Life in the Med is no cruise for Skandia...

Figaro SKANDIA, skipper Sam Davies, stood in 8th place overall out of 22 competitors in the Generali Solo before going into the third offshore race last Thursday. But today having finished two further offshore races in 17th and 20th and one podium result in the inshore race of Saturday in which SKANDIA finished a morale-boosting 3rd, Davies’ overall position has dropped to 13th. Davies has had a mixed bag of results in the nine races with the scores reflecting the fickle conditions that can turn racing in the Mediterranean into a lottery. There now remains one offshore leg and a sequence of inshore races - Davies’ target is to race her way back inside the top 10 overall by the end of this two-week Generali Solo event.

Pre-race favourites, Yann Elies (winner of the Generali Solo 2004) and Eric Drouglazet (winner of Trophée BPE 2005), have has also had their run of bad luck caused by the unpredictable weather, leaving Elies in 9th overall and Drouglazet in 7th. At the finish of the third offshore leg on Thursday, Davies, Elies and Drouglazet were at the back of the fleet – an unfamiliar position for these consistently high-performing Figarists. “There must have been a bit of bad luck involved because it is not normal to see those guys behind. They are two of the best Figaro sailors in this race so I’m not too disheartened about my result. I actually thought I was the last boat because I couldn’t see any boats behind me when I finished so I was surprised to have even come 17th!”

On Saturday, in the coastal race off Hyères, after rounding the first marker buoy in 5th, Sam maintained her position in the top five and moved up two places in the finishing stages to finish on the podium in 3rd behind race winner Jeremie Beyou (Delta Dore) and Laurent Pellecuer (Cliptol Sport) in 2nd.

At the halfway stage after eight races (two races so far have been abandoned due of lack of wind), Sam was in 9th overall just one point behind Yann Elies in 8th and four points ahead of Eric Drouglazet in 10th.

But the result of today’s fourth offshore race has perhaps been the harshest of all for Davies, as after holding fifth place for the majority of the 80-mile race, SKANDIA finished in 20th place after the leading pack were parked up in a windless hole in the final stages of the race, allowing the following boats the opportunity to neatly sail around the windless trap.

“The beginning of race went really well - I had a good start and I was up with the leaders. For the majority of the race I was in fifth position and we were all really close. Then the conditions changed really quickly and the race turned in to a lottery. The wind completely stopped and there were thunder storms which were not forecasted. In the very early hours of this morning, I came to a complete standstill along with three other boats who were with me in the top five group (Groupe Bel, Delta Dore and Thales). Christopher Pratt (Passeport FFVoile) managed to get away and went on to win the race but the rest of us were parked. All the boats behind saw us at a standstill and sailed around us. It is frustrating and a bit demoralising but it was a typical Mediterranean race - fickle conditions where luck plays a major part."

The 22 competitors now have two rest days before their next race, the fifth and final offshore leg from Beaulieu sur Mer to Porquerolles. The 70nm course is due to start at 0800BST on Wednesday. This will be followed by three days of inshore racing off Porquerolles. “To be honest, I have taken a few risks in some of the races but this last offshore there was no risk just bad luck! I want to get back inside the top 10, learn what I can from the risks I have taken and go into the Solitaire du Figaro with a good game plan that will keep me in touch with the good guys in this main event of our Figaro season.”

OVERALL RANKINGS 20/06/05: (after 9 races)
(Boat name / skipper / points)

1. CERCLE VERT / MORVAN Gildas / 63pts
2. THALES / TABARLY Erwan / 73pts
3. DELTA DORE / BEYOU Jéremie / 80pts
4. ESPOIR CREDIT AGRICOLE / KRAUSS Oliver / 94pts
5. GROUPE BEL / DE PAVANT Kito / 107pts
6. BANQUE POPULAIRE / GREGOIRE Jeanne / 110pts
7. MALONGO / DROUGLAZET Eric / 113pts
8. NANNI DIESEL / D'ALI Pietro 119pts
9. GROUPE GENERALI ASSURANCES / ELIES Yann 122pts
10. CLIPTOL SPORT / PELLECUER Laurent / 125pts
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13. SKANDIA / DAVIES Samantha / 141pts

For full results, go to www.generalisolo.com/Front/generique/page.php?P=static/classements

RACE 7 OFFSHORE LEG 3: GRUISSAN-HYERES (16/06/05)
1. THALES / TABARLY Erwan
2. MARSEILLE ENTREPRISES / MOUREN Jean-Paul
3. BROSSARD / DUTHIL Frédéric
4. CERCLE VERT / MORVAN Gildas
5. BANQUE POPULAIRE / GREGOIRE Jeanne
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17. SKANDIA / DAVIES Samantha

RACE 8 INSHORE: COASTAL, HYERES (18/06/05)
1. DELTA DORE / BEYOU Jéremie
2. CLIPTOL SPORT / PELLECUER Laurent
3. SKANDIA / DAVIES Samantha
4. SCUTUM / VENIARD Gérald
5. MALONGO / DROUGLAZET Eric

RACE 9 OFFSHORE LEG 4: HYERES-BEAULIEU SUR MER (19/06/05)
1. PASSEPORT FFVOILE : j'apprends à respecter... / PRATT Christopher
2. ESPOIR CREDIT AGRICOLE / KRAUSS Oliver
3. TOTAL / EMIG Marc
4. MALONGO / DROUGLAZET Eric
5. MARSEILLE ENTREPRISES / MOUREN Jean-Paul
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20. SKANDIA / DAVIES Samantha

REMAINING RACE SCHEDULE:
Wednesday, 22 June: Offshore leg 5, Beaulieu sur Mer - Porquerolles (70nm)
Thursday, 23 June: Inshore race 7/8, Porquerolles
Friday, 24 June: Inshore race 9/10, Porquerolles
Saturday, 25 June: Inshore race 11/12, Porquerolles

Official race website: www.generalisolo.com (French only)