Mini 6.50 regatta: Biscay instead of the Azores: first test of strength for mini sailors
Kristina Müller
· 04.08.2020
They had to wait a long time for the first regatta start this season - yesterday was finally the day: on Tuesday lunchtime, 72 minis set off for their season opener, which was much delayed due to the coronavirus. And thus also the first direct comparison of the single-handed sailors on the water, many of whom want to sail the Mini-Transat in autumn 2021.
Three Germans are among the soloists who crossed the start line off Les Sables d'Olonne shortly after 1 pm: Lennart Burke (Pogo 3 "Vorpommern"), Melwin Fink (Pogo 3 "Maximum Sailing") and Lina Rixgens (Wevo 6.50 "Whomper").
Like all other mini sailors, the three Germans had to exercise patience in this important preparation season for the big Atlantic race in just over a year's time. Due to the coronavirus pandemic, the French class association Classe Mini had to cancel most of the spring regattas. The regatta "Les Sables - Les Açores en Baie de Morlaix", which has now started, is the first class regatta of the season and a replacement format for the regatta Les Sables-Les Açores-Les Sables, which would actually have led to the Azores and back.
Three stages instead of Atlantic sailing
Race Director Denis Hugues explains: "It was not possible to call at Horta on the Azores island of Faial this summer due to the effects of the health crisis, which is a great pity." As an alternative programme, the organisers from Les Sables d'Olonne - where the Vendée Globe will also start in November - have come up with a very special alternative programme. Instead of one long leg to the Azores and another back, three legs will now be sailed over several weeks, increasing in length and difficulty and crossing the Bay of Biscay and the English Channel.
"It's a bit like starting the Solitaire du Figaro in the Mini," said skipper Tanguy Bouroullec shortly before the start. As fourth in the proto classification in the 2017 Mini-Transat, he started as the favourite in the current field, in which the sailors are still finding it difficult to assess each other. "You don't know everyone yet, it's the first regatta of the year," says Bouroullec about the unusual situation.
The stages: several times across the English Channel and Bay of Biscay
The first leg is currently taking the mini-sailors from Les Sables d'Olonne to the north, around the island of Belle Île and back to Les Sables. At 197 nautical miles, it should be a brisk start, but so far the calm and light winds suggest that the first Protos will not arrive until tomorrow, Thursday.
The second leg will also start on 10 August in Les Sables d'Olonne, round Wolf Rock near Land's End on the south-west tip of England and finish in Roscoff in Brittany on the English Channel. The 470 nautical miles to be sailed, including two crossings of the English Channel, are likely to be a real challenge, especially for inexperienced mini-sailors.
Leg number three starts in Roscoff in the Bay of Morlaix on 19 August, leading around Wolf Rock again, across the Bay of Biscay around a buoy just before the port of Gijón in northern Spain, up into southern Brittany near Concarneau and then to the finish in Les Sables d'Olonne. With a total length of 970 nautical miles, the distance of this leg is already approaching that from France to the Azores.
For some of the skippers of the 72 boats, it is the first mini-regatta ever. "For many, it's a start into the unknown," says race director Denis Hugues. "Accordingly, many were curious and inevitably a little stressed before the start."
Burke and Fink at the front of the field
From a German perspective, this first start yesterday (Tuesday) was particularly promising for Lennart Burke. He stayed in third place for a long time in the field of 55 series minis, behind Léo Debiesse (Pogo 3) and Fabrice Sorin (Maxi 6.50). Melwin Fink is also sailing in the front field on his Pogo 3 with the number 920, currently in 16th place.
However, Lina Rixgens is sailing the season opener in the Protos class. The reason: "As long as ten Wevos 6.50s have not yet been built, I'm still competing in the prototype class," reports Rixgens. "Of course, the ranking doesn't count much for me there and I will always be looking to compare myself with the series boats. But since we all start together, that's also quite possible." The Cologne native celebrated her Mini-Transat première in 2017 and was the first German woman to finish the race. After a good 60 nautical miles sailed, Rixgens finished in 15th place with her brand-new Wevo 650.
Everything is different, but "the main thing is sailing"
Like everyone else, she is glad that after the long wait, it's finally time for a direct test of strength on the water - even if everything is a little different on land before the start due to the coronavirus. "You try to do everything one metre apart," she reports, "as soon as there are several people on board or it gets too crowded, masks are worn and the social events are limited to five tables outside. A little different than usual, but the main thing is that we can sail."
All mini-sailors still have at least a hundred nautical miles and another night on the Bay of Biscay ahead of them before the first are expected back in Les Sables d'Olonne tomorrow, Thursday. There will then only be a few days to recover and prepare for the second leg before the fleet sets off northwards for the next race.
