Groupama Race - A once-in-a-lifetime experience!

by Groupama Race on 1 Jun 2016 Multi and Monohull: 17 yachts are already entered for the Groupama Race

From the maxi-yacht Beau Geste to the, nearly mini, Ketal, entries are spread amongst five classes. All will start from Nouméa, New Caledonia, on the 25th September, on the longest Olympic course in the World. All of this around the World’s largest tropical lagoon – start from Nouméa, finish in Nouméa.

The 654 mile course will be raced under ORC and/or under IRC. For this, the fifth race, the longest entry is the 24m Beau Geste from Hong Kong. She is from the board of the well-known firm of Botin Partners. The smallest entry is the less-than 10m Ketal, a Sun Fast. Her owner is ex-master of Club Med II, the largest five-mast afloat!

Based on the handicap of each entry (size, speed, year she was built…), five classes have been created. Class allocation will be open up to a week before the start. To be valid, a class must have three members. Groupama Race entries will be accepted up until the 31st July 2016.

A 300 mile spinnaker run and a 300 miles beat to windward.

Keel Bill, the canting keel Shaw 35 might well be classed with Christian Arns’ First 44.7 Notorious, or with Ran Tan II, an Elliot 50 expected in New Caledonia mid-June. For the President of the New Caledonian Sailing League and Cercle Nautique Calédonien Vice-Commodore “opening up the race to multi-hulls and maxis is a good way to go: New Caledonians will be able to take part in, and watch, a really good show!”

As of today, seventeen yachts are entered, but more are expected. Banque de Nouvelle Calédonie, a JPK 10.80 that finished second (IRC Overall) in the last Sydney-Hobart (as Courrier Léon), is looking forward to crossing swords with any overseas entry. A former windsurfing World champion, Michel Quintin is making “an appointment with all yachts from this part of the World!”

Diogène (a Pogo 40), XLR8 Province Sud (an Elliot 10.50), Eye Candy and Guilty Pleasures/Speed Marine/MSC (both Sydney 38’s) are still waiting for their Australian opposite numbers to enter. So are the maxis and the TP52’s! For the Groupama Race is a wonderful race around UNESCO World Heritage listed reefs, cradled in the SE Trades, encircling a tropical island perfectly in line with the prevailing winds.

This year, the race record will be beaten by a mono-hull or a multi-hull !

Four multi-hulls will be lined up for the start. Two cruising/racing machines, Moemiti, an Outremer 45 from French Polynesia, and Birdies Furax, a fast G Force 1500, will try their very best to smash the race record of 3d 15h 54m held by Crusader. A locally built 40’ hydrofoil trimarin, Jessica Rabbit, designed by Martin Fisher (actually head of design for Team France’s America Cup entry) is at present tuning-up in New Caledonia’s lagoons. Meanwhile, the Kiwi Team Vodafone Sailing (an Orma 60, ex-Géant skippered by Michel Desjoyeaux and winner of the Transat and the Route du Rhum!) sails from Auckland this weekend to take part in Sail Fiji. However, given the way the Groupama Race course lies in relation to prevailing wind, with a 300 mile beat to windward, a big mono-hull like Beau Geste might well finish before the multi-hulls. Something to keep in mind…

The start will be given on the 25th September of what has become sailing and (French) culture classic in the Pacific!

Boat name	Skipper	Type	L	l	GPH	Country
Keel Bill	Patrick Baldi	SHAW 35	10,65	3,288	521,8	New Caledonia
Diogène	Ludovic Chaillou	Pogo 40	12,18	4,4	544,5	New Caledonia
XLR8-Province Sud	JC Vergé Nicolas Vergé	Elliott 10,5	10,5	4,072	565,3	New Caledonia
Eye Candy	Thierry Leseigneur	Sydney 38	11,795	3,706	573,4	New Caledonia
Guilty Pleasures-Speed Marine-MSC	Renaud GERARDIN	SYDNEY 38	11,795	3,706	576,7	New Caledonia
Banque de Nouvelle-Calédonie	Michel Quintin	JPK 10,80	10,82	3,684	591,7	New Caledonia
Boulègue	Vincent Trinquet	YOUNG 9.9	10,25	3,71	613,1	New Caledonia
Ketal	Olivier Decouzon	SUN FAST 3200	9,79	3,49	630,2	New Caledonia
Odyssey	Bruno Hautier	DUFOUR GL 410	12,7	4,2	631,2	New Caledonia
Gummo-Phytocal	Alain Varichon	Bongo 9,6	10	3,7	648,4	New Caledonia
Birdies Furax 2	Alain Vilas	CATA	15,45	7,9	Multi	New Caledonia
Team Vodafone Sailing	Simon Hull	ORMA 60	18,28	17,5	Multi	New Zealand
Moemeti	Claude Rigal	OUTREMER 45	13,77	7,1	Multi	Tahiti
Jessica Rabbit	Philippe Coste	ORMA 40	12	12	Multi	New Caledonia
Ran Tan II	Brian Petersen	ELLIOTT 50	15,2	3,75	-	New Zealand
Notorious	Christiaan Arns	FIRST 44,7	14,5	4,48	-	New Zealand
Beau Geste	Karl Kwok	Botin 80	24,4	-	-	Hong Kong