Ruyant and Rogues take prologue

A report from the warm-up event prior to the Mini's Les Sables-Azores-Les Sables race this weekend

The sun, wind and rough seas provided spectacular racing for the prologue of the Mini's Les Sables-Azores-Les Sables. The race was won by Thomas Ruyant's Faber France in the Protos class and Sebastian Rogues' Solent in the Series.

The start of the race off the famous Vendee Globe port was delayed due to difficulties getting the 49s Minis out of the harbour (no138 remained in port to resolve a small technical problem). But at 12:50 local time, the Race Committee fired the start gun in a southerly wind of 15-18 knots, requiring the boats to put in one or two reefs.

Quickly, a group of four Minis broke away - Thomas Ruyant on the 2007 Finot-Conq Faber France took command, followed by Damien Guillou on the Manuard Tip Top Series boat Demi Cle, Solent, the Pogo 2 Series boat of Sébastien Rogues and Arnaud Vasseur's 1999 generation Rogers Proto Nat'che.

On the return leg back towards the Les Sables d'Olonne beach, under spinnaker the breeze was up to 20 knots in the gusts. Very fast upwind, Ruyant maintained his lead to the finish line at the entrance to the port of Sables d'Olonnewhile in the series class Sebastien Rogues finished far ahead of second placed Fabien Sellier on Yemaya.

Results - Protos
1-Thomas Ruyant (Faber France)
2-Sébastien Picault (Kickers)
3-Stéphane Le Diraison (Cultisol-Institut Curie)
4-Damien Guillou (Demi-Clé)
5-Arnaud Vasseur (Nat’Che)
6-Henry-Paul Schipman (Maisons de l’avenir-Urbatys)
7-Etienne Bertrand (Senor Blue)
8-Jaime Mumbru (Ulysses 65)
9-Pierre Brasseur (Région Nord Pas de Calais-Ripolin)
10-Pierre Rolland (D2-Marée Haute)

Results - Series
1-Sébastien Rogues (Solent)
2-Fabien Sellier (Yemaya)
3-Charlie Dalin (Antalis)
4-Francisco Lobato (Looking for…)
5-Pierre-Yves Lautrou (Altaïde Moovement)
6-Brice Aqué (Ville de Gardanne-CNTL)
7-Jérôme Lecuna (I feel good)
8-Bertrand Delesne (Dan Foss Le Gall)
9-Antoine Debled (Région Job)
10-François Champion (Pogomen)
15- Oliver Bond (Base Camp)