Note in your diaries that a new edition of the Défi Atlantique reserved for crewed Class40 boats will be offered by Grand Pavois Organization with the support of the Class40 departing from Guadeloupe, at the beginning of April 2023, bound for La Rochelle (France) , via a stopover in Horta (Azores – Portugal). This Atlantic return race officially registered on the Class40 calendar will allow competitors in the Route du Rhum – Destination Guadeloupe 2022 to return to the race, with a minimum of two crew members on board.
In the important timing to note, the Class40s registered in the Atlantic Challenge will start on Saturday 1 April. A stopover is planned at Horta in the Azores in order to optimize the weather conditions of arrival on the Atlantic coast and will allow skippers to change crew member(s) if they so wish (note that it will be proposed and possible to take a journalist on board as a crew member to do the second stage in order to bring a last stage to life in the race and live). The scheduled arrival date in La Rochelle will be between Friday 21 and Sunday 23 April. A specific reception system will be set up in the Bassin des Tralutiers, as during the last edition of 2019 organized by Grand Pavois Organisation.
Halvard Mabire, president of the Class40: “Défi Atlantique, second edition. The Class40 is delighted with the announcement of the second edition of the Atlantic Challenge. This event, reserved for Class40s only, demonstrated its relevance during its first edition in 2019 and is now a regular part of the Class40 programme. Indeed, what better way to return to Europe for the Class40s after the Route du Rhum?
Returns by sea are becoming more and more necessary. On the one hand, Class40s are ocean-going boats made for sailing, and on the other hand, cargo returns are becoming more and more expensive and complex, and also less and less compatible with a certain racing ethic. offshore, which wants to be as virtuous as possible from an environmental point of view. So a race back from the West Indies represents a wonderful opportunity to transform what could only be a simple individual delivery trip into a thrilling event, capable of attracting a good part of the Route du Rhum fleet, as well as certain boats based in the West Atlantic and eager to come and do the European season 2023.
The start of the Atlantic Challenge at the end of March allows you to take advantage of the Caribbean waters after the Route du Rhum and thus to participate in certain events of the Caribbean season. The arrival in La Rochelle, around mid-April, anticipates the races of the Class40 2023 program: Normandy Channel Race, Les Sables Horta, Fastnet, Transat Jacques Vabre...
Also, the course of the Atlantic Challenge, with a stopover in the Azores, in Horta, offers the opportunity to the crew to discover or find with pleasure a place appreciated by all the sailors, but also authorizes crew changes and possibly a better adaptation of the race chronology according to weather conditions. Fair winds to the Défi Atlantique, soon to be a "classic"…”
Photos : P. Garenne / O. Blanchet - GPO