Light wind and plenty of tactics for the start of the CIC Normandy Channel Race

The Class40 IBSA, with her skipper Alberto Bona and co-skipper Alberto Riva, has officially set sail for the CIC Normandy Channel Race, a regatta much loved by oceanic sailors with start and arrival in Caen (Normandy, France).

The regatta – whose warning signal was given at 1:10 pm on September 15 – is the last challenge of the season for Alberto Bona, who is ready to tackle over 1,000 miles of route between France, England and Ireland.

The start of the race was marked by unusual weather conditions for the English Channel, with very light winds coming from the West which made the first few miles particularly slow and challenging, with an upwind disengagement which immediately put the skippers’ endurance and their tactical ability to the test.

On board the Class40 IBSA, Bona and Riva, for the first time together, crossed the starting line shortly after 1:10 pm, ready to face the challenges of a regatta full of technical difficulties. Indeed, the route includes passage between strategic and historic navigation points, such as the Solent Canal and the legendary Irish lighthouses of Tuskar Rock and Fastnet. There will be no shortage of dangers: currents, tides and variable winds will test the teams, who will have to find the right balance between speed and tactics.

The slow start did not prevent the Italian crew from gaining ground: after completing the first sail change, the Class40 IBSA was in tenth position. With the wind strengthening slightly, Bona and Riva managed to move up the rankings in the first hours of the race, reaching sixth position, just two miles behind the fleet leader, Guillaume Pirouelle’s Sogestan Seafrigo.

In the afternoon, the skippers left the French coast to head towards the Isle of Wight, crossing the Channel during the night. The fleet then tackled the Solent at first light, in light wind conditions, a further challenge in an area notoriously complex for its strong currents.

The race course involves the arrival at Land’s End by Tuesday, and then heading towards Tuskar Rock. The arrival at the legendary Fastnet lighthouse is expected on Wednesday, while the crossing of the finish line by the leaders is anticipated around the fifth day of navigation.