Registration, boat transport, hull cleaning, equipment checks, managing the wardrobe… The logistics leading up to the start of a regatta like this are, in a way, already part of the race. Thanks to the coordination and participation of the entire crew, there was even time to grab a coffee at La Nautique before heading to the starting line. Laurie, Tobias, Antoine, Ozan, and Pierre ate their lunch while making their way to the line. They started in the third group on the wrong side of the line… After a few laborious tacks at the back of the pack, the crew finally found some fresh wind and a tailwind as they anticipated crossing the Petit Lac, thus rejoining the front of the fleet and regaining some composure. Cloud cover over the Jura and wind readings encouraged the crew to bet on the Joran’s arrival, with the added bonus of having time to enjoy the view of Nyon. On the return leg toward Geneva, taking the direct route to the French coast allowed us to gain a few places on the Swiss-side group before losing ground again toward the end of the small lake. We finished 17th out of 55 Surprises and 47th out of 169 on corrected time. We hope the crew will be able to make the most of this warm-up for the BOM!

We had all prepared ourselves to spend the night on the LUC Voile 2 boat when the 58th edition of the Geneva-Rolle-Geneva race started at 1:00 p.m. After a blistering start at the end of the first starting line, we headed toward the French shore. Part of the fleet, still in Swiss waters, pushed us back toward the middle of the lake and then around to the Swiss shore. The return to the middle of the lake before the mark allowed us to hoist a nice spinnaker, reaching a top speed of 8.5 kts. After rounding the mark, we headed back upwind along the French shore. Thanks to Yann’s excellent tactics on the upwind legs, Shardul, Camille, Clara, and Patrick were able to execute some great maneuvers that allowed us to climb back up the rankings and finish 6th out of 55 in the Surprise class and 35th out of 169 on corrected time as we crossed the finish line just after sunset. In short, a GRG that offered plenty of wind and a crew satisfied with the result—all in a superb atmosphere!