New solo event

Petit Bateau fills hole in 2004 singlehanded calendar now the Transat is only for 'big boats'

Petit Bateau 2004 is a new singlehanded yacht race for monohulls and multihulls. The event is aimed specifically at sailors who want to rise to the challenge of longer solo offshore racing but find themselves with neither the time nor the budget for a Mini Transat, Figaro or an Open 50/60 campaign.

The race has been designed to fit into a two week holiday period in order to suit amateur sailors who can take only limited time away from their full time jobs. One leg of the race is over 500 miles and will, it is hoped, count as a qualifying passage for any skippers planning to enter the 2005 Singlehanded Transatlantic Race for small boats, being organised by the Royal Western Yacht Club.

Course and Dates

Leg One
Falmouth – Kinsale, Ireland. Start Saturday 17 July, approximately 200 miles

Leg Two
Kinsale – Gijon, Spain. Start Wednesday 21 July, approximately 500 miles

Leg Three
Gijon – Camaret, France. Start Wednesday 28 July, approximately 300 miles

Finish, Camaret, with a prize giving Saturday 31 July.

Boats & Classes

The race is for boats, of any country, of between 30 and 45ft LOA, although smaller boats may be allowed to enter subject to approval by the race organisers. All boats, of whatever nationality, must comply with ORC Special Regulations Cat 1.

It is planned, depending on entry numbers, to run three open classes: 30-35ft, 35-40ft and 40-45ft.

There will also be IRC and MOCRA prizes for boats with valid certificates.

Those interested should contact Paul Peggs, by email here or see the Petit Bateau website here or telephone +44 (0) 7802-640700

Petit Bateau is the name given to a website forum group, launched by some competitors in the small boat classes of the 2000 RWYC Singlehanded Transatlantic Race as a way of keeping in touch with each other. Since then the forum has grown and now has around 35 regular members, numerous occasional visitors and now its own website dedicated to short-handed sailing.

Early in 2003 it was announced that the singlehanded Transatlantic Race, due to be held by the RWYC in 2004, would be run instead by Offshore Challenges as The Transat and open only to Open 60s and the 50 foot class. While RWYC have said that they will run a transatlantic race for smaller boats in 2005, this left a hole in the 2004 calendar for smaller boat skippers. Petit Bateau has therefore decided to design a new event for 2004 based upon a Figaro style of course and intended to count as a qualifier for the RWYC 2005 Singlehanded Transatlantic Race. Fundamental to the design of the race was the need to fit the whole event into a limited two week holiday period. The social, shore side was also deemed an important element countering sailing alone at sea and the event period chosen also allows the shifting of restart times if the weather requires - this will keep the fleet together both for time in the bar and at restarts.

Many skippers also have families to consider and they will be able to travel to the ports and enjoy the stopovers as well! Currently the stopovers planned are two days in Kinsale and three in Gijon. After each stopover there will be a mass restart for the whole fleet. The finish in Camaret will, for most competitors, avoid a long delivery home after the race. And for those with a little more time to spare it could be the starting point for a cruising holiday.

The Petit Bateau 2004 course takes the boats into open water as swiftly as possible and wherever practical will keep them away form busy shipping lanes. The event is for enthusiastic singlehanded sailorsand without the pressures of sponsoring ports making 'business' demands upon the competitors - the skippers come first in all considerations.

Petit Bateau works on a 'mutual' non-profit basis and the event is being organised by members on a voluntary basis keeping therunning costs to a minimum. However the third party insurance cover the race organiser is required to pay is not cheap and has to be covered by the race entry fee. This entry fee,which is not yet fixed as the final figure will be based upon entry numbers, will be approximately £500 plus an 'excess bond' which will be rebated if no claims are made on the insurance.

Entrants must be members of Petit Bateau and details on how to join are available on their website

Upon deciding to run the event, Petit Bateau had five confirmed entries and another five intending to enter but not at that stage confirmed. Currently confirmed are some familiar names in small boat singehanded racing:

Mary Falk – QII (one-off 35 footer)
Jerry Freeman – Alice’s Mirror (one-off 32 footer)
Mark Orr – (production Jeanneau)
Roger Mortimer – (production Beneteau)
Paul Peggs – Audacious (modified JOD 35)

Potential entrants are encouraged to register early as it may be necessary to limit the numbers of those taking part.

Petit Bateau 2004 is an exciting new race for those singlehanded enthusiasts who have limited time and funds. Petit Bateau hopes there are plenty of others, like them, looking for just such an event to enter. Perhaps some are would-be Vendee Globe competitors, keen to show what they can do, as well as others with less ambitious aims but the same enthusiasm for a new race such as this
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With the help of the ports and the clubs in them, the media and sailing enthusiasts everywhere, Petit Bateau hope to bring it all together for Petit Bateau 2004 - keeping a solo spirit alive at sailing’s roots.