The Normandy Channel Race has started: the Class40 IBSA immediately in the leading group

After a month of “makeup” in the shipyard, the Class40 IBSA – with Alberto Bona and Pablo Santurde del Arco on board – entered into the Normandy Channel Race, the third regatta of the season and the first European one of the 2023 programme. Defined by co-skipper Pablo Santurde as the most difficult competition of the year, the Normandy Channel Race takes sailors over a thousand mile course between the English Channel and the Celtic Sea, where they have to face not only 31 other very fierce Class40s, but also difficult-to-interpret currents and high pressure areas.

The notice of departure of the 14^th edition of the Race was given at 3:15 pm on Sunday, June 4, from the port of Ouistreham, just over 15 km from Caen (Brittany, France): Alberto and Pablo set sail from the centreline of the first group, braving the strong north-easterly wind and the rough seas, immediately testing the efficiency of the new mainsail in close sailing. In the first hour of the race, they managed to stay in the leading group, in sixth position: then – bearing decisively up towards the French coast, where they gained speed while free-reaching – they managed to gain the first position, after an hour and a half from the start, while sailing at a speed of 21 knots.

The regatta proved to be interesting and balanced from the outset: as is now expected in the Class40, the first ten are all together in less than a mile, showing how these (almost) thousand miles of regatta will be a test at very close distances. The first of the many decisive choices of this trial will arrive shortly, and will concern the point for crossing the English Channel, with the bow towards the Isle of Wight (UK) and its deadly currents. Indeed, the sailors will approach the island from the Bembridge side, in order to slip into the Solent, a sort of “dead end” for those who cannot handle the currents well, with steady winds from the north-east, but much less intense as the boats skirt the English coast until exiting the Solent.

The arrival of the 2023 Normandy Channel Race is scheduled from Friday, June 9, with the award ceremony taking place on Sunday, June 11, at 12:00 pm. The regatta can be followed in real time here: https://normandy-race.com/en/follow-the-race/