Panerai Transat-MAXIMUM MOTIVATION
With just five days left to go before the start of the Panerai Transat Classique 2012, which will see a fleet of classic yachts race from Cascais to Barbados, the crews are working at full speed to prepare their seagoing thoroughbreds. The marina is buzzing.
It’s all happening in Cascais. Every yacht competing in the Panerai Transat Classique 2012 is a hive of activity. The screwdrivers are out, bosun’s chairs are hauling riggers up masts, and lockers are being hurriedly emptied in an effort to reduce weight. Three boats are currently on the hard for some minor hull repairs. Valteam, a forty-ton lady of a certain age, is having her planking inspected; while Cipango, a Taillefer built in 1966, and the Olin Stephens designedGweneven are getting a wash and brush up. The sun is making a timid appearance but a succession of squalls means that everyone has two jobs on the go, one indoors, one out. They may still be in the marina, but in their minds the crews have already started the race, albeit with ambitions differing from yacht to yacht. Let’s meet the fleet.
With thirteen yachts taking to the starting line, the fleet of the Panerai Transat Classique 2012 is a veritable panorama of naval architecture representing eleven different designers. Of these only Dick Carter and Olin Stephens have the honour of fielding more than one of their vessel designs: Corto and Persephone for Carter, Gweneven and St Christopher for Stephens. However some are not entirely satisfied with attributing the latter’s lineage to Stephens because, although the plans are indeed signed “Sparkman & Stephens”, they were in fact drawn by the Argentine architect German Frers who was working for the celebrated design office at the time. The rest of the field includes two Italians, Valteam by Renato Levi and White Dolphin by Vincenzo Beltrami, one Dutch, Cipango by Franz Maas, one Scot and doyen of the race at 82 years old, The Blue Peter by Alfred Mylne, two English, Artaius by Nigel Irens and Gimcrack by David Simmonds, and two French in the shape of Croix des Gardes by Henri Dervin and Marie des Isles by Daniel Bombigher.
A spiritual endeavour
Crossing the Atlantic, the subject of the main event of the race, is an exploit that every sailor dreams of accomplishing. On the Marie des Isles, the crew has undergone major changes since the leg from Douarnenez to Cascais. Jacques and Cathy Scharwatt, the owners, recruited their crew via a specialist website. Four youngsters signed up: Gwenaëlle, Mélanie, Boris and Francisco. Francisco is Portuguese:”We didn’t know each other before coming aboard, but almost immediately we could feel a positive energy emerging. The girls have had some sailing experience but the boys are absolute beginners. What I’m hoping to get out of the Transat Classique is above all a human adventure and its spiritual dimension. That’s what excites me the most. Everybody does their share of the chores aboard and we also intend to cook vegetarian. Jacques and Cathy appreciate our behaviour at sea and really want to share the experience. I can’t wait to set out, to have time to spare, to not have to run around like you do in the city, so that everyday is a discovery.”
Family affair
The crew of Croix des Gardes are an unusual but very engaging group of people. Sarah and James Kelman bought the boat in 2007 and, for the crossing, have brought along their children Elizabeth and Matthew aged… 7 and 6 respectively! This charming family project will include school everyday and is set to continue for another three months after the crossing. They intend to tour the West Indies and sail up the east coast of the USA before crossing once again the Atlantic back to England. It was during the last Panerai British Classic Week, at Cowes, that Sarah and James made the decision to go. They completed the crew roster with Dave and Ollie, father and son and yet another touching family story. Dave also owns a classic yacht, a Camper & Nicholson 36, and his son is a trained sailor who is starting to prepare for the next Olympics in the 49er class. His knowledge of sailing and racing are obviously going to come in handy.
From modern to classic
On Corto, the elegant Carter design owned by Hacène Abbar, the crew includes some serious regatta sailors. The foremost of these has to be Bruno Jourdren. From Brittany in France, Bruno has a solid record in offshore racing with numerous ocean crossings both in mono and multihulls to his name. His skills in analysing weather forecasts, elaborating tactics and trimming sails will be a bonus for the rest of the crew who are all more than willing to learn the finer points of the sailor’s craft. Among these are Romain Bouchet and Damien Cloarec, familiar faces on the fast offshore racing circuit of 6.5 m Minis. They are both looking forward to the experience of racing a classic boat: “It’s going to be a change from the usual. None of the freeze-dried food and spartan comfort of the Minis; we’re going to be eating well, with a glass of wine and a good night’s rest. But the crossing will also be a training ground for us to learn about managing weather forecasts and squalls, and our sleep. We know that we’re doing this for the pleasure, but all the same, when we’re racing, we focus on making the boat go fast.” Opponents better take note.
For the love of wood
“I haven’t got much in common with modern boats, but I am passionate about classic yachts and especially work boats.” It doesn’t take long for Jérôme Lunot to lay his cards on the table and explain why he bought Artaius, a superb replica of a Bristol pilot cutter from the nineteenth century, redesigned by Nigel Irens. Built in Canada in a series of four, this gaffer is easy to recognize and has retained all the speed and sea-keeping qualities of its forebears. The Panerai Transat Classique 2012 will be Jérôme’s first Atlantic crossing: “I’m not worried about the technical side of things, I’ve got a good well-prepared boat.What I fear most is the psychological aspects, what it’ll be like living with four people in a small space for three weeks.” Nonetheless he’s lucky enough to be setting off on this adventure with his father, with whom he will undoubtedly experience some very exciting times. For the crossing, Jérôme has hired skipper Bérangère Branchereau, a young woman who has already accumulated solid experience sailing traditional boats such as La Boudeuse, a three-masted ship built in 1916. Once on the other side of the pond, Artaius will spend some time sailing in the West Indies before heading for home in the spring.
A quality field
The quality of the crews signed up for this extraordinary race—a 3,300 mile classic yacht race—just shows how seriously each yacht is being prepared for the challenge. In addition to the well-known sailors on Corto, Pierre Follenfant will be sailing on Persephone, the Tina owned by Yves Lambert and winner of the Douarnenez to Cascais leg; and Jacques Caraës will be crewing Red Hackle, the powerful German Frers design. These two sailors have accumulated an impressive number of ocean crossings and circumnavigations on some of the fastest boats ever built. And we cannot ignore the crew of The Blue Peter, commanded by Mathew Barker, who are all seasoned regatta sailors on the Mediterranean classic yacht circuit; and the crew White Dolphin, winner of the Saint Tropez to Cascais leg, who are determined to make life hard for their opponents. On Valteam,the impressive figure of Jacques Levasseur, known as “Big Jack”, is the only sailor in this year’s race to have been on the first Transat Classique in 2008. At the time, he was first mate on Pen Duick VI, Eric Tabarly’s legendary black ketch which won the Agadir to St Barts leg. With support from owner Laurent Renoul and his crew, Big Jack is hoping to do the double. Last but not least, we mustn’t underestimate the ambitions and skill of Gweneven‘s crew, brought together by Oren Nataf, the youthful owner of this beautiful Swan 38; and the crew of Cipango, the Taillefer owned by Maurice Benzaquen. The race looks set to be a tough one. Follow the excitement by going to www.transatclassique.com where you’ll find real-time tracking and all the latest news.
Yachts leaving Cascais (in alphabetical order):
NameBuilt Architect LOA Rig
Artaius 1999 Nigel Irens 16.31 m gaffer
Cipango 1966 Franz Maas 11 m sloop
Corto 1970 Dick Carter 13 m sloop
Croix des Gardes 1947 Henri Dervin 15.3 m
Gimcrack 1961 David Simmonds 11.58 m yawl
Gweneven 1975 Olin Stephens 11.6 m sloop
Marie des Isles 1973 Daniel Z. Bombigher 20 m gaff schooner
Persephone 1969 Dick Carter 11.3 m sloop
Red Hackle 1989 German Frers 18.28 m ketch
St Christopher 1968 Olin Stephens 15.5 m
The Blue Peter 1930 Alfred Mylne 19.65 m sloop
Valteam 1965 Renato Levi 22.25 m yawl
White Dolphin 1967 Vincenzo Beltrami 20.2 m yawl
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