We watch some races from the ground. Even if we don’t participate in these major events, they fascinate us. Here are the world’s greatest races.
The Route du Rhum
There Rum Route This is undoubtedly the transatlantic race, the most popular among sailors, but also among the general public. Its name is associated with stories of sailors that are as fabulous as they are sinister. solo transatlantic is run every 4 years. The start takes place in Saint-Malo, at the end of October-beginning of November, heading towards Pointe-à-Pitre, in Guadeloupe.
The idea for this race originated with two men: Bernard Hass and Florent de Kersauson. They were joined by Michel Etevenon and several distillery owners from the French West Indies. In 1978, the first edition was launched, with a finish line that has become legendary and the beginning of a myth. Mike Birch won this edition, aboard his small yellow trimaran.
The Transat Jacques Vabre
There Transat Jacques Vabre, also known as the Coffee RouteThe Transat, or double-handed transatlantic race, is the other transatlantic race. Unlike the Route du Rhum, it is sailed double-handed. This offshore race, open to different classes of boats, was created by Xavier-Laurent Dequest in 1993.
Held every two years, the Transat Jacques Vabre starts from the port of Le Havre. The skippers then head towards Brazil. The finish line is not always located in the same port.
Note that the first edition was run solo.
The Vendée Globe Challenge
The Vendée Globe is undoubtedly the most legendary race. It makes all skippers, sea and adventure enthusiasts, and the general public dream. Created by Philippe Jeantot in 1988The first edition will take place in 1989.
The Vendée Globe is an adventure raceThis is due to its regulations. Indeed, the sailors set off from Les Sables d’Olonne for a round-the-world race, non-stop and without assistance. The skippers race on 60-foot sailboats called IMOCAs. This race has become legendary thanks to its many maritime stories and its “extreme” nature. Along with the Route du Rhum, it is also one of the few races where amateur skippers, or those with limited budgets, compete alongside the biggest offshore racing teams and their stars.
The Ocean Race
The Ocean Race, formerly known as the Whitbread Round the World Race and the Volvo Ocean Race, is one of the world’s most famous sailing races. It’s a round-the-world yacht race held in multiple legs, with professional crews navigating some of the world’s most challenging oceans and extreme weather conditions. The race has traditionally attracted some of the world’s best sailors and is renowned for being a physically and mentally demanding challenge.
It also provides an important platform for raising awareness of environmental issues, highlighting the need to protect the oceans and integrating sustainable initiatives into the event.
The Golden Globe Challenge
THE The Golden Globe Challenge is the ancestor of the Vendée GlobeThis race is part of maritime history. This great round-the-world race was created in 1968 by the English newspaper. The Sunday Times at the initiative of Sir Francis Chichester.
This race was the first solo, non-stop, and unassisted race. But at the time, sailors could only rely on a compass and a sextant. Robin Inox Johnson will be the winner of this race, and the only one to cross the finish line, in 313 days. In 2018, the Frenchman Guy Bernardin revived the race. Jean Luc Van Den Heede will win this second Golden Globe Challenge, under the same conditions as the first winner.
The Jules Verne Trophy
THE Jules Verne Trophy It’s not an offshore race, but a challenge. The goal is to reward the fastest crew to complete a round-the-world voyage, non-stop and without assistance. The idea for this challenge originated in 1985. It was skipper Yves Le Cornec who first proposed it. Subsequently, several skippers created an association, chaired by Olivier de Kersauson, to organize the race and establish its rules.
The Solitaire du Figaro
There Solitaire du Figaro It was created in 1970 by Jean-Louis Guillemard and Jean-Michel Barrault. Initially, the race was called the Course de l’Aurore (Dawn Race), until Le Figaro acquired the newspaper. Until 1990, solo sailors raced on half-tonners. But in 1991, the organizers opted for a one-design boat, the Figaro Bénéteau.
This offshore race has seen the greatest skippers from France. It is considered the most beautiful of all offshore races.
The Mini-Transat
October 8, 1977, Penzance (United Kingdom), 24 sailboats of 6.50m set sail with only one sailor on board for Antigua via Tenerife in the Canary Islands…
The smallest sailboats in offshore racing were born, and their favorite race: the Mini-Transat. Every odd-numbered year, they will meet on their favorite playground: the Atlantic.
Year after year, the French are becoming the majority in the fleet. It was therefore only natural that the organization would cross the Channel. In 1984, Jean-Luc Garnier, a journalist and enthusiast of these “Mini racing boats,” took over from the Briton Bob Salmon, who, after organizing four editions, wished to pass the torch. Voiles 6.50, a non-profit association (under the 1901 French law) and a club affiliated with the French Sailing Federation, was created and organized the Mini-Fastnet, an annual race round trip between Brittany and the Irish lighthouse. A new impetus was given to… Mini class sailboats.
The Fastnet Race
There The Fastnet Race is considered one of the most difficult racesIts route takes the crews to the Celtic Sea, departing from Cherbourg. The boats then have to battle with changing winds and currents.
The race was created in 1925 by the RORC. Since 1995, it has been run every two years and brings together a large number of sailboats of different classes and in IRC.
The Sydney Hobart
Sydney Hobart It is also considered one of the most difficult offshore races in the world. Created in 1945, the skippers leave Sydney on December 26th for a 630-mile race.