La Solitaire du Figaro - The last of the last legs… in light winds !
August 17, 2003

A low has at last appeared for the last leg, offering a bit of wind to the 42 skippers taking part in La Solitaire Afflelou Le Figaro. But it is on its way out, leaving light wind in its wake! So it looks very much as though the very last leg will be strangely similar to the three previous ones of this 34th edition, which has already seen its fair share of ups and downs. Looks as though another lively race is on from Dingle to Saint-Nazaire, via the Fastnet Rock, the Scilly Isles, Penmarc’h Point and the Atlantic coast. There can be little doubt that the final outcome will not be known until the last few lengths of the race, keeping the name of the winner a secret until the end of this open and high risk race. A leg which is going to be raced in a breathless puff of wind!

Rotten Sunday weather in Ireland today. Rotten for the time of year and in Dingle anyway. First it just spits rain, then it really pours down from a low, heavy sky. A few fresh gusts of wind to freshen up an otherwise stifling hot summer. Here we have a fine low giving rise to a stealthy west/north-westerly flow , which might well be greeted with joy by the 42 single-handers the day before the start of the fourth and final leg. A bit of wind for the fourth leg, a blow for the final home straight, they’ve been dreaming about it after having been “bogged down” in the dead calm of the previous three legs. But no, they might as well face up to it, the dominical front is well and truly on its way out of Irish waters, leaving a fine dry ridge to set up shop in its place. The greater part of the very last leg covering some 500 miles from Dingle to Saint-Nazaire will be raced in light air. Aeolus is not changing a single thing. Dead calm for the final leg too.

But the single-handers should not be too worried : they will have a bit of wind – just alittle. Enough to get them going, in the shape of a 20-knot nor’wester. Enough to take Irish leave at a decent pace between Great Skillig and the legendary Fastnet Lighthouse. It is not until a little bit later, but not too late from now in fact, that things are threatening to get tougher for the fleet. No, they will have to battle it out against time and tide, yet once again, the mariners’ nerves will no doubt be taking the heaviest toll of all. … Kito de Pavant (Crashbandicot) : « It’s not that crazy. We’ll be starting gout under the influence of system of low pressure which will be moving upwards pretty quickly, whereas we will be sailing down. Over the first 100 miles, there’s nothing to worry about, but the scene will toughen up thereafter. At the end of Tuesday night, we’ll already be in the ridge. The wind will be dropping very quickly. We’ll be running downwind with very little strength in the wind. There might be a bit, but it is likely to be very unstable. Tricky conditions indeed! There are lots of race marks in this last leg in calm conditions, which makes the whole game much more dodgy. But then again, that opens things up a little. We’ll have to look to gain every inch we can, and avoid saying that there are not going to be big gaps at the finish. »

Same scenario imagined by Loick Peyron (Fujifilm), who does not hide the fact that he is getting quite into the swing of the game, all the more so given that after having raced three legs against some of the hardest members of the circuit, a win on the last leg does not seem entirely beyond reach , or as he says « doable ». « We’ll be racing downwind in light airs, … we’re going to have to keep on in there. In a short time from now, we’ll be setting off the spend several hours at the helm,” explains the king of multihulls finding his feet back on a one design monohull. “We’ll have to keep an eye out for ourselves and I’m going to try and get some shut-eye the first night. But legs like the one which lies ahead are very open from a weather point of view and you can easily lose a lot of miles if you’re not careful. Just as you can also gain a lot of miles too. »

Talking to each of the skippers, all reckon that it is still anybody’s race and there’s still everything worth fighting for. Alain Gautier (Foncia), leader of the overall rankings: « My objectives have not changed since the start in Les Sables d’Olonne. I’m here to enjoy myself with the barely admitted aim of winning one leg. I’ve got that under my belt now so I’m rather satisfied. I’ve already satisfied my moral contract. Now though, I certainly wouldn’t turn my nose down at final victory either ! I’m going to sail the best I can, on this leg just as I did on the other ones. There’s no point overstressing the overall rankings.: a 19-minute lead over the second placed boat is nothing at all. A 1-hour lead over the others is not much either. All the trickier on this last stretch as there are compulsory passage points, currents and a finish in Saint-Nazaire which is anything but straightforward. It’s anybody’s race ! » So there you have it, this last leg is totally in keeping with the previous ones, making this quite a singular edition all round. For all the wind might be lacking, no-one is out of breath yet !

Laure Faÿ

Echos from the pontoons

Alain Gautier : Argos record skipper

Winner of the leg, currently lying first overall ,Alain Gautier (Foncia) is without contest the great winner of this leg from La Rochelle to Dingle. Better still, "Gaugau" has really sailed incredibly well, as demonstrated by the progress made over the 536 miles on this leg between the coastline and the open sea. 27th at the Radio France Buoy, rather more at the back of the fleet that in the lead, he went on to take line honours in Ireland, along with the Argos record of the best progress made in the leg. Difficult to better that. And when you add to that, the fact that Alain always takes immense pleasure in sailing, which can only heighten his pleasure further !

« Little Loc ‘s method»

After three legs raced in light wind, when you really had to avoid nodding off and run the risk of slipping down through rankings, Loïck Peyron (Fujifilm) developed a method to stay awake. Nothing revolutionary, but a mixed bag of little tricks to stop himself dropping off at the worst moment : « A spray my face with water, which is not that unpleasant in the weather we have at the moment. Then I stand up, have a stretch and take a stroll round the deck. I talk to myself too , sing and make all sorts of strange noises. And then the great little thing which really does the trick, is cleaning my teeth…! »

Yann Eliès (Groupe Générali Assurances) :

Amazing ! « This is certainly a light-air-Solitaire … a slightly crazy race in fact, with plenty of ups and downs. Each time a small group manages to pull away, everyone comes together again and the whole pack is re-shuffled. That is largely thanks to the those who have been through it all before making us all sit up and attack this Solitaire with panache, and a does of healthy competitive spirit. The hierarchy who had been created has been shaken up a bit. We’re seeing new ways of sailing where pleasure is what its all about. A different way of thinking when you are out there racing. This light-air-Solitaire is none the less exciting for it ! »

Charles Caudrelier (Bostik Findley)

: Stay on your toes Loïck°! « Michel Desjoyeaux and Alain Gautier were among my race favourites. I was not wrong ! Alaian impressed me a great deal on the La Rochelle –Dingle leg. But I’m even more surprised by Loick Peyron. He’s got the least experience of La Solitaire. Yet he is doing better all the time, even without any real speed potential. I’m also impressed by Michel and Alain, but I’m’ less surprised by their performance as they are both “Figaristes” ! »

...Official site La Solitaire Du Figaro