Quentin’s words when he tied up to the La Trinité-sur-Mer pontoon this Thursday 21 July were nice to hear, as he completed his very first solo race in a 50-foot trimaran. After setting off from Cherbourg on Sunday 17 July, ready to take on a 1,200 nautical mile course to La Trinité-sur-Mer via the Irish coast and off the Gironde coastline, the Arkema young skipper had his mind set on learning more above all else.
“I didn’t set off at the same pace as the three leaders,” he explains. “I hadn’t done any solo racing since 2017, in a Mini 6.50, and my goal was clearly to learn about my boat in the open sea, alone, and to find out more about the tempo I should adopt on board. And both these points were validated. I feel good on board Arkema. The boat is reliable and sturdy, and it returned to port in excellent conditions.
In terms of routine, I managed to sleep between 2 and 3 hours a day despite uncomfortable conditions. The second night in particular, after passing the Fastnet lighthouse, was quite dangerous, with highly unstable winds shifting from 4 to 30 knots in no time. I was careful and coped without any trouble. Even though the first three boats did take the lead, this was still a hard race with Éric (Peron) and Thibaut (Vauchel-Camus). I’m pleased to have taken part in this event as it validated plenty of parameters.”
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