The start of the 12th edition of the Rum Route between Saint-Malo and Guadeloupe will be given on November 6th. 138 sailors are taking part this year. They were all in Paris this Wednesday for the presentation of the race. Hervé Favre, president of OC sports Pen Duickevent organizer was on France Bleu Armorique this Thursday morningat 8:20 a.m.
France Bleu Armorique: For this new edition, we beat a participation record with 138 sailors at the start. Among them, there will obviously be the best skippers, but also amateurs. Is that what makes the magic of this solo transatlantic race?
Herve Favre: Yes, absolutely. It’s true that the Route du Rhum has always been a mix of professional runners who have registered in the four classic offshore racing classes. And then, it’s the single race for two classes, a multihull race and a monohull race which welcomes sailors for whom it is the race of their life and often the first. That’s what makes the magic, it’s being able to have on the same starting line François Gabart and a pure amateur, as they say.
France Bleu Armorique: We’re going to see headliners in this race, aboard Ultims in particular, big boats that can go very fast…
Herve Favre: The Ultims are large 32-metre trimarans which have been flying on the water for three or four years now. We think there very lucky that the record is broken weather permitting, of course.
France Bleu Armorique: There can be big surprises sometimes on the Route du Rhum. During the last edition, four years ago, the Breton Francis Joyon came first, overtaking François Gabart in the very last hours. He had done a record time of 7 days, 14 hours and 21 minutes. The two skippers are still at the start this year. Can we expect a new record?
Herve Favre: Today there is four or five Ultims who can legitimately break the record so the fight will be terrible in the lead. But to beat this record, it will obviously be necessary that the weather conditions allow it. The race starts in November. There are always depressions to pass. It’s a difficult race. It feels like it has become an easy race because it can be done in less than a week. But it remains a very difficult race in November. So to win, to beat this record, you will first have to succeed in crossing.
France Bleu Armorique: Who are the favorites for this 12ᵉ edition?
Herve Favre: So we’re not going to say Francis Joyon because he’s not the big favourite. He is coming back to defend his title but his boat is starting to show the weight of age. It is still a formidable competitor. Armel Le Cleac’h on Banque Populaire, which is a great specialist in solitaire, of course. Francois Gabart but also Charles Caudelier who will be on Gitana, the fastest boat at the moment, in the various races they have done so far. Thomas Coville On Sodebo, too. There are beautiful people.
France Bleu Armorique: The Route du Rhum is also an opportunity for visitors to come and discover the boats before departure. 12 days before, the village will open its doors on the quays of Saint-Malo. It will be October 25. The Ultims will also be in the Saint-Malo basin. Is this a novelty and a technical challenge?
Herve Favre: Indeed, it is a great challenge. We managed to find technical solutions to slide them inside the lock. The boats are 23 meters wide and the lock is 24. So there you have it, we had to find a technical way to successfully slide them without damaging them. We managed to do it this year, so it will be the big news.
France Bleu Armorique: This year, the village is bigger, with more entertainment?
Herve Favre: More than a million people are expected to visit the village so we wanted to enlarge it so that there was a little more space, so that it was a little more pleasant and more ergonomic. It’s not to make it bigger just to be able to bring more people, but to have more space and make this village more pleasant to visit. The great novelty of this edition is thatwe open the village one more day compared to the last time. People are not going to come just to see the start.