(La Trinite sur Mer, France)- The French J/80 teams have not only gotten
themselves well-organized for the 2015 Coupe de France J/80 season, but
they are firm in their sights to get their teams quickly up to speed
for both their first major event of the season, the SPI Ouest Regatta in
La Trinite sur Mer, but also operating at world-class level for the
upcoming J/80 Worlds next door in Germany in the first week of July.The French J/80 fleets coordinated to hold training events both in La Rochelle and in La Trinite sur Mer. As the La Trinite coaches and Arnaud Walter reported:
“In the beginning of the year the wind was strong, sometimes too strong. Then, this weekend it was weak.
It is in the conditions of Saturday, a wind easing off from to a moderate breeze that the crew must learn to sail fast! Between the placement and movement of the crew in the boat, the constant attention of the sails adjustments, it had to be done!
The crews practiced ten rounds of hard boat-handling maneuvers. Then, they spent time doing speed tests. Finally, they closed with 3-minute starts. The end of the day closed with three races of double windward-leewards.
With racing canceled on Sunday for lack of wind, the three races on Saturday counted for the qualification of the 7th edition of the Challenge J/80 La Trinité. At this time, the top five teams include: 1- EV CATASCHOOL (Quentin Delapierre), 2nd MILLESIM (Jean-Pierre Richard), 3rd JDISMERCIPAPA (Matthew Visbecq), 4TH J-VENTURE (Marc Leborgne) and 5th J’HALLUCINE (Eric Despierre)
On the following weekend, it was exceptional spring weather with winds blowing 15-25 kts from the SE, lots of sun, a lunar eclipse on Friday morning and a “tide of the century” on Saturday (so bad that you had to time launching/ retrieving the J/80s)! Like the previous weekend, even more of the same disciplined approach to their training that should pay off big for the top French teams. Thanks for the contribution from Arnaud Walter. For more French J/80 Class sailing information
|
