The skipper of PRO YACHTING NIVOSE 1933 crossed the Vieux-Rhône mark in the lead, after 10 hours 04′ of racing. He is ahead of MSC, skippered by Nicolas Groux.
Geneva, August 24, 2024 – The Translémanique en Solitaire 2024, which brings together 125 yachts, is currently taking place in evanescent thermal breeze conditions, which have forced competitors to vie for patience as they make their way from one reef to the next. Conditions are set to deteriorate over the next few hours.
The race favourites came out on top and dominated the first half of the race, starting with the Psaros 40 Cellmen Ardentis, skippered by François Thorens, who led for most of the climb to the upper lake but was finally overtaken in the final metres before the buoy. Thorens announced before the start that he wasn’t sure he’d be able to cope with the rough conditions forecast for tonight; he’s currently heading for Vevey, his home port.
First up at the halfway mark was the Psaros 33 PRO YACHTING NIVOSE 1933, skippered by Philippe Seguret, who was particularly opportunistic on the approach to Vieux-Rhône, skilfully avoiding the calms to take the lead. He leads MSC, skippered by Nicolas Groux, by 1 minute 26′, himself ahead of another Psaros 33, Raijin, helmed by Guillaume Girod.
The rest of the fleet is closing in at a slow pace, as the forecasted SW’ly wind is slow to set in on the main lake.
Among the best-positioned yachts in their respective classes in this first half of the race were the Luthi 952 Perchette, skippered by Serge Patry, Hanspeter Bichelmeier’s Melges 24, the Luthi 34 Spi Garou (Yvan Girardet), Belotti (François Bopp), Tarango, skippered by 19-year-old Alexis Benjamin Pariat, the Surprises Mango (Lorenz Kausche) and G.Hominal et ses fils (Sylvain Wenger).
Tonight, the weather will deteriorate considerably. A stormy front is expected shortly after nightfall, accompanied by gusts of up to 35 knots. In other words, the race is still far from over, and after a first half dominated by the finest and most subtle racers, it’s now the best prepared, strongest and bravest who are going to take the ascendancy.
Note: eight competitors, including the favorites in their respective classes, will be penalized by one hour for a premature start: Nicolas Groux, Patrick Ducluzaux, Stanislas Baudu, Peter Taylor, David Biedermann, Arnaud Gavairon, Loris von Siebenthal and André Bals. 12 competitors also retired.