-de-France. And as Teamwork.net is shifted to the west, which is not the best position for crossing the ridge of high pressure, it's worth a try. Off Gibraltar on the night of 11th November, Teamwork.net seceded and set off to war against the westerlies for 1300 miles of upwind sailing. A route which is not lacking in panache but is proving to be tortuous and tiring in very changeable winds, cold and grey conditions...
While For People and co. are making their grand tour of Morocco, Teamwork.net is making headway on a much closer tack and has seized first place in the rankings. Its lead peaked at 300 miles on the night of 12th to 13th: ‘We gradually saw that they were losing on their routing and that we were ahead’. The hourglass reversed and For People regained the lead on 15 November. The final benefit of Teamwork.net's option kept the suspense alive for another 24 hours, until the boat was slowed behind the front as it began its descent towards Fort de France.
WEARING DOWN
From now on, the way is clear for For People, which is maintaining its staggering average speeds with its rivals, often in excess of 23 knots, in a steady trade wind and easy seas. On the radio link-up on 17th November, Morgan Lagravière spoke of living in ‘beastly conditions for the past five days’, but was delighted ‘to have beaten his record with 26.9 knots over 15 minutes’, despite the constant whistling of the foils, a hellish situation for the duo! At this speed, the machines are also hard at work and no mistakes are allowed when gybing or changing sails. Charal, who lost her large gennaker, confirmed this and was irretrievably unhooked from 14 November.
Placement also counts in this race of speed and gybes, which is now clearly pitting the two Finot-Conq/Koch designs against each other, who are waging a merciless war in which the excellent duo formed by Sam Goodchild and Antoine Koch on Thomas Ruyant's former Verdier design are also taking part. Yann Eliès confirms that ‘the atmosphere is not one of fun and games, but rather one of tension over performance’. Since the Canaries, Paprec Arkéa has been a little slower than For People and mile after mile, the title holders have increased their lead to around 25 miles. With 48 hours to go to the finish, Paprec Arkéa is trying its luck by shifting round to the north-west to make contact with an expected shift in the wind. But the trade winds remained blocked and the option fell through. By the time they settled back behind For People, the Richomme-Eliès tandem's deficit had increased to 70 miles. With 400 miles to go to the finish, it was all over...
SENSITIVE KILLERS
By crossing the line first in the Martinique night, Thomas Ruyant and Morgan Lagravière became the first pair to complete the double in two successive Routes du Café in the same category. They have left their mark on IMOCA racing by winning every transatlantic race contested since the return from the last Vendée Globe, if we include Thomas' victory in last year's Route du Rhum. Thomas immediately pays tribute to his team on the pontoon, as if to mask the emotion of making a little more history in his sport with his friend ‘Momo’, the mention of whom quickly brings tears to his eyes.
