AC40 steering wheel (top left) and François Gabart’s controversial Ultim SVR Lazartigue. For now Gabart has the benefit of a sliding aircraft-style canopy to keep him out of often 60-70kt of apparent wind… though with a hearing in Paris this winter about the legality or otherwise of his Ultim’s deck layout Gabart may find himself back out in the open next year. There are pitot tubes Ferrari F1 style and there’s Ineos’s rather less complex but underwater installation on the leading edges of the foils of their new development mule
sailing, managing the shift you were on while knowing the breeze was going to shift through 35° per leg! In the end the event was shortened because of the light air. The
fleet raced on three of the five days and for Quantum Racing we were able to close out a memorable season. The highlight for sure was to win the world championship with
Doug steering, which was a first. The humorous side was the one falter in our season scorecard was with yours truly on the helm (oops!). But that falter in Puerto Portals goes to highlight the strength of all the teams. Change one component of a programme and catch- ing up to that change is hard to do as this fleet is so strong. Going forward Quantum Racing will take on a different look for
the 2023 Super Series. We have taken the decision to match the make-up of the youth/women’s America’s Cup. We will combine the veterans with young raw talent. The goal is to upskill and help the younger generation of sailors bridge the void that has been left since the 2007 America’s Cup. This bridge is also happening with the SailGP and youth/woman AC initiatives. Covering all aspects of the sport and helping to teach others in
the same manner as we were, that is paramount to the success and longevity of our sport. I look forward to the challenge and energy brought to Quantum Racing and the sport by this group of sailors. Standing by at San Luis Obispo Cal Poly University on a college visit with Aden… oh to be a freshman in college again!
SIX DAYS! – Patrice Carpentier It took less than a week for the two first Ultims to reach Pointe à Pitre but it will take much longer for the smaller conventional
monohulls, such as the Class40, slowed by adverse weather. The start of the 3,542-mile (direct route) Route du Rhum race
was finally given on Wednesday 9 November at 14:15 off St-Malo. Of the eight competitors in the Ultim class, Maxi Edmond de Rothschild, skippered by Charles Caudrelier, was the first to cross the starting line and pass the mark in front of Cap Fréhel. The blue and white Verdier design never lost the lead of the race except for a brief moment approaching the Azores in favour of François Gabart’s SVR Lazartigue. Before the start of the Rhum we were promised a tight match
between these two Ultims, as well perhaps as Sodebo and Banque Populaire XI – with a slight advantage to Caudrelier’s boat, both the oldest of the four but also the most accomplished of these Maxi flying multi hulls. The reality did not contradict these predictions, except that BP
XIbroke her centreboard the day after the start. This fin has a ‘skate wing’ on the end for added lift and is also essential for the stability of the platform. Armel was forced to sail back to his base at Lorient. When he set off again his three main opponents were approaching the Azores after some tough windward work. In short, it took half the race time for the leading Ultims to complete
the first third of the course sailing upwind and the other half to complete the remaining two-thirds while running at high speed through the Atlantic towards Guadeloupe. As the race unfolded the gap grew between the leading quartet
and a very compact duo made up of Francis Joyon, the winner of the last edition, and Yves Le Blévec aboard the former Macif, now named Actual. Francis was a few minutes ahead at the finish in 2018 with his same Idec and now the two boats reached Pointe à
SEAHORSE 15
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