He had wanted and pushed it so that the Ultimes would meet again before the course organized next week in Port la Forêt and the start of the Transat Jacques Vabre on November 7th. He did well. Armel Le Cléac'h won this Sunday morning the event reserved for the Ultimes with his teammate Kevin Escoffier. On board their maxi Banque Populaire XI, the two men completed a 400-mile loop at the start and finish in Lorient in 21 hours 7 minutes and 8 seconds and were 13 minutes ahead of the Thomas Coville-Thomas Rouxell duo ( Sodebo Ultim 3) and 1h02 the Yves Le Blévec-Anthony Marchand tandem (Team Actual). The trimaran SVR Lazartigue had given up on Saturday after a cylinder problem.
The fifth and last Ultimes volants at the start of the Transat Jacques Vabre, the Maxi Edmond de Rothschild of Franck Cammas and Charles Caudrelier, presented as the big favorite of the Transat Jacques Vabre, did not respond favorably to the invitation of Armel Le Cléac'h.
The former Vendée Globe winner can, with this first outing and this great fight along the Brittany coast with Coville, be satisfied with the speed of his new giant trimaran launched last April.
A good way to regain confidence in Ultim after seeing his lost, dislocated, during the last Route du rhum.
A nice corner of blue sky also for Kevin Escoffier, who had seen his PRB monohull sink during the last Vendée Globe ...