The skipper of Psaros 33 Raijin crossed the Vieux-Rhône mark in the lead, after 6 25′ 45” of racing. It is ahead of Tudor, Katana and Eole 7.
The start and first few hours of the 52nd Translémanique en Solitaire took place in optimal conditions, with a steady Molaine gradually evolving into a south-westerly wind, propelling the competitors towards the Grand-Lac in record times.
Once they reached Evian, the yachts gradually came to a halt, as the westerly wind did not cross this limit and the competitors had to play with evanescent or even absent thermal breezes.
François Thorens’ Psaros 40 Cellmen ARDENTIS started off downwind of the fleet along the Swiss coast, but was overtaken by the Luthi 1090 Katana, skippered by Alexander de Weck, off Yvoire. The Psaros 33s, grouped in their silage, then took advantage of an unfavorable northerly option from the two leaders to take the lead at Evian.
Approaching the Vieux-Rhône, Raijin, MSC, Tudor, Carpediem, Pro Yachting Nivoise and Joker were leading the race, but Katana came back into the game.
After 6 hours 25′ 45” of racing, Raijin passed the halfway mark in the lead, ahead of Tudor and Katana, approaching the mark.
Still a short distance from the Vieux-Rhône, the Melges 24 DB, skippered by Alain Stettler, as well as Hans-Peter Bichelmeier’s Melges 24, occupy advantageous positions among the best yachts in the TCF 1 and 2 classes.
Arnaud Machado and Marius Lanz lead the Surprise ranking, while Guillaume Lacheray’s NITRO80 Abricotine is also well placed among the top contenders in the larger classes. Last but not least, the J70 EFG 3, skippered by SNG junior Arthus Vallery, finished well in the intermediate rankings.