Created by Bob Salmon, in 1977, the 17th edition of The Charente-Maritime/Bahia Transat 6.50 will start next week, on Sunday the 13th of September 2009. Originally called the Mini-Transat, the race will start off the coast of the Charente-Maritime (France) and go to Funchal (Madeira / Portugal) and finish across the Atlantic in Salvador de Bahia (Brazil)
This year’s Charente Maritime / Bahia Transat 6.50 race has 84 skippers representing 12 different nationalities. The race is open to amateur and professional sailors, provided that they qualify. Many world famous sailors have competed in this event on previous years including Ellen Mc Arthur, Isabelle Autissier, Catherine Chabaud, Yves Parlier, Jean-Luc Van Den Heede, Michel Desjoyaux, Loïck and Bruno Peyron, Yvan and Laurent Bourgnon, Roland Jourdain, Sébastien Josse, Thomas Coville, Lionel Lemonchois, Halvard Mabire. This 17th edition will bring together American, Australian, English, Spanish, Italian, Swiss, South African, French, German, Portuguese, Norwegian and Brazilian competitors.
The Transat 6.50 has very strict entry requirements for the boat and the skipper. The competitor and the boat must have a sailing "history" acquired in races and sailing qualifications. This is to ensure that the competitor has a chance to meet the challenge of this long and completely solo race. The 6.50 Series and Prototype boats will be sailed 4,200 miles (7800 km) single-handed without any assistance (7800 km) The first 1,100 nautical miles are between Charente Maritime, France and Funchal, Madeira and then the next 3,100 nautical miles are between Madeira and Salvador de Bahia in Brazil corresponding to 4,200 nm. This is the same course as the 2007 edition of the race.
Below are the rules regarding entry requirements:
The races' rules:
"The boats that will participate to The Charente-Maritime/Bahia Transat 6.50 have to be completely self sufficient. The skippers cannot rely on anyone during the race but themselves. They have to be able to face every kind of situation on their own and be able to join a port if necessary without any external help. There are two categories on the race: prototypes and series boats. These categories determine two rankings. No routing is accepted and each participant has to sign a statement of intent that undertaking them to respect this rule. The navigation electronics or computing assistants are forbidden on board. Also, no supplying or physical contacts with another boat are accepted during the race. Any kind of radio assistance apart from medical assistance is allowed.
-Qualifications:
The Charente-Maritime/Bahia Transat 6.50 qualification process was created in 1999 when half of the fleet had to abandon. The aim is simple and clear: permit to the candidate/sailor to consider their true technical skills and psychological capacities to sail solo. So, to be qualified, the couple skipper/boat has to sail 2.000 miles, including 1.000 miles racing and 1.000 miles training. If the sailor already sailed 2.000 miles, he has to participate to at least one race of the qualifying calendar. The skippers that already participated to The Charente-Maritime/Bahia Transat 6.50 on the same boat are exempted from the 1000 miles training. But they have to participate to, at least, one of the qualification race of the 2009 Mini calendar."
Rules & Qualification criteria taken directly from the Charente-Maritime / Bahia Transat 6.50 website : http://www.transat650.org/en/ © Grand Pavois Organisation
There are three British sailors in this year’s Transat: Oliver Bond, Keith Willis and Andrew Bond. We wish them all the very best of luck and hope for their safe and speedy arrival in Salvador de Bahia (Brazil) on Thursday the 20th of October, the estimated finish day.
Follow the Transat 6.50 here
