Archive départ Les Sables : Michel Desjoyeaux sur Géant

Photo : Ch.Guigueno / Pipof.com/voile

The fleet split off to port and starboard with the experienced Gilles Chiorri (3201 Météo Consult Groupe Prosodie) and Marc Thiercelin (Bermudes) taking the furthest course inshore, Jeanne Gregoire (Skipper AG2R) and Armel Le Cléac’h in the group further out to sea. After pulling off a fantastic coup, it was rookie Sam Davies (Skandia) who glided in front of the leg winners in this 34th edition, Le Cléac’h and Yann Eliès, to head the 42-strong fleet at the windward mark with a time of 1639 BST precisely. Behind her were Michel Desjoyeaux (Géant), Le Cléac’h and Eliès, 5, 10 and 11 seconds behind. Alain Gautier (Foncia) was not quite so lucky as he slid back around 15 places when he hit the mark with his rudder and was forced to do a 360 degree turn for hitting the mark with his rudder, Loick Peyron also having to pay the same penalty. Yves Le Blevec was another rookie in the top ten taking 7th. The mark served to spread out the fleet as they headed off on the small dog-leg, with a run under spinnaker on the menu down to the Radio France buoy, 4.3 miles from the windward mark, near the Île d’Aix.

Ahead of the fleet lie two depression systems, one centred over Normandy heading east and another over the seas off the Ile d’Yeu before heading towards the north of France. An anticyclone is also positioned over Proche Atlantique as far as Ireland, strengthening as it comes in to centre over southern Ireland. A temporary calm is forecast for the start of the night before the nocturnal breeze establishes itself. The following day there will be a local system of breezes near the coast, with south-westerly in the afternoon veering west in the evening. The maintaining of the anticyclone on zone will block the arrival of the Proche Atlantique depression. In real terms that is likely to mean wind on the nose all the way.

 Armel Le Cleac’h (Créaline) - first overall in the second leg : "It’ll be good to get away from this heat wave. Obviously you still feel it out to sea but it’s easier to handle with the breeze you create as you still make a little bit of progress. You have to protect yourself with cream, caps, shorts and shirt. With the boat being white there is a lot of reflection. It’s important to hydrate yourself. I drink a lot - 4/5 litres per day. I’m very happy with my progress so far. Fifth and first - perfect. But we’re only half way through. Today’s leg is longer and the rankings at this stage don’t really mean anything. There’s still a long way to go. I hope the weather doesn’t mess us around too much. There’s a lot at stake and there are a lot of potential winners. Since the start with Créaline the target has been high and there is going to be a lot more battling out on the water."

 Marc Emig (Espoir Total Course au Large) - first rookie in the second leg - "When the wind comes from behind you just bake on the boat in this heat but we’re set to have wind on the nose and on certain points of sail you create your own air. I drink about 3 /4 litres of water a day but you have to keep changing water bottles as it’s hot enough to make coffee before very long. I have to wear total block being a red head and you try to do things with as little effort as possible. I didn’t know what to expect when I started this. I’m currently 11th in the general rankings so I’m well in the match and happy to be in the top 15. It’s not over yet - there’s less than 4 minutes between the top players. It’s going to be a battle right up to the last. I’m really happy with my work and my shore crew. I can recuperate completely on land and hardly go aboard at all during the stopovers. I’m hoping to be the top rookie and I’d really like to be in the top fifteen overall but I’d be satisfied to be in the top 20. It’s a good feeling to be sailing with such great skippers".

 Jean-Paul Mouren (Marseille Entreprises) - "I’m very happy about taking part, particularly as we’re already sailing under the colours of Ireland. The next leg is going to be an excellent opportunity to express ourselves as it is very open without any course markers. I really want to get out onto the open sea again as La Rochelle is very crowded. There is always a sense of peace on the water. I feel like I’m out of the match a bit and I recognize in myself that I haven’t been very inspired. I haven’t really had the chance to do any regatta sailing. I’m hoping to catch up with the others but it’s certainly not going to be easy as the delay accumulates from leg to leg. I’d like to go from 28th to 18th if I can but it’s a big step. I haven’t really had a chance to rest much here in La Rochelle as I’ve had to change the keel. We hit a rock near Bourgenay (just south of Les Sables d’Olonne) at the start of the race and I was horrified when I saw the state of the keel in Bilbao. I couldn’t think how to repair it so I took the decision to change it here in La Rochelle and together with the team from Bénéteau and a large amount of good will it all went to plan and worked well. It was big task as it weighs a tonne but it was all done in a day."

 Unai Basurko (Bizkaia) - "I’m feeling really good. The boat is ready to go and it’s in much better shape than on the last two legs. I feel hard and strong. It’ll be good to get away from this sight. It’s a little hot and it’ll be nice to get out on the water. There’s not much wind on the menu for the first couple of days then there will be some nice winds. The first part of the leg is going to be the best, just out of La Rochelle. I’ve just crossed the Atlantic in 35 days so I’m not frightened about being out on the sea for a bit longer. I enjoy being on the water. This course is a hard one for foreign skippers like me who don’t know the waters. There are lots of Bretons in the race and they know this coastline well. For me it’s more complicated. I prefer long legs though as the winds are cleaner."

 Sam Davies (Skandia) - "Going to be light winds that’s for sure. There are a few people who bought solent jibs for this race and so far they haven’t needed them and they are not going to for next leg ! here are two scenarios on the weather front and I will need good weather fax information during this leg. There is an anticyclone and a depression - and these will affect which route you take. The boats will be coast hugging on the first day and night but not so much on second day as they start to rely on the sea breeze a bit more. There is no really good option to head out into open sea as there is not enough breeze. "I will be looking to stick with the main pack and not do anything radical. I will be watching for Marc and Yves but I won’t be trying to cover them on this leg. Think you would be stupid to start covering people on this kind of leg as opposed to doing what you want to do. I will try and stay close to a couple of fast boats to make sure my boat speed is good. This leg is potentially more dangerous on the collision front... Loads more fishing boats and commercial traffic. I have an Active Echo to tell me when ships are in the area and an alarm. "This leg is a bit different...it’s the longest leg and there are no race marks so there is no option to shorten this course. We will be out there for a day longer than normal and I need to make sure I am getting enough sleep and eat properly. "I don’t like to have too much of a plan before the start - especially when the weather is so uncertain. If your plan is too strong it can affect your decision making out on the course when things change. I prefer to have a blank sheet of paper so I can keep my options open. It is much better to work around the situation rather than having a prediction and then finding it’s all different when you get out there so the scenario can become more confused."

 Charles Caudrelier (Bostik Findley) - "I think this leg should go fairly quickly. There is always more than 10 knots planned except for the start which will be a little light. I don’t know if this is the kind of leg where the gaps will open up or not, but if there is a coup to be had I won’t hesitate in taking it. I know that with 1h18minutes behind the leaders, I haven’t got a lot of choice. I am a bit disappointed to be in this position as I’ve never felt so ready before starting a race. What I do know though is that I always finish my races in a better position than when I start them !"

 Erwan Tabarly (Thalès) - "This leg doesn’t look simple on the weather front. For the crossing of the Irish Sea it’s going to be necessary to make your own analysis and choose your own course. And though regularity pays in the Solitaire, it’s important to keep an eye on what your friends are doing. For my part, if the occasion presents itself, I’m going to try and attack a little more."

 Lionel Péan (Nouvel Observateur) - "The weather situation is surely going to give rise to some opportunities that are very hard to handle strategically. The problem is that the fleet may leave by the left or the right, as for the moment there is no particular line to adopt taking into account the anticyclone in place. We remain in the dark about the air flow and the thermal value. If that’s how things go, it will be a leg comprising all the dangers for everyone, including me. I’m waiting to the last minute to decide what strategy to adopt. Today, I am here to get back some time and climb back up the rankings. My decisions will not be influenced by what the leading group do".

 Marc Thiecelin (Bermudes) - "It’s a long leg on the menu and there will be changes in relation to the forecasts we have. We’re going to stay under the influence of the enormous anticyclone which will provide us with all its heat… and it will have the tendency to get bigger creating zones of calm. And then on one side there are the scenarios and what we will really experience on the water ! The big question is whether there will be any attacks on the leaders. Certainly the transition phases are always more favourable for the little coups.

 Yann Eliès (Groupe Générali Assurances) - "I’m leaving in the spirit of a guy who is going out there to try to win quite simply. It’s not by having the slightly too conservative attitude like I had during the 2^nd leg that I am going to win. I have to get back the frame of mind I had for the prologue and the first leg to win ! Not everyone is in agreement about what the 3rd leg has in store for us, but I think that there will be a little more wind all the way with some options to be taken, particularly at the start of the course between La Rochelle and île de Sein where it will be necessary to be a little more inventive. We’re going to have to seek out the thermal or synoptic winds on shore. I think the most technical part will definitely be the start of the course. The rest seems to be a little more classic and more established. There will be as much at stake in this leg as the others. The idea is not necessarily going to be to find yourself on your own, as you are quicker in a group".

 Pascal Bidegorry (Région Aquitaine) - "I feel good even though I don’t think I’ve recuperated 100% from the first two legs. I don’t know how this leg is going to turn out... There’s going to be some wind when you set off this afternoon, that will be nice but tomorrow we don’t know what sauce we’re going to eat ! I think it’s the first time that I’ve set out on a Figaro leg without really knowing where I’m going and how I’m going to sail. We’re going to have to be very reactive, take control of ourselves quickly and make good choices in relation to the meteorological evolutions that we’re going to have."

 Christian Bos (Raynal et Roquelaure) : "On the first part of the race it looks like we’re all going to be blocked on the right as if there is a corridor along the Breton coast...after that, if something has to move, it will be further out to sea, in Irish waters".

• Desjoyeaux first to the Radio France buoy

After a run under spinnaker down to the Radio France buoy, 4.3 miles from the windward mark, near the Île d’Aix it was Michel Desjoyeaux (Géant) who was heading the fleet at the mark at 17h19m09s BST after trading his second place with Sam Davies in this 34th edition. Hot on her heels was 1st leg winner Yann Eliès (Groupe Générali Assurances) and 2^nd leg winner Armel Le Cléac’h (Créaline). The whole fleet were clear of the mark within quarter of an hour. Ahead of their bows lie 536 miles before their arrival in Dingle on the west coast of Ireland and an initial night with a temporary calm forecast for the start of the night before the nocturnal breeze establishes itself. The fleet are currently sailing at 25 degrees to the direct route on port tack at 4 or 5 knots. The current south of the Île de Ré is favourable so the fleet should reach the top of the island at around 22h30, making the Pointe du Grouin, south-east of the Sables d’Olonne by midnight. The following day there will be a local system of breezes near the coast, with a south-westerly kicking in for the afternoon, veering west in the evening.

Kate Jennings