Solo skipper Charles Caudrelier has won the Arkea Ultim Challenge Brest, the first ever solo around the world race in multihulls, on the Maxi Edmond de Rothschild giant foiling trimaran.…
Ultime
50-knot winds and 9m seas delay round the world race winners
Charles Caudrelier, skipper of the Maxi Edmond de Rothschild trimaran and Arkea Ultim Challenge leader has paused his race in the Azores after a severe weather forecast for “impassable” conditions…
Fifteen round Cape Horn in a week! Round the world racers stream out of Southern Ocean
Armel Le Cléac’h’s 100ft foiling trimaran Maxi Banque Populaire XI became the 15th boat to pass Cape Horn in a week, when he rounded at 05:01:50hrs UTC this morning, Sunday…
North Atlantic in six days solo: Arkea Ultim Challenge leaders cross the Equator
Less than a week after setting out from the start in Brest, the leading Ultim trimarans in the Arkea Ultim Challenge have crossed the Equator. First to enter the Southern…
Six solo skippers ready to race 100ft foiling multihulls around the world
There are very few ‘firsts’ left in the world of sailing, but one such remaining barrier could be smashed when the Arkea Ultim Challenge Brest sets off from north-west France…
Le Cléac’h and Josse win the 2023 Transat Jacques Vabre
French duo Armel Le Cléac’h and Sébastien Josse sailing Maxi Banque Populaire XI have won the Transat Jacques Vabre 2023, crossing the finish line at 18:19hrs local time (22:19hrs UTC)…
Transat Jacques Vabre: Sunday start a possibility for IMOCAs
The start of the Transat Jacques Vabre in Sunday 29 October 2023, only three of the scheduled four fleets got underway, due to a severe forecast in the Atlantic. Now,…
‘Boat breaking’ depression disrupts Transat Jacques Vabre start
Yesterday’s scheduled start for the Transat Jacques Vabre – the double-handed race across the Atlantic from Le Havre to Martinique – partially got away on Sunday 29 October, but the…
How to follow the Transat Jacques Vabre 2023
The Transat Jacques Vabre is one of the ultimate tests of short-handed racing, a double-handed dash from France that sees many of the world’s top racing machines take on the…
50th Rolex Fastnet Race starts: but early retirements pour in with furious conditions forecast
The 50th Rolex Fastnet Race got underway today, Saturday 22 July, with the largest offshore racing fleet ever setting off from Cowes in rain and 20-25 knot headwinds . With…
Two giant foiling trimarans set for a Fastnet Race battle
As with most big races around the world, bragging rights in the Rolex Fastnet Race race are split into two broad camps, the line honours winners (the first boat to…
The all-female team aiming to set a new round the world record
French former Vendée Globe skipper Alexia Barrier announced her plans for the ‘Famous Project’ last year. Since then the project has gathered huge momentum, and Barrier and her team now…
World’s coolest yachts: Gitana 17
“The Ultimes to me are the most technologically advanced and fastest boats that you can still go offshore with, at incredible speeds and at the same time a robustness and…
Caudrelier wins the 2022 Route du Rhum with new course record
Charles Caudrelier sailing his Ultime trimaran Maxi Edmond de Rothschild was first to cross the finish line of the 2022 Route du Rhum race this morning in Pointe-à-Pitre, Guadeloupe in a…
“A torrent of flames came out of my cabin” – dramatic mid-ocean rescues in the Route du Rhum
It has been another intense 24 hours in the Route du Rhum 2022, with two dramatic mid-ocean rescues, as well as multiple other abandonments as the 138-boat fleet continues to…
Dismastings, a capsize and damage toll rises in Route du Rhum
The Route du Rhum’s reputation as one of the toughest offshore races in the solo sailing calendar is proving to be true once again. Last night the IMOCA 60s went…
UPDATE: Route du Rhum 2022 start postponed. Is this the greatest ever offshore race?
The Route du Rhum 2022 single-handed transatlantic race start has been postponed until Wednesday 9 November. The decision was announced at this morning’s skippers’ weather briefing. While the forecast for…
How to follow the Route du Rhum 2022
NOTE: Since this article was published the start date for the Route Du Rhum 2022 has been pushed back to Wednesday 9th November at 1415hrs local time. A major storm…
The ultimate foiling machine? Onboard SVR-Lazartigue
Launched in July after 150,000 hours of work, SVR-Lazartigue is the latest addition to the burgeoning Ultim 32/23 fleet. In addition to the complexity that’s inherent to these giant foilers,…
Extraordinary boats: Banque Populaire XI
Banque Populaire is one of the world’s most experienced and successful sailing teams, and was the force behind Armel Le Cléac’h’s 2016 record-breaking Vendée Globe victory, they now have a…