Défi Azimut Lorient Agglomération 2024 - Sam Goodchild, born to run

by Défi Azimut 12 Sep 15:29 PDT

Défi Azimut Lorient Agglomération 2024 © Défi Azimut

Following an epic cavalcade in the Courreaux de Groix off Lorient, ultimately it was VULNERABLE - Sam Goodchild, which took the crown in the grand finale by posting the fastest Run of this Défi Azimut - Lorient Agglomération 2024 yesterday.

In what proved to be a blisteringly quick session, despite some fairly fluky conditions, the skippers had to combine opportunism and high-performance. We reveal all on this breathtaking wednesday afternoon of action!

Défi Azimut Lorient Agglomération 2024 - photo © Défi Azimut

"The speed runs are great fun, even though we always find that it's over far too quickly!" enthused Romain Attanasio (Fortinet - Best Western), before docking out this morning, happy to be part of pool B with the wind set to "pick up a notch over the course of the afternoon". And so it panned out, after the first runs from pool A, which saw some especially stellar performances from Charal (Jérémie Beyou), VULNERABLE - Sam Goodchild and Team Guyot Environnement Water Family (Benjamin Dutreux), the wind filling in and the pace accelerating on the 1.2-mile leg set beam onto the wind between the Pointe du Talud and Port Lay (Ile de Groix)...

In these ideal, medium conditions, the deficits in speed were substantial, the daggerboard boats only about half as quick. Having to content themselves with the classic Archimedean speeds as they made for the line, they were able to reap the benefits of the fabulous spectacle out on the racetrack, a fact highlighted by the very fair-play Manu Cousin (Coup de Pouce), who was thrilled to be able to "share the showdown of foilers powered up at Mach 1000 with (his) two guests". He was also thrilled to have posted the joint best time among the daggerboard boats alongside Lazare. Shortly before 15:00 hours local time, it was Charlie Dalin on Macif Santé Prévoyance who won pool A after his second run, which saw him post a peak speed in excess of 23 knots.

Défi Azimut Lorient Agglomération 2024 - photo © Défi Azimut

Rock' n Run

Some beautiful sunny spells in the early afternoon gradually gave way to grey skies and with 17 to 20 knots of breeze on choppy seas, the tempo increased considerably out on the racetrack, which was stirred up by a succession of very excited crews. Nicely powered up, Initiatives Cœur (Samantha Davies) excelled at this little game to post the best time thanks to her excellent stability in flight mode. Adopting another style, MACSF (Isabelle Joschke) reared up very high over the water and, defying the weight of her seventeen years, she was very much in a position to share the spotlight with the younger top performers. However, to really make the cut yesterday it was important to combine opportunism with making the most of the breeze because at around 16:00 hours, the sun once again pierced through the clouds and the wind eased right off, cooling everyone's frenetic pace. Race results: Initiatives Cœur (Sam Davies), VULNERABLE - Thomas Ruyant, MACSF (Isabelle Joschke) tied with Paprec Arkéa (Yoann Richomme), qualified for the grand finale.

Défi Azimut Lorient Agglomération 2024 - photo © Défi Azimut

A clear winner

With the wind at 310 degrees, forcing the Race Committee to set a new course, the eight finalists had a chance for a breather before approaching the starting line, which reopened at 16:40 hours. After an aborted attempt at the record by Charal, VULNERABLE - Sam Goodchild's opening run in a slight squall won the day, proving that you can never take anything for granted in this IMOCA class. Yesterday's verdict also proved that this 2019 generation of Verdier design, with her very refined lines, remains fantastic on flat seas! Moreover, it is the first time since 2018 that a latest generation boat has not won the Runs Azimut competition!

Trailing by the slimmest of margins, Macif Santé Prévoyance and Charal complete the podium.