Multi...hulls! Multi...races!
by Spindrift racing 3 Jul 2018 14:00 BST
Spindrift racing © Chris Schmid / Spindrift racing
Versatility is a key word at Spindrift racing, and in less than a month, the black and gold team will have been competing on three different multihulls, in three very different arenas.
Fleet racing on Lake Geneva on the catamaran Ladycat powered by Spindrift racing, transatlantic offshore sailing with the maxi trimaran Spindrift 2 between La Trinité-sur-Mer and Newport and, tomorrow, Yann Guichard and his crew will be back on board their M32 in Märstrand, Sweden for the first World Match Racing Tour duel. As the only French team entered in this international circuit, Guichard will be seeking to make his mark on his third return to the event that runs from July 4 to 8, and achieve a top spot on the podium.
A warm-up for Spindrift 2
After several months in the boat yard in Brittany, the crew of the maxi trimaran was able to get back into a racing rhythm during their seven day sail across the Atlantic. For Yann Guichard, it was a successful exercise as " during 3,000 nautical miles we had the sailing conditions we wanted. Conditions ideal for training and getting the crew back into offshore sailing mode. The first 48 hours were very useful, with more than 30 knots of wind, and that allowed us to push the boat a little and we achieved more than 800 miles in 24 hours, confirming the potential of Spindrift 2. "
With the maxi trimaran moored in the famous port of Newport in Rhode Island, it is now another challenge that awaits the team in Märstrand at the opening round of the World Match Racing Tour.
First match in Märstrand
Match racing, the discipline that Yann Guichard first competed in in 2016, continues to be a speciality that is much enjoyed is by the skipper and his team. "In these duels you race on equal terms, and have to face your strengths and your weaknesses, and it's up to you to use these to win the match. You have to know when and how to be violent and aggressive, which is clearly not a feature of my character on land! The racing forces me to get out of my comfort zone and I have to admit that." Yann Guichard comments. Competing in these different disciplines also allows the Spindrift racing sailors to acquire new skills, to always question and test themselves, while continuing to work on teamwork and dynamics. Alongside this is the fact that the WMRT, as an international reference circuit, allows the team the opportunity to discover new nautical cultures as well as race against some of the world's best sailors in this discipline. Unlike last year, only 12 teams will compete in the series of duels, which in turn will make the WMRT racing more intense and raise again the level of competition. The crew, led by Yann Guichard, will have to quickly hone their competitive skills. Spindrift racing will be skippered by Guichard and includes long standing team members Christophe Espagnon (mainsail) and François Morvan (trimmer) and, for the first time, Matthieu Salomon (bow). "Christophe, François and Matthieu are all very familiar with multihulls and know how to move the M32 fast and well. Excellent teamwork is the key factor required to match race, as you have to be able to juggle, yet control, all the different phases of stop and acceleration. Tomorrow will be a first day of racing and everyone will have to settle into their roles and work together. But we have three events to build on, and our main goal remains the world championship title in China in the autumn."
M32 crew:
Yann Guichard (skipper)
Christophe Espagnon (mainsail)
François Morvan (trimmer)
Matthieu Salomon (bow)