This year The Course History
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T H E R A C E
This year The Course History |
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1996
Loick Peyron's 60 foot trimaran Fujicolor II left the fleet in the dust right from the start as he covered the first 10 miles to the Eddystone lighthouse in only 23 minutes. Clipping along at 28 knots as he passed the lighthouse, he was followed closely by Laurent Bourgnon's Primagaz and Paul Vatine's Haute Normandie. On June 21, disaster struck, Laurent Bourgnon had to be rescued from his capsized trimaran. He was picked up, uninjured, by a Rotterdam registered bulk carrier. |
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As the weather worsened, other yachts met with a similar fate. Francis Joyon, by then more than 300 miles in the lead with 600 miles to go, seemed a sure bet for the victory and was well on his way to breaking the transatlantic speed record. Then, on June 25, Joyon's trimaran Banque Populaire capsized in a 20 knot gust off Nova Scotia. The day also saw the dismasting of Yves Parlier's Aquitaine Innovations and the sinking of Galway Blazer from which Britain's Peter Crowther was rescued. Had Joyon finished, he likely would have slashed a day off the record set in 1988 by Philippe Poupon of 10 days nine hours and 15 minutes. He was, at the time, 24 hours ahead of his nearest rival. After the storms, a calm settled in rendering the fleet safe but slow. Loick Peyron who was also in contention for a record grab glided into the finish on June 28. Just 3 hours later, Paul Vatine aboard Region Haute Normandie arrived in Newport. In the 50 footer class Pete Goss was below receiving a weather fax when a sudden gust knocked his boat on its side. This was the second disaster for Goss who had 90% of his food ruined by a leak through a deck fitting. He finally finished on July 4 a day behind class winner Giovanni Soldini on Telecom. |
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