Author of a good start at the foot of the Rosmeur port jetty, Loïck Peyron and his men rapidly took control of the fleet of Imoca monohulls. The lead acquired during the very first stretch of the course was to remain undefeated throughout the coastal course. At around 1700 hours, Gitana Eighty crossed the lined followed by Safran and then Foncia.
“Once again this course was an opportunity to put Gitana Eighty to the test in some varied wind configurations: upwind, reaching… The wind progressively filled in throughout the day and we had up to 18 knots. At the end, we were slightly over-canvassed but that enabled us to see how our new mast performed under a bit of pressure. It was a great warm-up. The crew was essentially comprised of members of the Gitana Team, which was particularly important given that this season will be predominantly 'single-handed' so there won't be many opportunities to sail together" reasoned the skipper of Gitana Eighty.     

Tomorrow windy conditions are forecast in Douarnenez Bay.

The crew of Gitana Eighty: Loïck Peyron (skipper), Jean-Baptiste Levaillant, Cyril Dardashti, Antoine Mermod, William Fabulet and Didier Le Vourch'

Results of the speed runs
The monohull Safran obtained the best time in the runs by just a few seconds… 11 minutes and 46 seconds for Marc Guillemot and his crew, whilst Loïck Peyron and his men completed an equivalent sprint in a time of 11 minutes and 58 seconds: “The 12 seconds separating Gitana Eighty from Safran hinged on the start. In the end, we covered the compulsory 3 miles at an average of 15.04 knots. A fine average given that the wind sadly proved to be rather shy. Besides the performance, the day was interesting on a technical level as it enabled us to continue with adjustments to our new mast, as well as honing the preparation of Gitana Eighty just a few days from the start of The Transat" declared Loïck Peyron on Saturday evening on his return to the port of Rosmeur.