By the end of the afternoon of this first full day of racing, the competitors in the first edition of the CIC MED CHANNEL RACE had all already rounded the first major mark on the course in Calvi Bay, the No. 98 QWANZA has just crossed it at 6:00 p.m. The crossing to Corsica took place in ideal conditions with a 15- to 20-knot breeze on the beam. At this point of sail, the scows regained the advantage over the pointus, who had made the most of a start to the race in very light winds. No. 89, “SET TO SEA / ACT FOR THE FOREST,” by Marseille sailors Mathieu Claveau and Victoire Berger, had made a superb start to the race but was caught during the night by the scows, which were pumped up in the conditions.
After passing Calvi, a completely different story begins; the competitors must reach the Strait of Bonifacio in southern Corsica, the next mandatory crossing point.While the wind was strong during the crossing and also strong on the approaches to the Strait, the story between these two areas is completely different; indeed, with an easterly wind, the Corsican coast creates a wind slack that extends far out to sea, a very tricky calm zone where the competitors must choose between the shorter distance along the coast and seeking a stronger wind further offshore. In this game, the positions are likely to be called into question depending on the uncertain success of the options taken by each.
CREDIT MUTUEL (No. 158) of Ian Lipinski and Alberto Bona and CENTRAKOR (No. 183) of Mikaël Mergui and Keni Piperol seem to have chosen the theme of duel, remaining within a mile of each other most of the time. Slightly behind at the end of the day, CROSSCALL (No. 166) of Aurélien Ducroz and Jonathan Chodkiewiez remains a serious contender to upset the podium. And in the middle of the fleet, five pointus , about twenty miles behind the leaders, are also in an intense battle among this group.
The first competitors are expected to arrive at the Strait of Bonifacio early Tuesday morning. This new course mark, like all others, allows race management to decide whether or not to change course: East Sardinia, as per the official course, or West Sardinia, should the weather favor this option. The question is certainly on the minds of all competitors; they will be freed from this predicament by daybreak at the latest, since the Sailing Instructions impose a minimum distance of 15 miles for announcing a change before a mark.
It is also worth noting the excellent performance of Joël Paris and Thibault Lecarpentier (#32 – REVE A PERTE DE VUE), who are far from being left behind in the fleet. Another retirement has also been notified this evening to race management for the #148 HYDRA-DECHOUX of Nicolas Toury and Alexandre Delemazure, unfortunately forced to abandon the race due to a water ingress and engine damage.
