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MOD70 European Tour 2012
www.mod70-europeantour.com - Übersicht MOD70-Circuit
Though the decision to take the southerly route enables the MOD Edmond de Rothschild Group to avoid any inappropriate conditions for racing, the situation is no less complicated for Sébastien Josse’s men. Antoine Koch deciphered the outline for the weather during this opening leg: “We’re likely to set out at the back of a small front, which will pass over Scandinavia during the course of the night. There will be humidity in the air at the start of the race. The initial hours of racing will involve downwind conditions, in 15-20 knots of breeze coming down from Jutland (the narrowest passage of the race measuring just 5 miles wide) then the Skagerak headland to the extreme North of Denmark.
The start of the race is likely to be fast, but it will call for a great deal of attention aboard so as to successfully negotiate the shipping in the sector, as well as the numerous waypoints imposed by the racecourse. We should make the switch from the Baltic Sea to the North Sea midway through the night (from Sunday to Monday). Once around the Danish headland, we’ll have to negotiate short seas and a breeze, which is set to build to around 25 knots. There will be around ten fairly lively hours where we’ll have to focus on preserving gear. However, early on Monday the wind is set to ease very quickly and the crew which is really on its toes in hoisting more sail area will reap the rewards. As regards the trajectory, we’ll then have our sights on a gateway situated offshore of Holland. With this compulsory passage mark, we shouldn’t see any big options forming prior to this mark. However, the next stage of the course will provide more opportunities” promised Antoine Koch. Indeed, for now it looks like there will be two tricky passages along the way for the one-design trimarans:
“There will be two very tricky transition zones to negotiate. First off is the passage offshore of Pas-de-Calais with a ridge of high pressure to cross, then another between Land’s End and Scotland. These zones could really completely reshuffle the standing,” concluded the sailor.
Tomorrow the start of the first offshore leg between Kiel and Dun Laoghaire will take place at 1430 hours local time. The fleet of MOD 70s will sail a coastal course of just a few miles, before finally heading offshore. The routing currently gives an ETA on Irish soil of Wednesday night to Thursday.
The European Tour in five legs
The second event in the Multi One Championship, after the Krys Ocean Race (a transatlantic race between New York and Brest contested in early July), the European Tour comprises five legs: the five competing crews will set off from Kiel bound for Dun Laoghaire (Dublin) on 2 September, prior to setting sail for Cascais (Portugal) and Marseille (France), not to mention Genoa (Italy), where the finish will be decided on 2 October 2012 and with it the name of the winner of this first edition. In total there are over 5,000 nautical miles to cover in five weeks!
Kiel City Races: from 31 August to 1 September
Leg 1 – 1,188 miles: Kiel – Dun Laoghaire (Dublin), start Sunday 2 September
Dublin City Races: from 7 to 8 September
Leg 2 – 1,215 miles: Dun Laoghaire (Dublin) – Cascais, start Sunday 9 September
Cascais City Races: from 14 to 16 September
Leg 3 - 558 miles: Cascais – Cascais (Around Portugal Race), start Monday 17 September
Leg 4 – 1,071 miles: Cascais – Marseille, start Thursday 20 September
Marseille City Races: from 28 to 29 September
Leg 5 - 672 miles: Marseille – Genoa, start Sunday 30 September
Finish of leg 5: Tuesday 2 October
Closing race: Wednesday 3 October
Translated by Kate Jennings – Expression
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