2021 Transat Jacques Vabre - Normandie - Le Havre
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11/24/2021
Arkema 4 safely moored in Fort-de-France after completing its first transatlantic crossing
After 17 days of racing, Quentin and Lalou moored their boat, weary of the commitment needed to sail these 50 ft trimarans, but happy to be able to tie up Arkema 4 to the pontoon in Fort-de-France, and so celebrate the first transatlantic crossing of this boat launched in the water in the autumn of 2020.
Despite both skippers’ understandable disappointment at this result, Quentin and Lalou will take away a great deal from this Transat, a maiden voyage in many respects, in particular for Quentin, the youngest skipper in the Ocean Fifty class, who has now completed his first crossing of the Atlantic in a multihull.
A few hours before their arrival in Martinique, Quentin Vlamynck, skipper of Arkema 4, made an initial assessment of the Transat Jacques Vabre 2021.
11/23/2021
“Primonial” wins the Transat Jacques Vabre in the Ocean Fifty class
The first boats have started to come in one after the other on this 15th edition of the Transat Jacques Vabre Normandie Le Havre race. This is already the case with “Primonial” skippered by Sébastien Rogues and Matthieu Souben in the Ocean Fifty class, the winner after crossing the finish line in the Fort-de-France bay just before 10 pm on Monday (2.54 am Paris time Tuesday). They completed the course of this “route du café” in 15 days, 13 hours and 27 minutes after covering over 6,536 miles (12,091 km) at a remarkable average speed of 17.5 knots (32 km/h). Erwan Le Roux and Xavier Macaire crossed the finish line a mere 2 hours 27 minutes later at the helm of “Koésio”, also in the Ocean Fifty category. Sam Goodchild and Antoine Chappelier’s “Leyton”, which too arrived with a very short delay of 3 hours 48 minutes, takes third place on the podium of the 50 ft multihull class. In the Ultime class, Franck Cammas and Charles Caudrelier’s “Maxi Edmond de Rothschild” is expected shortly, followed by “Banque Populaire XI” skippered by Armel Le Cléac'h and Kevin Escoffier.
Meanwhile, it will be another 24 hours at least before we see Lalou Roucayrol and Quentin Vlamynck complete this 2021 edition of the transatlantic race.
11/22/2021
The finish in Fort-de-France is fast approaching
After 15 days at sea, the head of the Transat Jacques Vabre fleet is a mere 335 nautical miles, the equivalent of 600 km, from its final destination in Martinique. The first boat in this multi-class two-handed race is expected to cross the finish line in the Fort-de-France bay tonight. This flying sailboat could well be not an Ultime, the most powerful category of this event, capable of 45 knot (83 km/h!) top speeds, but rather an Ocean Fifty multihull class that has followed a shorter route. But it is hard to see what could stop Franck Cammas and Charles Caudrelier’s “Maxi Edmond de Rothschild” from prevailing in a few hours’ time in the premier class. Meanwhile, the Ocean Fifty “Primonial”, in the lead for a large part of the race, and still at the front, has yet to see off the attacks from “Koesio” and “Leyton” and not be caught off guard by the calms that linger on the way. The leading trio, within a 70 mile trail, have now covered over 90% of the course.
As for Quentin and Lalou, after being penalized for crossing the same longitude line twice within a timeframe laid down by the race instructions, following the inadvertent rupture of a seal, a loud cracking sound rang in the middle of the night yesterday, just as Arkema 4 was making the most of a downwind stretch that had been propelling it at full tilt for the past 24 hours. The gennaker loop (fabric hook) had snapped. At daybreak, Quentin climbed the mast to carry out the repair in quite challenging conditions. Mission accomplished with a 100% operational sail, and Arkema 4 was back on its way to the West Indies with Lalou at the helm, and in quite an impressive way indeed since it covered a distance of 97 miles (177 km) at a robust average speed of 24 knots over the last 4 hours.
The Ocean Fifty ranking at 9 am this Monday morning was as follows: “Primonial” (Sébastien Rogues-Matthieu Souben) was in the lead, with “Koesio” (Erwan Le Roux-Xavier Macaire), followed by “Leyton” (Sam Goodchild-Aymeric Chappellier) respectively 66 miles and 79 miles behind the leading boat. “Solidaires En Peloton”, skippered by Thibaut Vauchel Camus-Frédéric Duthil, was provisionally in 4th place at 195 miles. In 5th position came “Les P’tits doudous/The Arch” (Armel Tripon-Benoît Marie) at 198 miles from the leader. “Groupe GCA – 1001 Sourires” (Gilles Lamiré-Yvan Bourgnon) was 6th at 310 miles. Arkema 4 was bringing up the rear at 416 miles from the leading skippers.
19/11/2021
Outpaced Quentin and Lalou endeavor to close the cap
On its twelfth day, Friday 19 November, the Transat Jacques Vabre race sees the 50 ft ocean racing multihull class fiercely compete for first place. Last night the first four boats rounded the buoys off the Fernando de Noronha islands. As expected, the battle is being played out gybe by gybe to grab the best wind along the Brazilian TSS no-go zone.
As for Quentin and Lalou, unfortunately they are largely outpaced, unable to get back in the fight for the win. Arkema 4 reached Fernando de Noronha this morning. Quentin conveyed his disgruntled mood in a message last night: “Today was unbelievably tedious. While our competitors were shooting ahead, we were hardly moving. Tonight we’ve had to sail through stormy zones, with unstable conditions still hanging over us when we wake up. We haven’t had the conditions we wanted from the start. So, yes, this morning we’re fed up... Fed up with the weather which has been particularly tough on our nerves for the past 3 days. But this won’t stop us from continuing to plug away to close the gap before the finish line!”
The Ocean Fifty ranking at 8 am this Friday was as follows: “Primonial” (Sébastien Rogues-Matthieu Souben) was in the lead, and “Koesio” (Erwan Le Roux-Xavier Macaire) at 70 miles, with “Leyton” (Sam Goodchild-Aymeric Chappellier) 88 miles behind. “Solidaires En Peloton” (Thibaut Vauchel Camus-Frédéric Duthil) was provisionally in 4th position at 148 miles. In 5th place was “Les P’tits doudous/The Arch” (Armel Tripon-Benoît Marie) at 149 miles from the leading boat. “Groupe GCA – 1001 Sourires” (Gilles Lamiré-Yvan Bourgnon) was 6th at 364 miles. Arkema 4, which covered 501 miles in the last 24h at a speed of over 20 knots, the best average in the Ocean Fifty class, was nevertheless still 461 miles behind the leading skippers.
11/18/2021
Quentin and Lalou are losing ground
On this eleventh day of the race, Thursday 18 November, the Transat Jacques Vabre is shifting to a new dimension for the Ocean Fifty’s. Indeed, the leading skippers, Sébastien Rogues and Matthieu Souben on board “Primonial”, have completed their southward leg of the course after passing the Fernando de Noronha archipelago intermediate buoy off the coast of Brazil. They are now heading straight for Martinique. Three Ocean Fifty’s are relatively close together. As for Quentin and Lalou, after getting back up close to the pack, the Doldrums did them no favors after all, to say the least. These Doldrums, which they decided to negotiate to the east, cost them many miles. Fortunately, they will soon be entering the southern hemisphere, with the prospect of picking up wind in their sails again.
The 50 ft multihull ranking at 8 am this Thursday was as follows: “Primonial” (Sébastien Rogues-Matthieu Souben) was in the lead, with “Leyton” (Sam Goodchild-Aymeric Chappellier) 51 miles behind, and “Koesio” (Erwan Le Roux-Xavier Macaire) at 55 miles. “Solidaires En Peloton” (Thibaut Vauchel Camus-Frédéric Duthil) was provisionally in 4th position at 61 miles. In 5th place was “Les P’tits doudous/The Arch” (Armel Tripon-Benoît Marie) at 122 miles from the leading boat. “Groupe GCA – 1001 Sourires” (Gilles Lamiré-Yvan Bourgnon) was 6th at 392 miles. Arkema 4 now had a 509 miles deficit on the leading skippers.
11/17/2021
Welcome to the Doldrums
The entire 50 ft fleet is now right in the Doldrums, a zone of converging trade winds from the tropics in the oceans near the equator, where conditions can switch from dead calm seas to violent thunderstorms. The pace has indeed slowed down, but the boats have been pushing hard until now. In 24 hours, the best clocked up more miles than their “big brother” Sodebo Ultim 3 stuck in the same waters. Leading the pack still is “Primonial”, the pink trimaran of Sébastien Rogues and Matthieu Souben who most probably will be the next boat to round Fernando de Noronha, the mandatory passage point off the coat of Brazil. The gaps have narrowed further between the multihulls in this class. Quentin and Lalou have gained 80 miles from the head of the race in 24h. The first Ocean Fifty’s, like the first Ultime’s, are expected in Fort-de-France on 23 November.
The ranking at 9 am this Wednesday after 9 days and almost 20 hours at sea, was as follows: “Primonial” (Sébastien Rogues-Matthieu Souben) was in the lead, followed by “Koesio” (Erwan Le Roux-Xavier Macaire) 58 miles behind. “Solidaires En Peloton” (Thibaut Vauchel Camus-Frédéric Duthil) was provisionally in 3rd place at 85 miles, followed by “Leyton” (Sam Goodchild-Aymeric Chappellier) at 144 miles, and “Les P’tits doudous/The Arch” (Armel Tripon-Benoît Marie) in 5th position, at 182 miles from the leading Ocean Fifty. “Groupe GCA – 1001 Sourires” (Gilles Lamiré-Yvan Bourgnon) was 6th at 310 miles, followed by Arkema 4 now 350 miles behind the leading skippers.
What they said:
“They’re now right in the middle of the Doldrums. With weakening winds but also intermittent squalls (thunderstorms) as expected. They’ve brought down the gennaker (an intermediate headsail between genoa and spinnaker). They’re sailing crosswind or even upwind now and again. Upwind is when the boat sails into the wind at an angle of between 45 and 90° from the wind axis. As a result, speeds are a little slower. The goal of this game is to pull out of this zone as quickly as possible and head towards Fernando de Noronha; after that lies a complex zone all the way to Martinique. We’re clinging to this and the thought that there can still be plenty of hurdles ahead, and that, for once, the race might not be led by those at the front.
Clearly, in this Transat, the closer you are to the head of the race, the closer you are to winning. It’s a matter of the wealthy getting wealthier. What we need for a comeback now would be to have no headwind, or to really have more wind than those in front and so pick up more speed; but earlier on, it all happened so fast that it has been very difficult to close up the gap. The scene is changing, and maybe we’ll see the rubber band loosen up. It’s happening gently. We’d rather it happened fully. We’ll have to see today how it’s going to pan out for all the boats. Lalou and Quentin are racers. For sure, it must be frustrating for them to be at the rear, but we’ve had them several times, and every time, they tell us: we are keeping our foot down, we are! They’re not despondent but still as determined as at the start of the race.”
Raphaël Lutard, Arkema 4 Boat Captain
11/16/2021
Quentin and Lalou are speeding towards the dreaded Doldrums
After 8 days and almost 20 hours of racing, Sébastien Rogues and Matthieu Souben continue to lead the way in this 15th Transat Jacques Vabre. But the gaps at the front have narrowed and a raging battle is going on within the Ocean Fifty flotilla. After choosing to sail their trimaran between the islands of the Cape Verde archipelago, Quentin and Lalou are heading at speed towards the Doldrums, hoping to find the bolt hole that will give them a favorable way out of this “Inter-Tropical Convergence Zone” so dreaded by sailors for its highly unstable weather system as their boats can get stuck for lack of wind, or, the opposite, be struck by violent squalls.
The ranking of the 50 ft multihull class at 8 am this Tuesday was as follows: “Primonial” (Sébastien Rogues-Matthieu Souben) was in the lead, followed by “Koesio” (Erwan Le Roux-Xavier Macaire) 98 miles behind. “Solidaires En Peloton” (Thibaut Vauchel Camus-Frédéric Duthil) was provisionally in 3rd place at 109 miles, followed by “Leyton” (Sam Goodchild-Aymeric Chappellier) at 225 miles, and “Les P’tits doudous/The Arch” (Armel Tripon-Benoît Marie) in 5th position, at 228 miles from the leading Ocean Fifty. Arkema 4 was 417 miles behind the leading skippers, while “Groupe GCA – 1001 Sourires” (Gilles Lamiré-Yvan Bourgnon) was bringing up the rear at 420 miles.
What they said:
“Lalou et Quentin went for the Cape Verde option to avoid increasing distances and hopefully rely on a wind corridor between the islands. They should reach the Doldrums late tonight or tomorrow morning; not easy to tell in this ever-evolving zone. They’re going to see what is the best angle to choose. Their eastern position gives them more options. The routing of Arkema 4 is down to Eric Mas who analyzes the weather charts, while Alex Ozon is in charge of tactics. They draw up a chart which they send to the boat, and the skippers then see whether it’s ok or not. It’s a continual exchange between them. As regards the boat, it’s all going very well, but there’s no doubt that the boats are under a great deal of strain. Especially as in this Jacques Vabre, with the Ocean Fifty class we’ve witnessed average speeds never seen before of 23-24 knots over 4 hours! There’re still 2,800 miles to go. The finish line is still a long way off. Lalou and Quentin are not letting up.”
Raphaël Lutard, Arkema 4 Boat Captain
11/15/2021
Quentin and Lalou’s new push
After sorting out connection troubles on board and regaining all their means, Quentin et Lalou have been able to up the pace of Arkema 4 in their pursuit of the other Ocean Fifty’s.
The ranking of the 50 ft multihull class at 9 am this Monday stood as follows: “Primonial”» (Sébastien Rogues-Matthieu Souben) checked in the lead, followed by “Koesio” (Erwan Le Roux-Xavier Macaire) 199 miles behind. “Solidaires En Peloton” (Thibaut Vauchel Camus-Frédéric Duthil) was provisionally in 3rd place at 209 miles, followed by “Leyton” (Sam Goodchild-Aymeric Chappellier) at 281 miles, and “Les P’tits doudous/The Arch” (Armel Tripon-Benoît Marie) in 5th position, at 283 miles from the leading Ocean Fifty. Arkema 4 was at 385 miles from the leading skippers, with “Groupe GCA – 1001 Sourires” (Gilles Lamiré-Yvan Bourgnon) bringing up the rear at 390 miles.
What they said:
“The chaps are fired up. They managed to clock up plenty of miles yesterday. Arkema 4 was one of the fastest. The conditions were good. They were sailing under full sail. The boat was surging 100%. Good for them. The gaps have narrowed. There’s quite a distance from East to West, but we were able to make up lost ground on most Ocean Fifty’s.
Rounding Cape Verde, Lalou and Quentin are sailing to the East between the islands. The infamous doldrums, which appear quite active, are now on everyone’s mind. I would say that “Primonial” is going to be right in there by end of day tomorrow. We’ll have to find the optimum angle to attack the zone while trying not to necessarily go where all the other guys are. Gaps between boats, however big they may look, can change quickly. We saw that with the Ultimes fleet: yesterday morning “Maxi Edmond de Rothschild” was 320 miles ahead of “SVR Lazartigue”, and this morning just 90.”
Raphaël Lutard, Arkema 4 Boat Captain
11/14/2021
News from onboard Arkema 4!
Quentin and Lalou have had communication problems with their land base, preventing them from sending us pictures. Problem solved now, and we are savoring this new message.
11/12/2021
Quentin and Lalou’s yo-yoing
After racing for 4 days and 19 hours, Erwan Le Roux and Xavier Macaire are still leading the pack in the 50 ft multihull fleet, and will be the first to hit the Canary Archipelago today. Their pursuers are scrambling to keep up with Koesio.
Ranking
The Ocean Fifty ranking at 8 am on Friday was as follows: “Koesio” (Erwan Le Roux-Xavier Macaire) in the lead, with “Primonial” (Sébastien Rogues-Matthieu Souben) 50 miles behind. “Solidaires En Peloton” (Thibaut Vauchel Camus-Frédéric Duthil) came 3rd, 108 miles from the leading boat. In 4th place, 122 miles behind Koesio in the provisional general ranking, was “Groupe GCA – 1001 Sourires” (Gilles Lamiré-Yvan Bourgnon), followed by “Leyton” (Sam Goodchild-Aymeric Chappellier) at 123 miles, then “Les P'tits doudous/The Arch” (Armel Tripon-Benoît Marie) at 132 miles, and Arkema 4 at 169 miles from the leader.
*1 nautical mile = 1.85 km
What they said:
“They've had complex weather since yesterday. They managed super tacks and then suddenly found themselves in sluggish winds blowing at 5 knots. It takes you ages to get out of zones like that. And they experienced this yo-yo all night. So for now, not much success for Quentin and Lalou. But this is sailing, with its share of adversity. But then, with this type of boat and a long course like this, there’re still 3,700 miles (6,800 km) to go, there’ll be other hurdles and obstacles to overcome where things can change. Koesio, for sure, is in super form. They have made no mistakes. (...) The main thing too is that Quentin and Lalou are in great shape. The boat is faultless too. They’re doing everything to catch up little by little. We’re on the Ocean Fifty train. We don’t know which route they’ll be taking around the Canary Islands. It's always a bit tricky with the islands calms and gusts. We need to negotiate them well. We’re not worried. We know that we’ve a long way to go. As long as the boat and the skippers are in good shape, it’s still all to play for. We’re keeping our fingers crossed that the winds turn in our favor.”
Raphaël Lutard, Boat captain of Arkema 4
11/10/2021
Quentin and Lalou have wind in their sails again
Arkema 4 has now extricated itself from the high-pressure trap that meant next to no wind. A 100% clean fuel but 100% rare yesterday. It was time for Quentin and Lalou to pick up this fair wind now that they have rounded Cape Finisterre and are battling it out off the coast of Spain.
Ranking
Gaps in the Ocean Fifty fleet have somewhat narrowed overnight. At 8 am on Wednesday, “Koesio” (Erwan Le Roux-Xavier Macaire) was leading the pack, closely followed by “Solidaires En Peloton” (Thibaut Vauchel Camus-Frédéric Duthil) 8 miles* behind. In 3rd place was “Primonial” (Sébastien Rogues-Matthieu Souben) at 12.5 miles, followed by “Les P’tits doudous/The Arch” (Armel Tripon-Benoît Marie) at 46.9 miles. In joint 5th and 6th place were “Leyton” (Sam Goodchild-Aymeric Chappellier) and Arkema 4 at 61 miles. “Groupe GCA – 1001 Sourires” (Gilles Lamiré-Yvan Bourgnon) was last in the Ocean Fifty class at 67 milles from the leader.
What they said:
“They picked up 20 miles overnight. That said, you have to keep things in perspective because it all can go very fast in Multi boats; 60 miles is not a lot. Gaps will appear and disappear quickly. The boats are so fast that you only need to catch a light breeze and, conversely, your competitor to hit a calm zone, with a 6 or 7 knot difference, and, in the space of 10 hours, you have a 60 mile gap. So no losing your cool. Admittedly, yesterday was complicated, but no panic on board. You stay on top of everything as you know that you’re bound to get a chance to come back. So, Quentin and Lalou are determined to continue pushing their boat ahead as fast as possible. One advantage is that they have other Multi boats close by that give them pointers to help them work out which option works or which doesn’t. Last night they performed well and the boat sailed very well. The boat’s comfortable in crosswind, at 90°. The weather forecast is saying that the wind will eventually weaken from the front, as the trade winds are still not steady. So, we’ll have to see how it’s going to pan out when we reach the Canary Islands tomorrow evening or the day after, where the wind conditions can be difficult to cope with. And then, with the trade winds still not steady, inevitably the leading boats will be the first to hit them, and hopefully, this should close up the gaps within the fleet by allowing the trailing boats to catch up.”
Raphaël Lutard, Boat captain of Arkema 4
11/09/2021
Arkema 4 in 3rd position in the Breton “doldrums”
An air of “doldrums” with a Breton flavour is hanging over the Jacques-Vabre 2021 race (the “doldrums” is a popular nautical term given by sailors referring to a phenomenon they encounter in the equatorial zones of the Atlantic, an area characterised by low atmospheric pressure). The start of the race may have been swift and rather full of action until Ouessant, but now the entire fleet is caught in a windless zone.
Some boats even went backwards, as Franck Cammas, at the helm of the Edmond de Rothschild Ultime, explained: “We’re stuck in a high-pressure cell, so we no longer have any wind. What’s more, we had to deal with strong frontal currents that even made us backtrack!” Whether the boats have chosen to sail closer to the coast, through the Iroise Sea, or taken the northerly option, the winds are not being very generous with any of them. And it is feared that light winds will stay with them for a while, until Cape Finisterre.
With the Ocean Fifty fleet, distances between the boats are still very small, and even though the fleet of these seven 50 ft multihulls is split into two, everything is still to play for in this strategic phase, in a Transat that for now looks more like a Solitaire du Figaro than an offshore race. As one skipper put it neatly, “ça tricote dans les cailloux” [we’re dancing on stones]!
Ranking
At 8 am on Tuesday, “Koesio” (Erwan Le Roux-Xavier Macaire) was in the lead at 12.7 miles from “Leyton” (Sam Goodchild-Aymeric Chappellier) and 18.5 miles from Arkema 4. The pair at the helm of “Groupe GCA – 1001 Sourires” (Gilles Lamiré-Yvan Bourgnon) were 2 miles behind Quentin and Lalou, closely followed by “Les P’tits doudous/The Arch” (Armel Tripon-Benoît Marie); “Primonial” (Sébastien Rogues-Matthieu Souben), which a short while ago was leading the Ocean Fifty ranking, was trailing the leader by 21.9 miles, while “Solidaires En Peloton” (Thibaut Vauchel Camus-Frédéric Duthil) was provisionally last with a 23.3 mile gap.
*1 knot = 1.85 km
What they said:
“They’ve been in this wind hole (dead calm zone) for 24h. On top of that, it’s right in the middle of the high pressure system. And imagine, another boat, say, 100 m from you can be doing 10 knots, whereas you’re doing nothing. And then, you think, that’s it, I now have some wind, we’ll be on our way again, but it only lasts a few minutes and you come to a standstill. You have to go flat-out adjusting everything, make the most of the slightest breeze, because if you’re weaving around and the wind picks up and your settings need fine-tuning because of course the wind changes force and direction, you soon lose a minute, and one minute is the time it takes to get your boat going and make headway in the breeze. So, inevitably, it’s nerve-racking. But they’re in great form. Of course, they’re dipping a little into their sleep reserves. They should be pleased with themselves. It’s not a typical situation. Usually, when sailing out of the Bay of Biscay in a Jacques Vabre race, it takes between 24 and 48h from Le Havre to Cape Finisterre, but here they’re still slightly under the tip of Brittany. And it could well stay like this for a while.”
Raphaël Lutard, Boat captain of Arkema 4
11/08/2021
After setting off full steam ahead, Arkema 4 is chasing the wind
For the crews, the first night was synonymous with making choices. The fleet had to deal with the strong currents around the Cotentin peninsula before encountering high-pressure cells, which mean little wind. Following a great start, Arkema 4 passed the first buoy in the lead. Before hitting a zone of erratic winds, yo-yoing between 18 and 3 knots and constantly changing direction, which, understandably, makes sailing complicated with many changes of sail and tack. The very homogeneous Ocean Fifty pack is currently sailing off the tip of Brittany, and it is all down to whoever finds the best wind conditions. We knew that last night and today were going to be complicated sailing. And that is confirmed.
Ranking
At 8:30 this Monday morning, “Primonial” skippered by the Sébastien Rogues-Matthieu Souben pair is leading the Ocean Fifty’s. Closely behind are “Koesio” (Erwan Le Roux-Xavier Macaire) at just 1.3 miles and “Solidaires En Peloton” (Thibaut Vauchel Camus-Frédéric Duthil) at 1.7 miles. Arkema 4 is provisionally in 4th position at just under 11 miles (20 km). 6 Miles behind Quentin and Lalou is the Armel Tripon-Benoît Marie pair at the helm of “Les P’tits doudous/The Arch”.
What they said:
“It was an excellent start with good conditions and great sailing until Étretat, and then great upwind conditions until Cotentin. But now, it’s a bit more complicated, there’s not a lot of wind any longer and a lot of current. We’ve been going round and round for almost an hour. We don’t know if we’ll be able to extricate ourselves from this quickly, the weather reports are uncertain, and we’re still totally unsure. We’re in the pack, but we’ll have to be careful and not get trapped by the wind or the current. We’re still undecided for the coming days, the router is working on this but it’s not simple, we’re also looking at what our competitors are doing and then we’ll decide.”
Quentin Vlamynck at the 7 am radio linkup this Monday
11/07/2021
Arkema 4 sets off to conquer the Atlantic
Quentin Vlamynck has just set off on his 1st Transat Jacques Vabre race alongside Lalou Roucayrol. As fate would have it, this is the 10th Transat Jacques Vabre for Lalou Roucayrol, who is now passing the baton to this rookie of the Ocean Fifty Class.
At 13:27, the Arkema 4 Ocean Fifty atypical duo set sail from Le Havre in a steady north-westerly wind on the “Route du Café” 2021. A departure that marks the culmination of ten years of collaboration between two sailors with complementary profiles. To support him on this highly compelling crossing, the two skippers, grounded in a genuine complicity, will be able to count on the wise advice of a pair of routers on land. An additional asset to draw up the best possible course across the Atlantic, a chessboard that promises to be complex from the outset.
Select "Ocean Fifty" tab on the left to follow Arkema 4.
Entering the big league
Quentin Vlamynck, the young 29-year old sailor, is now about to throw himself in at the deep end of ocean racing in the Transat Jacques Vabre – Normandy – Le Havre race.
He gives us his impressions, his feelings, but also his expectations for this race where he will be the main skipper of Arkema 4.
"I am taking this two-handed race as a ‘learning ground’ in competition mode. I have yet to sail more than six days in a row aboard an Ocean Fifty. Alongside Lalou, I will be reaching a new milestone and take my preparation one step further for next year, with the Route du Rhum solo race.
Both of us will also be aiming for a good result. And we hold all the cards to deliver a great performance, if not a victory. It would also be a big reward for the whole team who have built and optimized this boat ceaselessly."
An intensive preparation
To prepare for the Transat Jacques Vabre, a double-handed race, Quentin Vlamynck and Lalou Roucayrol have been training together for a long time.
Quentin joined the Lalou Muli team 10 years ago. Since then, a great complicity has developed between the two sailors.
“Kit à partir”: Arkema products handed out to participants
The kit is the result of close collaboration between the Arkema Group's research teams and those of Lalou Multi on the optimization and use of innovative, high-performance specialty materials, and is intended for ocean racing and boating in general.
The products of Arkema and its adhesives specialist subsidiary Bostik featured in this kit are particularly suited to bonding or repair needs that can come up at sea. The kit includes, for example, impact-resistant fast or instant structural adhesives, high adhesion sealants, some of which can be used under water, and glass/Elium® resin composite sheets to repair damaged parts or fix water ingress.
Video tutorials:
Take part in the race on Virtual Regatta
Sail with Quentin Vlamynck and Lalou Roucayrol on Virtual Regatta in the real race conditions. The Arkema Virtual Regatta will start on Sunday, November 7, just like the real race.
You can play from :
- Your PC by clicking on the following link: www.virtualregatta.com/en/offshore-game/
- Your smartphone by downloading the Virtual Regatta Offshore app
Once your Virtual Regatta account is created, join the Transat Jacques Vabre race in the "Ocean Fifty" category.
Enter the partner code TRANSATARKEMA21 to play under the colors of the Arkema 4 trimaran and try to win prizes from the Team, if you finish the race in Fort-de-France.