La Transat Paprec

Here is today’s 12:00 SBH time position update from the Transat Paprec webpage.

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An update from the Transat Paprec webpage, as translated by Google:

THE KINGS AND QUEENS OF SUSPENSE!
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It has already been 15 days since the competitors in the Transat Paprec left Concarneau and the excitement of its pontoons. The relationship to time, in the race and in the middle of the Atlantic, is no longer really that of all those who remain on land. Life on board is punctuated by the watches, the analysis of weather files and the observation of the sky which says everything that the cartography and the files do not see. The trade winds are nothing like the highway of the sun, although hats and sunscreen are a must. "You have to manage to integrate and analyze the subtleties of the trade winds", explained this Monday morning Yann Chateau, Deputy Race Director.

Status quo in the standings

Yann Chateau evokes these wind variations which can create differences and then the squalls, above all, which do not only carry showers. Some can indeed make the boats suddenly accelerate: Région Bretagne – CMB Océane (Chloé Le Bars-Hugo Dhallenne) thus peaked at 13 knots for an hour when the rest of the fleet was at 8 knots – or on the contrary find themselves greatly slowed down . These squalls also offer good sensations, as explained by Julia Courtois and Maël Garnier (AGEAS-Ballay-Cerfrance-Baie de Saint-Brieuc) in a message from on board: "we had two this Sunday, the first with rotations of 40° wind and the second which allowed us to make beautiful surfs! »

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On this long edge which leads to Saint-Barthélemy, the positions are however fixed. Leading the race since last Saturday, Loïs Berrehar and Charlotte Yven (Skipper MACIF) continue to dominate the debates. Two pursuers are keeping pace: Corentin Horeau and Pauline Courtois (Mutuelle Bleue, 2nd) who are in their wake at 2.4 miles and Région Bretagne – CMB Performance (Gaston Morvan - Anne-Claire Le Berre) who are at 9.1 miles on the great circle and 16 miles further north.

Normandy region (Guillaume Pirouelle – Sophie Faguet, 4th, at 24.9 miles), Cap Ingélec (Camille Bertel – Pierre Leboucher) at 50.5 miles and EDENRED (Basile Bourgnon – Violette Dorange) at 54.5 miles form the battalion of pursuers. Brittany Region – CMB Océane (Chloé Le Bars – Hugo Dhallenne, 7th at 74.4 miles), AGEAS - Ballay - Cerfrance - Baie de Saint-Brieuc (Maël Garnier – Julia Courtois, 8th at 100.2 miles) and MonAtoutÉnergie. fr (Arthur Hubert - Colombe Julia, 9th at 136.7 miles) are further behind.

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A great game at the back of the peloton

Behind, a match between Race for Science - Verder (Alicia De Pfyffer - Édouard Golbery, 10th) and Groupe Helios - Du Léman à l'Océan (Arnaud Machado - Lucie Queruel, 11th) in order to avoid finishing at the bottom. The duel is particularly interesting, especially since everyone has decided on a very different route: Alice and Édouard are progressing near the direct route when Lucie and Arnaud have decided to take a more southerly route to hit stronger winds. "It's great this game from a distance: we have a competitor with whom we can play and it's motivating, it pushes us to work hard and give everything," explained Édouard during the radio session this morning. "We hope that they are not going to pass in front of us before the finish! »

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Aboard Race for Science – Verder, it is the water resources that are in question. They only have 40 liters left until the finish, i.e. 2 liters per day and per person. However, they also need it to prepare their freeze-dried meals! "When you're awake 20 hours a day, it's very little to have only two liters, recognizes Édouard. He does not hide a form of weariness to be satisfied only with freeze-dried dishes. “It’s not super nutritious and everything tastes the same. I'm always hungry! For their part, Julia Courtois and Maël Garnier (AGEAS-Ballay-Cerfrance-Baie de Saint-Brieuc), they only have one packet of sweets on board. Definitely, the small pleasures of the earth are starting to be lacking in the heart of the Atlantic!
 
How quickly things can change…. The first screenshot from the Transat Paprec shows the standings at 20:00 SBH time. I took another look at 22:00 SBH time, and Région Bretagne - CMB Performance had moved from 3rd place, 5.2nm behind, to 1st place, 0.8nm ahead. They can change back just as quickly.


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An update from the Transat Paprec webpage, as translated by Google:

A new leader in the trade winds!

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The battle only intensified among the Transat Paprec fleet, with less than 4 days to go. There are just over 600 miles to go for the lead fleet and nothing is settled with a scenario that would make all the bookmakers lose their heads. Because the race has once again changed leaders!

Last night, Région Bretagne – CMB Performance (Gaston Morvan - Anne-Claire Le Berre) took control of the race ahead of the Skipper duo MACIF (Loïs Berrehar – Charlotte Yven) and Mutuelle Bleue (Corentin Horeau – Pauline Courtois) who make up the top three. Gaston and Anne-Claire were on a slightly different route, they who are located 5 miles further north laterally.

At the race director, Yann Chateau reminds us that "going to starboard is more difficult": "it's not a tack that brings you closer to Saint-Barth, it's further north and it's not easy to do". In short, what Gaston and Anne-Claire are doing is particularly interesting. "Being in the North and closer to the goal is a non-negligible advantage". A lead that "should settle" unless the duo faces recalcitrant grains.

A larger fleet

Gaston and Anne-Claire thus regain first place. He had occupied it for a handful of hours on Sunday May 7 during the passage of La Palma before getting used to it, in the trade winds, for a large part of last week (from Tuesday to last Saturday). Victim of a shock with an Ofni, they decided to continue the race, at all costs and for the moment, they are doing quite well.

This Tuesday morning, we also notice that the fleet is more extensive, less grouped around the direct route. Thus, Région Normandie (Guillaume Pirouelle, Sophie Faguet, 3rd) is 24 miles laterally to the South of the leader, while Edenred (Basile Bourgnon – Violette Dorange, 4th) is 50 miles laterally, still to the South. “They are hoping for more wind and keeping to the side to come back faster, explains Yann Château. They are waiting for a squall or a stronger wind shift to turn starboard”.

The battle at the back of the pack

On the great circle, the gaps have narrowed, however, with less than 70 miles between the first seven, from Région Bretagne – CMB Performance (1st) to AGEAS-Ballay-Cerfrance-Baie de Saint-Brieuc (Maël Garnier – Julia Courtois, 7th).

Finally, those who were slightly faster than the others find themselves at the back of the pack. Race for Science - Verder (Alicia De Pfyffer - Édouard Golbery, 10th) and Groupe Helios - Du Léman à l'Océan (Arnaud Machado - Lucie Queruel, 11th) progressed at just over 8 knots for much of the night. Nearly 80 miles separate them on the direct route and more than 120 miles laterally, Arnaud and Lucie having preferred a more southerly route. Their distance duel promises to be exciting until the end, like the rest of the race!
 
An update from the Transat Paprec webpage:

+3 DAYS UNTIL THE FINISH HIGH TENSION, MATCH RACING TO THE FINISH?​

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With just over 500 nautical miles to the Saint Barths finish line what looked set to be a three cornered fight for victory might yet open up to surprise attacks from the mixed doubles duos in fourth, fifth and sixth.

Since Monday evening the 3890 miles race from Concarneau has had a new leader. Gaston Morvan and Anne-Claire Le Berre (Region Bretagne-CMB Performance) gybed north around 2000hrs and profited from extra breeze to take a narrow lead. And as second placed Lois Berrëhar and Charlotte Yven (Skipper MACIF) and Corentin Horeau and Pauline Courtois (Mutuelle Bleue) in third have both attacked with hitches to the northwest this afternoon, Morvan and Le Berre have seen their lead grow by nearly five miles today.

The leading trio are sailing into softer breeze and as they do so this has allowed Guillaume Pirouelle and Sophie Faguet (Région Normandie) to claw back more than seven miles since yesterday. The fourth placed duo from the north of France are at around 20 miles from the leaders and going faster as are fifth placed Camille Bertel/Pierre Leboucher (Cap Ingélec) who have closed to 26 miles behind from having been more than 50 miles adrift yesterday.

Match to the finish
Morvan and Le Berre are out of sequence with the chasing duo but seem to consider attack as the best form of defence.

“Going north on starboard is an investment on the non-making gybe and it is not an easy angle to sail on but there is a reward in terms of the angle coming back.”Suggests Yann Chateau the assistant race director who says no lead will be safe as the race closes the final miles when the breezes look set to be lighter, shifty with squalls and gusts under the clouds.

“Skipper MACIF and Mutuelle Bleue are very close but they need to focus on closing down the leaders who are quite proactive and prepared to try stuff. The other two are following each others. And there is a light airs ridge coming up which will see the leaders slow and more compression from behind.” Says race director Francis Le Goff.

“Given the tiny gaps between the competitors, the winning difference could be down to a cloud which can stop the boats or allow them to accelerate. It must be stressing them out. We are seeing a great race at the front and there will be a match until the finish line”, enthuses Le Goff.

Top five at 1700hrs BST TUESDAY 16th May 2023
1 Région Bretagne CMB Performance (Gaston Morvan/Anne Claire le Berre) 556.8 miles to finish
2 Skipper MACIF (Loïs Berrehar/Charlotte Yven) + 7.5 miles
3 Mutuellle Bleue (Corentin Horeau/Pauline Courtois) + 7.9 miles
miles
4 Région Normandie (Guillaume Pirouelle/Sophie Faguet) + 22.1 miles
5 Cap Ingélec (Camille Bertel/Pierre Leboucher) + 24.2 miles
 
This morning there is a new leader in La Transat Paprec, Mutuelle Bleue. Here are the positions as of 06:00 SBH Time:

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An update from the Transat Paprec webpage:

D-2 TO FINISH TRANSAT PAPREC GOING DOWN TO THE WIRE​


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The 1994, second edition of the two handed race across the Atlantic which is now the Transat Paprec was famously won by French sailing legends Jean Le Cam and Roland Jourdain by just 63 seconds. After 20 days and 20 hours of racing between Lorient and Saint Barthélemy, Le Cam and Jourdain pipped Bertrand de Broc and Marc Guillemot by the tiniest of margins.
This Transat Paprec, the first to be raced in ‘mixed doubles’ format, looks set to deliver a truly nail biting finale which, if it does not see as close a finish between first and second as 1994, this edition , the second edition ever to be raced in Figaro BENETEAU 3 one designs is shaping up to have the closest finish yet between the top five.
With less than 350 miles to go of the 3890 mile course, there is still nothing between the top three. And after 17 and a half days of racing, the top trio are still mostly within visual sight of each other in the same way they might be during a training day race in Brittany.
Most observers who know the race, the title rivals and have an understanding of the weather forecast for the final 48 hours consider victory will be won or lost on the final approach and circuit of the island of Saint Barths.
Since this Wednesday morning Corentin Horeau and Pauline Courtois (Mutuelle Bleue) have been credited with a steady lead, but one which has never been as much as one mile ahead of Lois Berrëhar and Charlotte Yven (Skipper MACIF) in second. And just half a mile behind them– in terms of distance to the finish – are Gaston Morvan and Anne-Claire Le Berre (Region Bretagne-CMB Performance). In truth the top three are racing side by side at virtually the same speeds.
But, fastest this Wednesday evening has been Le Havre native and former 470 Olympic campaigner Guillaume Pirouelle racing with Sophie Faguet and carrying the flag for the Normandy area on Région Normandie. They are less than 10 miles from the pacemakers and seem to be doing well with a position to the south, to windward of the peloton.
From Région Bretagne-CMB Performance Gaston Morvan reported earlier today, “ It's pretty intense right now. We are between the squall systems, little storms, it's hard to keep the boat moving forward. And on top of that there is weed, sargassum.. We are trying to give it everything we can. We know that it's going to come down to small details, that it's going to be very tight between three boats, even more. And they will come back at us from behind too. “
Coach at Pôle Finistère Course au Large offshore training centre Erwan Tabarly sums up, “It's a real speed race. You also have to negotiate squalls and clouds well and keep trimming your boat properly. Two days before the finish no one really has any kind of lead. The mindset comes into it too. Wanting too much to control or watch too closely what others are doing, you can forget to just take the best route. You have to stay true to your plan, go your own way without giving in to the others. Even if they don’t stay stuck in light winds around the island, the boats are very close and you can be overtaken during the passage round of the island, it has happened before. You can stay stuck for a few minutes by going around the tip at Colombier. It never lasts long but it can be enough to get passed by a boat. Victory can be won there. It's less tricky then, going down to the line.”
Top five at 1700hrs BST WEDNESDAY 17 May 2023
1 Mutuellle Bleue (Corentin Horeau/Pauline Courtois) 353.2 nautical miles to finish
2 Skipper MACIF (Loïs Berrehar/Charlotte Yven) + 0.9 miles
3 Région Bretagne CMB Performance (Gaston Morvan/Anne Claire le Berre) +1.4 miles
4 Région Normandie (Guillaume Pirouelle/Sophie Faguet) + 10.2 miles
5 Cap Ingélec (Camille Bertel/Pierre Leboucher) + 12.9 miles
 
As of 08:00, 6 boats have finished the race, with the 7th boat just feet from the finish line. The 8th and 9th boats will finish today. The 10th and 11th boats will take a bit longer, but will also be greeted with enthusiasm.

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Thanks, all!

The race isn’t over for me until the last boat finishes. The 10th place boat finished just before 15:00 today. The 11th and final boat is about 2 hours out. I don’t know what will happen when the 11th boat arrives. For sure, there wil be local boats escorting them in. In the past, it doesn’t always happen, but it’s not unheard of for many of the earlier Transat boats have gone out to escort their competitors in.

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