Transat Québec Saint-Malo - Dismasting, UFO, and Line Honors

Saint-Malo, France - The crew of the Class 40 sailboat Groupe Sefico, currently sailing in the Transat Quebec Saint Malo yacht race, reported early this morning that their boat had been dismasted - they are now out of the race. Though disappointed, Skipper Philippe Vallée, along with crew members Eric Caiveau, Gildas Abgrall and Thomas Duhamel report that all are well, and that they are currently sailing about 1050 miles from Saint-Malo. Vallée describes what happened: "We have dismasted and the race is over for us. We were sailing downwind at 140° to the wind, on a bearing of 80°, in an 18-knot wind. We were sailing at 10-12 knots, when the starboard shroud snapped. We cut everything away. We still have the boom and we are setting up a jury rig to head for Les Sables d'Olonne, the boat's homeport."

Now in the lead for Class 40 is the boat Pogo Structures. Skipper Halvard Mabire took back control of this race yesterday, when his crew was once again the fastest boat in the fleet over 24 hours, covering a whopping 296 miles. His crew will have to fight hard to maintain their lead to the finish however, with the boat Mistral Loisirs - Pôle santé Elior just 20 nautical miles behind them.

In the back of the pack, the remaining fleet has finally made it out of the calm which has plagued them. "Finally, we've left that damned ridge of high pressure! It was caught by a new low, which moved right up to us. At the moment, we've got more wind again, but a warm front has been following us for 48 hours. That means it's pouring down! Let's be positive however, by stressing that we have finally found the long awaited south westerlies and the speed has climbed back up," said a crew member on the yacht Esprit Large Talmont Saint-Hilaire.

In the FICO Class, An Ocean of Smiles skippered by Christophe Bullens maintains the lead, with Cervin ENR skippered by Yannick Bestaven close on their heels. We are unhappy to report that the FICO monohull Port de Québec has hit a UFO (Unidentified Floating Object), which caused serious damage to the boat. Because of the distance left to reach Saint-Malo, and the risks of continuing on with this boat damage, skipper Georges Leblanc and his crew are now heading home, and retiring from the race. The boat is currently on her way back to Newfoundland, leaving just three boats in the Transat Quebec Saint-Malo FICO Class.

At the front of the fleet, in the 50 Class, the multihull sailboat Crêpes Whaou was the first boat to cross the finish line yesterday evening in Saint-Malo, earning the boat crew line honors. Meanwhile, the duel for second place in this class continues, with Pierre Antoine on Imagine, and Hervé Cléris's crew on Prince de Bretagne, achieving almost identical average speeds over the past couple of days. Imagine currently holds a lead of about 90 miles, and is expected to arrive ahead of their rivals, but with less than 400 miles to go to the finish line, the sailing crews are busy studying the situation in the Channel, searching for some tactical advantage. "You never know what is in store over the last few miles off the coast of Brittany. There would well be quiet weather where there is a concertina effect with the gap being closed, allowing us to get back up with Imagine ... In any case, we're really up for it! " said Cléris.

Transat Québec Saint-Malo Current Top Ranking

August 1st - 2100 UTC

Class 50' Open

1. Franck-Yves ESCOFFIER - Crêpes Whaou! (FINISHED)
2. Pierre ANTOINE - Imagine
3. Hervé CLÉRIS - Prince de Bretagne

Class 40

1. Halvard MABIRE - Pogo Structures
2. Oliver KRAUSS - Mistral Loisirs - Pôle santé Elior
3. Giovanni SOLDINI - Télécom Italia

FICO

1. Christophe BULLENS - An Ocean of Smiles
2. Yannick BESTAVEN - Cervin ENR
3. Denis DOUILLEZ - Saint Malo Team

Sailing Video: Transat Québec Saint-Malo