This Thursday, November 24, at 12:15:22hrs UTC Luke Berry on Lamotte-Module Création crossed the finish line in Pointe-à-Pitre in seventh position in Class40 on the 12th Route du Rhum – Destination Guadeloupe. His race time is 14 days 23 hours 00 minutes 22 seconds. The skipper of Lamotte-Module Création completed the 3,542 mile course between Saint-Malo and Pointe-à-Pitre at a speed of 9.87 knots on the great circle (direct route). He actually raced 4009.25 miles at an average speed of 11.17 knots. He arrived in Pointe-à-Pitre 19 hours 51 minutes 42 seconds after the Class40 winner, Yoann Richomme.
This Thursday, November 24, at 12:15:22hrs UTC Luke Berry on Lamotte-Module Création crossed the finish line in Pointe-à-Pitre in seventh position in Class40 on the 12th Route du Rhum – Destination Guadeloupe. His race time is 14 days 23 hours 00 minutes 22 seconds. The skipper of Lamotte-Module Création completed the 3,542 mile course between Saint-Malo and Pointe-à-Pitre at a speed of 9.87 knots on the great circle (direct route). He actually raced 4009.25 miles at an average speed of 11.17 knots. He arrived in Pointe-à-Pitre 19 hours 51 minutes 42 seconds after the Class40 winner, Yoann Richomme.
The first words of Luke Berry at the pontoon in Pointe-à-Pitre
“Compared to the last edition the level has gone up a notch in Class40. I've had the boat for only a few months so I had not really learned the fine adjustments before the start of this Route du Rhum. You only find these things by looking at the speeds of others, at the beginning we were all in contact. We had four rather intense cold fronts, it was the first time I went through these kinds of fronts on a scow and it's a bit borderline I think! From the first or the second front I lost the wind vanes so I had no more wind information. I fudged something but it only worked downwind. In the third front I made the wise decision to go a little further south because in the hardest bit there had been several dismastings. I have already dismasted twice in recent years and my goal really was to get to the other side. »
“I really found the gears downwind we were going very, very fast”
“The first group got away but I was still in another good group a little behind. I found the gears really well downwind, it was going very, very fast. I averaged over 18 knots for a few hours. Everything was perfect until around Guadeloupe, I was 15 and 30 miles ahead of the two comrades (Antoine Carpentier and Xavier Macaire, NDR) and of course the objective was not to let them pass. That was the plan but I got stuck with no wind and saw Xavier pass me with a little squall. This is where this race is so often played out. This is the second time that I narrowly miss the Top 5 on the Route du Rhum. I'm a little disappointed but that's how it goes.
"I'm happy to have proven that I can be in the game"
“I think it was a great race. I'm happy to have proven that I can be in the game. This sport is unfair, we know that very well (laughs). I'm not the first this has happened to. I had to do a few things but the boat arrived in very good condition despite the race having been difficult and about 30% of the competitors having had to retire. My trainer has worked very well. I'm happy to be here and to have sailed well. The more you were in front, the faster it went. The level of the first is impressive, they push very hard. Congratulations to Ambrogio who launched his boat recently. And congratulations also to Simon Koster who had a great race.”