Offshore racing

Route du Rhum 2022 - Behind The Scenes

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Article published on 02/11/2022

By Emmanuel van Deth

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published inn°SP19dec. / jan.

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Thanks to Suzuki, which equips fifty Highffield semi-rigid boats responsible for securing the body of water, we were able to welcome the Ultims and the Ocean Fifty before their passage through the lock to reach the basins. This year, the organizers orchestrated this parade to the delight of the public.

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The Route du Rhum is also an incredible spectacle on land, a unique atmosphere. The magic of Saint-Malo operates. The village, which was open for 7 days in 2014, lasted 12 days in 2018 and won another day this year for the 12th edition of the event. 1.3 million visitors were counted on the quays 4 years ago – when will the two million be reached?

The Route du Rhum is a solo race of around 3,500 nautical miles which connects Saint-Malo to Guadeloupe – the port of arrival is Pointe-à-Pitre. The first edition took place in 1978; it was won by Mike Birch – the Canadian sailor has just pass away. This 1978 edition recorded the superiority of multihulls over monohulls; since then, every four years, we have to deal with separate classes. There are two for monohulls: IMOCA and Classe40. There are two for multihulls: Ultim and Ocean Fifty. A fifth category brings together legendary sailboats and/or skippers... This is the Rhum Class.

The record for the event is held by Francis Joyon during the 2018 edition in 7 d 14 h 21 min 47 s.

Francis Le Goff is Race Director. He is responsible for the 138 participants in this 2022 edition – a record! We were able to meet him.

Multihulls World has of course visited its two favorites, Thomas Lurton and Brieuc Maisonneuve.

Good luck to all !

Read our full article "Route du Rhum - A multihull race open to everyone (or almost) and to sailing legends?"

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