CIC Med Channel Race – Duel at the top

The Class40 fleet in the 2nd edition of the CIC MED CHANNEL RACE is approaching the southeastern tip of the island of Menorca, 10 nautical miles away, at 08:00 today. The ranking gate, located between Menorca and Mallorca, is still 30 nautical miles away. A duel is once again shaping up between No. 134 STELLA NOVA, the Swiss project of Omar Naas and Louis Torreilles, and the PHARE40 team of No. 142, skippered by Mathieu Claveau and François Verdier: 2.7 nautical miles separate them in the 08:00 ranking this morning. The fleet regrouped well yesterday afternoon, with seven crews within 32 miles of each other. The battle is therefore thrilling on this long course in the western Mediterranean, a first for offshore racing in this area. 250 miles still separate the competitors from the finish in Marseille, still expected Saturday afternoon for the leaders. The leaders will have already covered 894 miles at this stage, averaging around 8 knots over the surface.

From the Algerian coast to the Balearic Islands
After passing through the Sardinian gateway, the competitors encountered a significant area of calm southwest of Sardinia. This forced them to head south to find wind and the best angle for sailing downwind towards Menorca. If a direct course isn’t possible upwind, the same isn’t true with a direct following wind; a 20 to 30° angle is necessary to make the most of the sails at this point of sail. The Class40s therefore spent the entire afternoon playing their tactical cards with this alternative: take the direct route, which is less favorable in terms of speed, or head south towards the Algerian coast for a better wind angle and higher speed on the upwind leg to Menorca. Those furthest south pushed as far as 50 miles from Algeria, and a significant portion of the fleet found itself within the Maritime Responsibility and Control Zone (MRCC) of the Algerian authorities—an unusual situation for event organisers in the Mediterranean. Ultimately, the varying degrees of success in the tactics employed by the different teams have paradoxically led to almost all the boats being grouped together within a mere 20 miles: the race is all the more exciting after 900 miles covered since the start in Marseille on Sunday.

A duel at the top
After one boat passed the Bonifacio gate first, and the other the southern Sardinia gate, which of the two duels, STELLA NOVA or PHARE 40, will once again be the first to reach the final gate of Mallorca? The answer will come late this morning. Mathieu Claveau and François Verdier fully intend to challenge the current leadership of the Swiss team and arrive in pole position in the harbour of Marseille tomorrow for this team led by the Marseille-based sailor and project manager, Mathieu Claveau. Another impressive performance from the Marseille projects comes from the women’s team MER CONNEXION, with Ambre Hasson and Marine Feuerstein, who, on Class40 number 89, the oldest in the fleet, are giving their closest competitors a run for their money and have been fluctuating between 5th and 6th position for the past two days. Downwind of the island of Menorca, the wind will weaken and could once again cause some changes in the standings. The return journey to Marseille will begin today in rather light winds, which will strengthen in the evening and tomorrow morning with an established easterly flow. Arrival is therefore still expected to coincide with the concerts on the J4 esplanade of the EUROPA FESTIVAL, which includes the CIC MED CHANNEL RACE for this weekend.