2015 Transat Solitaire: Where Ocean Masters are Made

Mini-Transatlantic Vapillon Photography - Mini Transat Îles de Guadeloupe

If you ever asked yourself where do World Class Skippers gain the experience to take on extreme World Ocean Regattas which circumnavigate the world like the IMOCA or Volvo Ocean, Mini-Trans says they have your answer. The Mini Transat Îles de Guadeloupe assures that is their Regatta where Ocean Masters are formed, molded, templated and ultimately made. 

From France to Spain Canary Islands to all the way across the Atlantic Ocean riding West Trade Winds to the Caribbean sailors take on the Min-Transatl and do this solitaire...that is right they sail alone. Mini-Trans athletes have no direct contact with people on Earth. For company they have the stars, their navigation strategies, the winds, and the ocean and its life. Their only communication devices are radio based with a reach of just 20 kilometers. The regatta is a test for the mind, the spirit and the body.  

But who would take on such an extreme sport event? Believe it or not the 2015 Mini-Trans Entry closed with 84 Athletes ready to rock the ocean from all around the world. 

As Start Day -September 19 approaches the countdown is on…On July 31 Mini-Transat reported... “Less than 50 days to the Start…”.

“It is by doing the Mini Transat that I understood that my vocation was well and truly to become a professional skipper. Once you have had a taste of these sensations, it is impossible to back-pedal,” Charlie Dalin, French Champion of Offshore Sailing in 2012 stated. 

This year the race will return to its starting line origin, Brittany France. The race starts at the heart of the Sea of Earth's End, Finisterra -gateway from port of Douarnenez. 

“After departing from Douarnenez, the sailors will require outstanding seamanship skills to negotiate the route across the Bay of Biscay and down past the tip of Spain, before heading west for a stopover at Lanzarote, one of the Canary Island archipelago’s most pristine islands.  From there they will pick up the trade winds, with the opportunity for a high speed sleigh ride across the Atlantic to show off the exceptional planning qualities of their designs, before the fleet arrives, all colors blazing, at the finish line in Pointe à Pitre, the capital of Guadeloupe,” the sailing organization dares on.

Skipper Mar reported on August 1st that the 2015 Mini-Transat Edition competition this year will be “specially” competitive with a fleet which "has been training hard for the past two years". 

“This is when the dream becomes reality, when there is no turning back. Once the inscription is confirmed and paid for solitaire sailors become aware of the commitment they have signed,” the media prophesied. 

Most sailors are now in search of Sponsors to refund the costs of the race -some are turning to humanitarian causes to mobilize resources. “Everything goes when it comes to funding and debt avoiding,” Skipper Mar reported. 

The most interesting points of the race are not the economic issues. This is “a sailing race that is solo sailed and on which there is no contact with the outside world,” organizers warn. Additionally the mini-sail boats are the smallest offshore sailing boats -their living surface is an area of 2 square meters. The wide Atlantic, agitated seas, hard winds and solitary conditions of the race would drive a normal person insane, sailors are aware of the psychological challenges involved. Mini Transat Iles de Guadeloupe assures that safety of sailors is priority and secured.

“On board a Mini, the only link the skippers have with the outside world are the VHF radio. The VHF allows them to communicate with other boats within a restricted perimeter -which, at approximately 20 km, is nothing in comparison to the vastness of the Atlantic ocean, as well as a SSB radio set which will allows them, once a day, to access the weather forecast and the rankings, emitted by the race direction,” Mini-Transat stated.

“To guarantee the safety of the 84 sailors there will be seven support boats among the fleet. These boats act as an intermediary between the solo sailors and the land. The sailors will benefit from the strong support of the PSP Cormoran  of the Navy,” the organization ends it.  

There have been more than 1,200 solo skippers to have passed through this initiation stage, which is an unforgettable experience. “Someone who has never experienced receiving a weather forecast bulletin in extreme shaking and wet conditions, with the sounds of the waves hitting the hull, the flapping sails and pulleys, can not imagine the difficulty of  reading a bulletin on board a Mini,” organizers sympathized.

Mini-Trans is a World Class Race not only known for making Ocean Sailing Legends but has contributed to groundbreaking professional sail-boat designs worldwide. Several innovations which are of common use today were once first tested in the Mini-Trans such as twin daggerboards, planing hulls, twin rudders, asymmetric spinnakers and carbon masts. 

“Movable ballast, considered mandatory today, was first used in the second Mini Transat. The winner American Express used this, causing great debate at the time, as many felt it was not in line with the race ethos,” organizers explained. This year the innovation most talked about will be the use of lateral foils. 

No innovation can provide response to the main challenge of the race...sailing in solitare across the vast Atlantic Ocean. A peaceful some say, nerve wracking others say experience. 

“You can be almost certain that during three, sometimes even four or five days, you will be completely cut off from the world especially when the fleet will spread across the Atlantic. Everyone says it: it is a real psychological stage that sailors have to overcome to earn their stripes. Many admit: there was definitely more than one skipper who had a breakdown before regaining their spirits…” Mini-Trans adds.  

“The Mini race is without any doubt the most authentic offshore race. I would strongly recommend this experience to every sailor, something you need to do at least once in your life. The lack of communications is what makes this race authentic...it is pretty intense. You need to be strong for this and stay focused and prepared," Alex Pella, 1st on the Route du Rhum Class 40  and 3 time-sailor of the Mini-Transat 2003, 2005 and 2007 ends it.