" An English transatlantic race is never easy, but so far this one has been really tough on the northern route"
19.05.2016
There was total uncertainty as to who would take the third step on the podium between northerner Pierre Antoine and southerner Erik Nigon...
In the end, after 16 days 14 hours 29 minutes and 23 seconds, Pierre Antoine took third place in The Transat bakerly by just fifteen miles from Erik Nigon! From the start in Plymouth, the Olmix skipper had chosen a route close to the great circle route (direct route), and his trimaran covered the shortest distance to New York with 3,721 miles on the clock.
Arriving on Wednesday May 18 at 23h 59' 23'' at the finish line anchored by the Sandy Hook Pilot Association (that's 5h 59' 23'' French time this Thursday May 19), Pierre Antoine was probably the most shaken single-handed sailor in the fleet: he opted for the west from the very first miles, while all the other competitors, monohulls and multihulls, headed south to avoid the first low-pressure system hurtling violently towards Iceland. But this shortest trajectory was also the most eventful, with four active disturbances. So much so that Olmix had to end up with a piece of daggerboard, the appendage having been broken two days ago... At a water speed of 9.34 knots, Pierre Antoine conceded 4d 07h 09' 06'' to the winner in the Multi50 category, Gilles Lamiré.
"In Multi50, there are a bit two categories of boats between the modern ones and the old ones like mine or Erik Nigon's."
"It's an old trimaran, inspired by the American school that paved the way for ocean-going multihulls. The first time I crossed the Atlantic, it was in a trimaran! In the Multi50 class, there are two categories of boats: the modern ones and the old ones like mine or Erik Nigon's. This time, the last few days of the race were very important for me. This time, the last few days of racing were very demanding... It wasn't easy, because the challenge was to get there before Towards a world without AIDS! And it was hot all the way, with the two most extreme routes. The northern route I took was shorter, but more complex from a weather point of view. But it was a rich and interesting crossing. In fact, every crossing is a new adventure... The first depression off the Azores, I passed just to the north of it and it was a real exercise! A bit brutal. After that, the scenario kept changing until yesterday night's little disturbance, which enabled me to pull a little away from Erik Nigon. Especially with my broken daggerboard... I was a bit lucky on that final run: if I'd had to tack, I still wouldn't have made it! It was a bit of an elimination race... So third place in the Multi50 class is good."
Comments