Retour à la Base: Drama before and after the finish - Pip Hare ran aground, mast breakage on "Dubreuil"
Andreas Fritsch
· 12.12.2023
Pip Hare had only crossed the line off Lorient yesterday in an excellent eleventh place, saving her good result despite a broken control line on one of the foils. After her strong twelfth place in the Transat Jacques Vabre and her even better position on the way back, she was right on target for her Vendée Globe start next year. The new, recently retrofitted foils were a complete success and the boat's performance has taken a huge leap forward. And now this. There is only a brief statement on the circumstances of the grounding on the Facebook page of the team "This morning at 5.30am Pip ran aground off St Austell. She's fine and we're working with the brilliant volunteers from the RNLI to resolve the situation." Hare was on her way back to her team base in Poole, UK. There is currently rough weather off the English coast with gusts of up to 40 knots of wind and corresponding swell. ++++UPDATE+++:According to the Pip Hare team, forces from the RNLI lifeboat in Fowey, together with a Coastguard vessel, have managed to tow Medallia back to sea. After a brief assessment of the damage, the team decided to sail the boat back to base. The team would like to thank the rescuers and will now investigate the extent of the damage to the boat.
Just two hours later, fate struck for skipper Sébastien Simon, who many Ocean Race fans will remember as the navigator of Benjamin Dutreux and co-skipper Robert Stanjek's "Guyot Environnement" team. His "Groupe Dubreuil" was dismasted just ten miles from the finish line at Îles de Croix in 25 knots of wind and heavy seas. The skipper had already had a tough race, injured his head and had to call at the Azores for a short stop due to technical problems with the electrical system.
More dramatic mast breaks on Imocas:
However, he was determined to finish the race, refused support and tried to cross the finish line sailing somehow after securing the boat, as this would secure his qualification for the start of the Vendée Globe. In a surprising coup, Simon had bought the "Malama" from Ocean Race winner Team 11th Hour shortly before the Transat Jacques Vabre and finished 18th. It remains to be seen whether he will succeed in this feat. Live track His position no longer appears to be updated. However, as a precaution, the race organisers have informed the other participants that Simon is limping towards the finish line with a manoeuvring disability.
Follow the return à la base in the LIVE tracker:
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