Rum is an incredible sight. When we are on the water, we can dream of the best. Except that despite the disproportion of the event of 40 years, and no doubt because of it, we missed a little more madness, even a grain as in 2014 to dramatize the scenery and fuse the boats.
Always demanding, these journalists! Yes, it is true, the conditions were rather comfortable to make the photo: flat sea, wind bearing, beautiful light at the beginning. With however an impression of frustration. Because a starting line of 5 km, it is really very long at sea. One must not hope to be able to follow long the Ultims launched with 30 nodes, and then the other less rapid categories. Even the speedy blue trimaran of the Malouin Thibaud Vauchel let the giants slip.
A clean start therefore, in the sense that the game carpet was pristine on the thirty km that separates the tip of the Grouin Cap Fréhel. But the adrenaline was less noticeable with the scattering of accredited motorboats to follow (riders and press assistance teams, plus watercourse police), while passenger boats, north of the exclusive area of competitors, headed directly to the "doors", two buoys separated from 1,800 meters in front of Fréhel, with a grayish sky, and a slightly softening wind.
In short, it lacked a bit of panache and punch for the last pirouette before deploying the gennaker (compromise between a spinnaker and a sail before) to set the course for adventure (... with two shots of dogs expected from Tuesday). There was emotion, certainly, but not enough contact with the boaters, pushed back very far by a respectable concern for safety, showered by the announcement of a ruthless repression against the fraudsters.
Balance, a sense of self, of not quite enough, even detrop smooth all the same to experience 100% madness greeting the 1232 brave lonely. Fortunately, there were helicopters and some super-powered stars to bring back exceptional images. But the extreme size of the fleet, and its monumental differences in performance between the six categories, is no longer quite THE original Route du Rhum, but to Routes du Rhum trying to reconcile very different dreams.