Tensions rise over the Martinique Cata Raid

This sixth and penultimate day promises to be decisive. After 6 legs contested in sustained conditions, the bodies are beginning to feel the strain and the riders' faces are a little drawn. Once again, we were expecting commitment on the water and nobody was disappointed. Clear attacks, multiple incidents of damage, a look back at a day which may well prove decisive in the Martinique Cata Raid...

In the rankings, the stakes are high on the eve of the final bend and the strategies are already taking shape. Leaders in the provisional general ranking Ad Noordzij and Bastiaan Tentij (HorseRidingSpain), who are determined to hold on to their advantage, have opted to play it safe: "We're going to try and stay in the leading pack, lying in ambush and not taking any risks. As we have good downwind speed, we'll try to find an opening on this tack to attack and try to win."

Matthieu Marfaing and James Melvin (Cirrus - MMSailing) have the opposite tactic: at the foot of the podium this morning, the Franco-American crew is determined to attack: "For us, the strategy today is maximum attack. We procrastinated a bit too much yesterday and made a few mistakes. Today, we're not calculating any more, we're going to try to enjoy ourselves and attack as hard as we can. The pressure is more on the crews up front. We've shown that we have the speed to be out in front and to play with the others, so it's not a bad thing to be free!"

As for the weather, the conditions haven't changed: the steady trade winds and the big swell outside Robert's Bay are forcing the race committee to propose a constructed course. On the programme for this Friday, then, are two races of two laps each.

The tone was set from the start of the first race, with the crews clearly changing gear: maximum commitment, jostling and a lot of friction on the line. The battle was fierce on all sides, and the slightest gap was exploited. A squall brought the fleet together at the rear. With ten boats within a minute of each other, the spectacle in front of the yacht club where the finish was judged was grandiose. Gurvan Bontemps and Fred Moreau (French Caribbean - Stickerman) were just one second ahead of Nicolas Touchot and Pierre-Yves Durand (Rhythm), with the Christopher Green/Jean Boulogne duo in third place.

The second race was just as exciting to follow and just as committed. Dutch riders Ad Noordzij - Bastiaan Tentij (HorseRidingSpain) (8th on the first lap, their worst result since the start of the competition) applied their plan to the letter in this heat, taking advantage of an opportunity to seize the lead and never relinquishing it. Manu and Vincent Boulogne (Cirrus 901) were the second to cross the line, with Matthieu Marfaing and James Melvin (Cirrus - MMSailing) in their wake.

That was the end of the sixth day of competition in the Martinique Cata Raid. The equipment suffered once again. Two main epidemics hit the Martinique Cata Raid today: a first epidemic of broken daggerboards (no fewer than 5 today) followed by a small epidemic of jibs!

The final results of the day and the provisional overall ranking are awaiting the jury's deliberations.

They said:

Nicolas Gillet/ Nicolas Poix (Socoveam - Anmizi)

This morning, we all had a knife between our teeth. In the first race, we did five; a result that was far-fetched. We were doing well, I think we're getting two up there, the downwind conditions are always quite problematic for us, but we're doing better today, we've kept the pace better.

In the second race, we got off to a great start at the end of the line, were first to the windward mark with a bit of a lead and then the spinnaker halyard exploded! We eased off the boat, put the halyard back on and set off again to come back with a full ball. I think we've lost the podium, but we shouldn't be too far off it. We have no regrets, we finished strong. Behind, but strong! And there are still heats tomorrow!

Gurvan Bontemps / Fred Moreau (French Caribbean - Stickerman)

"The day was windier than expected. We got off to an average start before a nice upwind leg. At the end of the second upwind leg, a big squall came along and messed things up a bit, especially killing the wind for the frontrunners! That was the start of another leg with everyone coming back from behind and some light airs. At the end of the course, we didn't want to take too many risks with the rocks. Nicolas Touchot and Pierre-Yves Durand were a little more opportunistic but we came back at the last moment to overtake them on the line.
On the second race, the wind came in hard and we got off to an average start, but we were soon in the right pack. However, at the end of the first downwind leg, we broke the spinnaker tack. We put it away and set off again, wondering how we were going to repair it. Immediately after the upwind leg, we slipped along under single mainsail in Hobie 16 mode before getting into the cape. I went down to the water, went to the bow, put in a rope, pulled the tack on the front of the spinnaker pole, locked it with two half keys, came back up a bit asphyxiated after a big back-pedalling session, a bit of apnoea and, to relax, I hoisted the spinnaker! In the manoeuvre, we lost 4 places, we finished 7 but it would have been worse if we hadn't repaired.
Potentially, we know we're in with a chance of winning tomorrow, so we're going to have to sail well and stop breaking things on board. It's a bit like a Bricoflex regatta! I've rarely done so much DIY on the boat.

Fredo was solid and guided us well in the first run to finish downwind. We were solid because we had a big lead and we didn't suffer when the others came back, we took the initiative again!

Damien Dayot and Thomas Guorgues - La bestiole

We've had wind every day and you have to admit that the boat is a bit physical. But this morning we felt pretty good, the boat was ready and the sailors were calm. We had a good laugh on the first leg, we had fun, with the added bonus of a little caper: Damien went under the boat.

In the second race, we were doing pretty well before a spinnaker bridle broke just before the finish, we were passed by two boats and above all we had to do some DIY this evening, which we would have been happy to do without. What's really satisfying is that we're in the front pack, we're knitting with the good guys and they're going really, really fast!"