The Class40 IBSA’s August in the Mediterranean Sea

Leaving behind (for now) the ocean and the northernmost routes sailed during the last regattas, the Class40 IBSA is preparing to sail the waves of the Mediterranean Sea. This time it will not be Alberto Bona who will lead the vessel, but Boat Captain Pierre-Edouard Regaud, who will take the craft from her home base in Trinité-sur-Mer (Brittany) to Antibes, on the French Riviera, where some activities await her in IBSA’s French subsidiary.

To get to the appointment in Antibes, the greenest route was chosen for the Class40 IBSA, avoiding road transport and opting for a transfer by sea, longer in terms of time but undoubtedly more sustainable in terms of environmental impact. A decision that follows that taken last year when – at the arrival of the Route du Rhum, to avoid resorting to the use of a cargo ship to bring the Class40 IBSA back to Europe – the boat remained in the Caribbean until the start of the “return race”, the Défi Atlantique (“Atlantic Challenge”), thus optimising competition and transfer in a single voyage.

A sustainable choice, therefore, faithful to the commitment of the project Sailing into the Future. Together, which also becomes an opportunity to observe – without the adrenaline-filled concentration of a race – the waters through which the Class40 IBSA sails, as well as to closely assess the state of health of the Mediterranean Sea.

The Class40 IBSA will then depart from la Trinité-sur-Mer, sail along the coast of Spain up to Cadiz, enter the Strait of Gibraltar and, after a brief stop in Palma de Mallorca, finally arrive in Antibes.

During the Strait of Gibraltar passage, Pierre-Edouard Regaud and his crew will have to pay particular attention to keep away from the orcas, which for some years – presumably after a voluntary attack by man on some pups – have been attacking the sailing boats. In most cases, these are attacks on boats that have a clear bottom, in particular against rudders and fins. Generally, these attacks do not result in serious consequences, but very risky situations have also occurred, such as the one that recently took place during the Ocean Race, when three orcas attacked the boats Team JAJO and Mirpuri Trifork Racing, fortunately without injuries or major damage.

Once arrived in Antibes, at the end of August, the Class40 IBSA will stop for a couple of weeks, and will be joined by his skipper Alberto Bona to carry out some institutional activities and engagements scheduled with the French subsidiary. To follow, in the first half of September, the Class40 IBSA – with Bona and Regaud on board – will sail back to Brittany, to begin preparations for the Transat Jacques Vabre.