J/LANCE IX Takes IRC 1 and IRC Overall!(La Trinite sur Mer, France)- One of the first big offshore events of the year for La Trinitains, especially for those who enjoy sailing the Bay de Quiberon and around Belle Ile, was the Armen Race hosted by Societe Nautique de La Trinite sur Mer.
The fleet was treated to reasonable breeze for the 195nm race that is essentially two loops around Belle Ile. The race committee P.R.O. decided to send the entire fleet on a second loop 97 miles around (route # 3 of the addendum to the sailing instructions) which meant rounding the buoy SN1 (off St Nazaire) then up around Belle Ile, and return to Birvideaux.
While
the forecast originally called for 10-15 kts of breeze, the fleet was
treated to more wind than expected on the first night out. Relishing the tactical conditions and high-speeds achieved downwind, the J/111 J-LANCE IX sailed by Didier LeMoal won the fifteen boat IRC 1 Class by over a half-hour corrected time! They beat many of the hottest names in French offshore sailing onboard X-40’s, A40’s, and Pogo 40’s. In fact, boat-for-boat on elapsed time, the J/111 finished second overall behind a Volvo 60 racer!
The J/120 in IRC 2 Class, P. Tostivint’s LADY JANE, managed a 5th in class going against an armada of IRC-specialized boats like the A35’s, JPK 1110’s and Grand Soleil 37’s.
The IRC 3 had a couple of 105s and a 109 and all finished in the top seven! Taking third was Guillemot’s J/105 MISS J, just missing second by 15 minutes. Jomier’s J/105 J-SQUARED took fifth and Tourin’s J/109 BLUE JAWS took seventh. Replay the race and see how the J/111 won on Yellowbrick tracking For more SNT Armen Race sailing information
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