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07.06.2013
An idyllic Normandy Sailing Week!
“Fantastic, perfect, great”, the superlatives certainly weren’t lacking among those racing in Normandy Sailing Week this evening as they headed back to the pontoon in Le Havre’s port. Glorious sunshine, 20 knots and rough seas saw the sailors linking together several races in their respective series.
Local sensation
“Match The World”, the J80 skippered by the young Le Havre sailor, Arthur Herreman, treated himself to four wins today. A fabulous performance given that the circuit’s top players are racing here in the French Cup. He’s 5 points ahead of fellow Norman competitor “Manche Basse-Normandie” skippered by Maxime Mesnil and 15 points ahead of Frédéric Hauville from the Naval College if you please! “We couldn’t have dreamt of better for a first day’s racing”, said a beaming Arthur. “We came to Normandy Sailing Week to prepare for the World Championship in Marseille. We had a few issues with speed in the build up to the season. We did manage to find the accelerator switch though as I’m very familiar with the race zone and conditions were particularly common to Le Havre, with the wind favouring the arrival of a thermal breeze in the afternoon”.
As forecast, in IRC, Franck-Yves Escoffier has taken the lead in the provisional overall standing on his A35 “Ane Hasle” in the IRC2 category ahead of the formidable team from Dunkirk. “We were lucky not to break anything. We weren’t far off with a pole in the water and a broach. It’s perfect”. In the big IRC 1 class, the J133 “Pintia”, skippered by Gilles Fournier, another local sailor, is leading the way, but not without his share of difficulties. “We blew out two spinnakers. The seas were rough with a good swell. You had to be vigilant,” Gilles explained. Among the IRC 3s, it comes as no surprise that one of the hardened local crews, with countless RORC and UNCL races to its credit, is leading tonight prior to Saturday’s racing. “Foggy Dew”, the JPK skippered by Noel Racine, is in great shape…
Top-level racing in the M34 category
This year, with the arrival of the top names in international sailing on the M34 circuit, including the Volvo Drive E Race in the French Crewed Championship, the first leg of which is being played out in Le Havre, and the Tour de France à la Voile, the level has clearly gone up a notch. You just have to spend a few moments on the water to see that. The crews have amassed a huge amount of experience of close-contact and offshore racing. As a result, the manoeuvres seem to run like clockwork, even in heavy seas the tactics are thoroughly precise and the boats are impeccably well prepared. The teams have also carefully prepped their seasons with training sessions, speed tests and sail trials. Thierry Peponnet, Olympic gold medallist in Seoul in the 470s, Mathieu Richard, a supreme match racing champion, and Pierre-Alexis Ponsot, an Olympic racer, were all out on the water, watching the progress of teams like “Groupama 34”, “Sodebo 34” and “Courrier Dunkerque 3”, all of which are prime examples of the sporting intensity that reigns among the class. “My role is to monitor the crew from Dunkirk both internally and externally,” explains coach Pierre-Alexis Ponsot. “Since the start of the season, I’ve been particularly focused on “Courrier Dunkerque 3” in race mode aboard my rib. Here, I’m sailing with them working the spinnaker. That gives me an overall vision of all the technical and human aspects: the on-board communication, the trimming, the sail forms and so on”.
Tonight “Groupama 34” is still holding onto her solid lead in Normandy Sailing Week 2013, despite some interesting moves by the Omanis skippered by Cédric Pouligny and “Courrier Dunkerque 3”.
The Dutch in good shape
Finally, John Van den Starre, "Xcentric Ripper", continues to lead the J111 fleet, which is contesting their European Championship with a two-point lead. “It’s a pleasure to sail as a fleet aboard our fine boats. The mark roundings are full on!” Tomorrow, the First 7.5s will also take the stage, completing a full house for NSW!
Translated by Kate Jennings – Expression
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