Those who did not want to be outside but always enjoy the atmosphere were at the Brasserie du Rhum this Sunday, November 4 to follow the departure of the boats. In front of a giant screen, pecking at cheese and oysters, the spectators savored the show.

It was the clever plan this Sunday, November 4, to follow the start of the 11th edition of the Route du Rhum! Those who did not want to bother with the car, those who feared the cold or rain, those who had a little too forced the day before found themselves at the Brasserie du Rhum to follow the start on a giant screen.

Morgan Hector, who holds with his brother Thibault this area of ​​restoration on the village, had this idea not to succumb to the blues of empty pontoons. "We were told that on Sunday it was creepy, that there was no one left and nothing was going on," he says. So he put as many screens as he could in the bistro and the brewery to allow the audience to watch the start on TV.

200 reservations at 12 pm

And he was right. By noon, he already had 200 reservations in the restaurant section. At 1 pm, the brewery was already full of people who like Chantal and Jean-Louis, septuagenarians, did not want to rub the crowd on the tip of the Grouin or Cap Fréhel. "It's difficult to access it, there's the crowd, it's jostling, we do not really see them, it's cold ... Really it's not worth it," said the couple from the Somme. So many reasons to come rather warm.

At the Brasserie, there were also plenty of people to watch the start on TV, eating a good meal. | Emilie HUNTING.

And those who chose to stay in the village did not regret it. Massed in front of the giant screen installed in the bistro part, the spectators did not regret their choice to take shelter. Laura, 30, was a bit obliged: "I had to board a boat but I had partying last night and I missed the start this morning." She is recovering with a good coffee.

A real HQ

Daniel and Marie-Paule, 60-year-old Malouins, have followed all the starts of the race since Cancale. But this year, it will be in front of a dozen oysters with two glasses of white. "This morning, we were on the Grand Bé and we saw the boats evolve in the bay of Saint-Malo, it was enough for us, there we see mostly people who see," they joke.

Even couples who did not know this good plan have landed here. "We came by train from Lorraine so we did not have any means of transport, we did not insist because we understood during the few days we spent in Saint-Malo that the rally point was Comptoir du Rhum We loved our "Route du Rhum" This year, we wanted to do nothing but exceptional things "Coming here was part of it", feast Thierry and Mélanie.

"It was great"

At the Bistrot, for spectators like Guy and Roselyne, it was cold cuts and cheese. | Emilie CHASSEVANT

Guy and Roselyne did the same thing with their camper. Arrived from Mayenne, they spent four days enjoying the Guadeloupe atmosphere. "We found a great event, it was great."

More and more in front of the screen, the spectators savored the magnificent aerial images, the close-ups on the boats, the embedded images proposed by the direct of France 3. Then it was the countdown and the huge thunderous applause reflecting deep respect for these browsers.

"Go ahead François"

In the first minutes, it was easy to guess the darlings of the public in view of the reactions. François Gabart on the screen, "ouaiiiiiiis" . Alex Thomson on Hugo Boss, a wow of ecstasy in front of the beauty of the boat. For Thibaud Vauchel, encouragement; for Loïck Peyron, "hurray" . The atmosphere is good and fans are happy to share their prognosis, their admiration, their encouragement. A beautiful moment.