Spirit of Malouen X in his hands! Magic Carpet3 titillates the Maxi 72s The podiums are decisive in Maxi3 and Maxi 4
“It’s chilly in Les Issambres! The phrase that the race committee was waiting for at the start of the afternoon before releasing the Maxis into the arena of the gulf rang out on the VHF shortly after 2pm, the signal for the start of the day’s race procedures. A freshening breeze gently sucked the fleet of Maxis towards Les Issambres, close-hauled and at a slow trot, before a series of manoeuvres with the wind on the beam, the prelude to a fine final downwind cavalcade. Amazing Maxis, capable of finding the wind where the summer on the shores of the Var tends to hide it. Once again, the seaside setting of Saint-Tropez played host to the bewitching spectacle of the Maxis in their racing gear, perfectly skippered by their top-class international crews. The first two days of racing had already revealed the strengths of the teams, and the day’s races had each crew keenly aware of the handicaps they had to compensate for.
Spirit of Malouen X power 2 And a second round victory for Spirit of Malouen X, the French Wally 107, which repeated its performance of Wednesday in the Maxi 1 class, in contention for the North Sails Trophy. Stéphane Névé’s men won today with a lead of over 12 minutes over the immense Swan 115 Jasi. “If it hadn’t been for our mistakes in the first race, we could have won every race tonight,” explains Cédric Chateau. “Spirit Of Malouen X is really at ease in light airs. These conditions are ideal for integrating our new crew. We’re not making any more mistakes and Laurent Pagès is concocting perfect trajectories for us. We’ve found our rhythm. “Pattoo, the huge (33 m) McKeown plan, winner at the start of the week, completes the day’s podium, and this evening finds herself in second place, level on points with Spirit of Malouen X.
Magic Carpet Cubed is back The Wallycento Magic Carpet3 is back in the race for the podium with a fine second place this afternoon, synonymous with a provisional podium overall, in the wake of an untouchable Maxi72 Cannonball, the overall winner of the day’s race. The leader of this very spectacular Maxi 2 Group (Trophée Bartoux), the other Maxi 72 Northstar 2, is keeping his chances alive with this third place snatched by a hair’s breadth on corrected time from the other Wallycento Galateia.
Groupe Maxi 3, Trophée Besserat de Bellefon; Lyra regains the lead Although once again beaten to the line by Capricorno, Wally 77 Lyra won the race on corrected time and moved to the top of the provisional overall ranking ahead of the Italian Reichel/Pugh design. The Swiss Swan 601 Les Amis, which finished a fine 4th today behind Ryokan 3, is a solid third this evening. Three elegant Mylius are sailing at Les Voiles in the Maxi 3 group (Trophée Besserat de Bellefon), Twin Soul B, a Mylius 80, Lady First 3 and Sud, the Mylius 60s. Mylius has been designing and building fast cruiser-racer yachts, from 55 to 80 feet, for 15 years. Built and equipped using only carbon, these are elegant and exclusive boats. They are built entirely in carbon sandwich, PVC foam core and epoxy resin, in semi-custom mode, with the utmost care and attention to customers.
Saïda, a ketch at the head of the Maxis 4 (Trophée Torpez) The Swiss Swan 65 rigged as a ketch, Saïda, has strengthened its position at the top of the group, with another second place in the heat. On the eve of the final round, the 12 m JI Kiwi Magic KZ7 is relegated to 3 points, while the other 12 m JI French Kiss seems assured of third place.
Focus on : The special nature of crewed sailing Some of the yachts taking part in Les Voiles have a crew of up to 30 men and women. Each crew member has a specific role, but it is the coordination of each individual action that determines the boat’s behaviour and performance. Xavier Macaire, an accomplished Figaro racer, will be lining up at the start of the Route du Rhum – destination Guadeloupe on 6 November aboard his Class40 Groupe SNEF. A solo sailor at heart, he has also been a member of the crew of the Mylius 60 Lady First3 for several seasons, aboard which he acts as mainsail trimmer. From single-handed to crewed and back again, Xavier has enriched himself and his friends, and taken full advantage of the unique spectacle of Les Voiles. “Single-handed ocean racing and yachting are two different worlds. But the two are actually very complementary and I learn a lot from the highly professional crews who sail at Les Voiles. On Lady First, I fit into the mould. I’m in charge of trimming the mainsail, and I have to communicate as much as possible with the tactician and helmsman, giving and receiving information on the wind, position on the water, pressure in the sails… The whole crew is dedicated to the boat’s performance, as in solo sailing, except that here all the positions are specialised. There’s a lot of commitment and concentration. But we’re really enjoying the incredible spectacle, when we glide side by side with the big Maxis, Wallys and other protos…” It’s the same story for Albane Dubois from the Nord region of France, a 49er crew member at the Tokyo Olympics last summer, who is working on trimming the runners on the Wallycento Tango. For her too, communication is the key word, but in an orderly and disciplined way, “otherwise, with 26 people on board, it’s a cacophony. We keep our impressions to ourselves, and only transcribe explicit orders. Information has to be circulated soberly between the people in charge of navigation, mainly the helmsman, strategist and trimmer.
Programme 2022 Week 2: Les Voiles Maxi Yachts Saturday 8: regattas and prize-giving ceremony (week 2)
Partners of Les Voiles de Saint-Tropez ROLEX BMW NORTH SAILS WALLY SUZUKI MARINE MARSHALL MERCANTOUR BYBLOS BESSERAT DE BELLEFON TORPEZ (VIGNOBLES DE SAINT-TROPEZ) BERNARD OPTIC PEPINIERES PIERRE BASSET ESPRIT VILLAGE A SAINT-TROPEZ
VILLE DE SAINT-TROPEZ
PORT DE SAINT-TROPEZ
LES MARINES DE COGOLIN
FEDERATION FRANCAISE DE VOILE
YACHT CLUB DE FRANCE
INTERNATIONAL MAXI ASSOCIATION
Organisation :
Société Nautique de Saint-Tropez
Président : Pierre Roinson
Principal Race Officer : Georges Korhel
Responsable Régates : Frédérique Fantino
Responsable technique : Philippe Martinez
Communication et Attachée de Direction : Chloé de Brouwer
Rédaction : Denis Van den Brink
Site internet : www.lesvoilesdesaint-tropez.fr
Media site : www.snst-media.com/
Facebook : les Voiles de Saint-Tropez Officiel www.facebook.com/VoilesDeSaintTropezOfficiel
Twitter : @VoilesSTOrg
Instagram : les_voiles_de_saint_tropez https://www.instagram.com/les_voiles_de_saint_tropez/
Photo
SNST/Gilles Martin-Raget
Vidéo
SNST/Guilain Grenier, 6G
Relations Presse :
Maguelonne Turcat