La
Solitaire du Figaro - Three legs down, one to
go.
August
16, 2003
Skipper’s
honour, the third leg of La Solitaire Afflelou
Le Figaro, spiced up by a final night of madness
in monotonous calm weather off Dingle, will long
remain in everyone’s mind. It will be a
while before everyone forgets the last few miles
of the leg, where luck came into it, together
with the odd final tactical surprise as the fleet
pebbled hopped and hugged the rocky coastline
to the finish. Nothing that unusual when all said
and done here in the kingdom of nautical battles
where competitors fight it out on equal terms.
.Not at all surprising on this crazy which is
unequalled for permanent suspense and for keeping
everyone on the edge of their seats right up to
the finish line. And whilst six skippers stand
out from the crowd in the overall provisional
rankings, you can bet your bottom dollar that
the fourth and final leg will be every bit as
exciting as the 1320 miles already covered. .The
suspense is already beckoning on the horizon…
Who’s
in, who’s out? Without having it in for
the 42 sea dogs before they have even had the
chance to end their battle - knives are still
drawn - , a quick look at the overall rankings
after the three legs raced in light airs does
show up one or two interesting things. With his
latest win on the last leg freshly chalked up
on the board, Alain Gautier (Foncia) has moved
into the lead. Just goes to show that his recipe
of « having fun, first and foremost »
works a treat . 19 tiny minutes behind him is
Armel Le Cléac’h (Créaline),
happy to have made it first into La Rochelle.
His consistency in the front of the fleet is paying
already. Only 25 minutes from the leader, Pascal
Bidegorry (Région Aquitaine) – who
is never the less holding onto a solid third place,
in spite of his not having yet taken line honours
on any leg. Not one of these three chaps is ready
to let go what they have achieved thus far and
there is no doubt that they have taken a serious
option for the final podium.
But
watch out for the serious contenders following
up the rear who are elbowing each other out the
way. They too are three in number and are really
pushing and shoving each other to upset the current
state of play in Ireland. Firstly, there is Yann
Eliès (Groupe Générali Assurances),
who ahs lost a lot of ground between La Rochelle
and Dingle : three places down in the overall
rankings but who has lost nothing of his will
to be up there in the top places and to shine
as best he can. He’s lying in wait just
1h and 2 minutes behind Alain Gautier. Just what
is needed to whet his appetite for the last leg
on the menu. Eliès too needs to keep a
sharp eye out over his shoulder : Michel Desjoyeaux
(Géant) and Jérémie Beyou
(Delta Dore) are lurking not far behind, lying
roughly one and a half hours behind. That’s
a lot and then again not that much at all, when
you think about it. It is enough to give those
in the lead cause for concern as the final leg
approaches. Mich’ Desj’, has lots
of experience and has twice won La Solitaire and
is clearly enjoying every precious little minute
of this race like no other. . The more you succeed
the more you want to win ! He would certainly
appreciate winning the final leg. As for Jérémie,
he no longer has anything to prove. His will to
win drives him on and could very well give him
the wings he needs from Dingle to Saint Nazaire.
So there are two groups of three skippers who
have a lot riding on the last 500 miles lining
up ahead of them in the fourth leg. Six for the
final fix !
As
for the rest of the fleet, the gaps have increased
over the three legs raced so far. Laurent Pellecuer
(Cliptol Sport) clocks in almost two hours behind.
Nothing surprising there given the high pressure
conditions which have been omnipresent together
with the dead calm which has been reigning over
the race since the very first starting shot of
this 34the edition was fired. Nothing unusual
apart from the fact that some of the big names
have disappeared from the leader board. What has
happenend to them in fact?
The
major players such as the likes of Eric Drouglazet
(David Olivier) and Kito de Pavant (Crashbandicoot)
first of all – both previous winners of
La Solitaire ? Where are all the big guys of the
Figaro who know their one designs inside out?
– All, including Gildas Morvan (Celcle Vert),
Gilles Chiorri (32 01 Météo Consult)
or Charles Caudrelier (Bostik Findley) ? Well,
they are there , but a long way behind in the
overall provisional rankings. Victory is being
taken from right under their noses. It has been
that way since the start in fact and they are
having to put up with it, with their 4 to 5 hour
gap. A bitter pill to swallow and it is difficult
to imagine them overshadowing the current leaders
in the final overall rankings, at this stage in
the game, they also have a reputation for being
able to pull off some quite remarkable turns.
A win on the last leg could chase the bitter taste
of the previous legs away, and make them feel
a whole lot better afterwards into the bargain.
They should keep on dreaming about it and we can
cont on them pulling out all the stops from Dingle
to Saint-Nazaire.; That is without taking into
account the weather and its legendary high pressure
trend this month, which will add further spice
to the life of those competing in the last leg
–suspense guaranteed. Yes, we are in for
a very fine 500 mile long fourth and final leg
indeed !
Echos from the dockside
Armel Le Cléac’h (Créaline)
– 2nd 19’’ behind : "Now
we have to wait and see what the weather has in
store for us on this fourth leg. . We’ll
find out it this is going to be a speed race or
a tactical one! But it is always pleasant to be
ahead of the others. I’m really pleased
to be in the leading pack all the time, to hold
onto my place and to stay on the lookout. I’m
a silver jackal (Armel’s nickname Ed’s
note.)… I quite fancy being a golden jackal
(laugh) ! »
Michel Desjoyeaux (Géant) – 5th 1h27’19’’
behind : « Alain Gautier is sailing very
well indeed. I think he has subscribed to what
is likely to turn out to be his 2nd win in La
Solitaire. Pascal Bidégorry made an excellent
comeback at the end of the leg after having done
an excellent job throughout the whole leg. At
the start in Les Sables, if I’d be told
that I’d be 5th overall in Dingle, I’d
have signed on the dotted line straight away.
But there’s still one leg left to race and
you have to go for it right up to the very end.
I didn’t enter to play a walk-on part. As
things stand, I’m happy to be where I am
right now. Ireland is absolutely amazing.
Yann
Eliès (Groupe Générali Assurances)
– 4th 1h02’53’’ behind
« I’m no longer one of the favourites.
My race mates will be paying less attention to
me from now on. The perfect occasion to surprise
them ! jokes Yann who is already well into the
next leg. It’ll all depend on the weather
.High pressure zones are better for me to catch
up than a leg of reaching. But nothing will stop
me from thinking it is possible. »
Loïck Peyron (Fujifilm) - 9th 2h50’56’’
behind « What’s crazy is the difference
in speed between the boats. Those who are used
to the Figaro stand out. They’ve got one
or two tricks up their sleeve. I ought to have
a chat with Alain Gautier and ask how he has pulled
it off. Whatever the other guys are doing, they’re
doing it better than me. But for a comeback, I’m
not doing too badly. I’m making progress
but I’m not the only one to do so. We all
want to do well, we’re all motivated. From
my point of view, the last legs give me the chance
to try one or two tricks. ».
...Official
site La
Solitaire Du Figaro
