Route du Rhum 2006 1/12/2006

- Success of the Class 40 (25 boats on the starting line)
- Victory for skippers on our Pogo 40 (1st & 2nd places)
- Success of the Structures/Groupe Finot Conq cooperation
- Victory in Class 1 monohull, and 2nd place in Class 2 monohull

The Class 40 is a success. It provided a framework able to motivate skippers, shipyards, and yacht designers, resulting in boats that are similar in performance, easy and affordable enough for amateurs.
Since 1997, Groupe Finot has been promoting such an open and accessible class. We are delighted by this success.

Congratulations to all skippers, who sailed a brilliant race, despite tough weather in the second half of the course.
All boats have been thoroughly shaken. Gildas Morvan often reached speeds superior to 25 knots in rough waves...

Special congrats to :
- Phil Sharp onboard his Pogo 40 Philsharpracing.com, Winner
- Gildas Morvan onboard Oyster Funds, 2nd
- Philippe Le Gros, onboard Côtes d’Armor-Pierres et Mer, 4th
- Guilaume Voizard, onboard Le Comptoir Immobilier, 5th
Out of the 11 Pogo 40 on the starting line, 4 completed the race in the top 5.

Victory for the builders, the Structures shipyard. It is especially interesting to note that these production boats are just as suited for winning the Route du Rhum as they are for an offshore, short-handed family cruise. The Pogo 40 carries a very reasonable price tag of 174 000 € ex-works, VAT-incl., translating into 220 to 240 000 € ready to sail, depending on the owner’s choice for equipment, electronics and sails.www.pogostructures.com Victory also for the designers : Jean-Marie Finot, Pascal Conq, Pierre Forgia, David de Prémorel, assisted by designer Patrick Roséo for the interior arrangements. The Pogo 40 is the heir of our Open 60’s (4 times Vendée Globe winners), Mini Transats (4 times Transat 6.50 winners).

B.Stichelbaut/Oyster Funds/Rhone gestion

Our experience and know-how reflect on our Open 7.50, 6.50, 5.70 and 5.00, as well as on our production boats designed for Beneteau (First 7500, 217, 257, 27.7, 31.7 and Océanis Clipper 323, 331, 423, 42 cc, 473, 523), our Cigale’s at Alubat and of course, the Pogo’s at Structures (Pogo 2 and Pogo 10.50)

The work achieved by skippers, builders and designers makes it possible today to cross the Atlantic single-handed in just over 8 days. Everyone can now dream of playing with the wind, the sea and the waves. Still, we are worried about imponderables : Lexibook, Hervé Papin’s Pogo 40, hit a container at 10 knots, causing the boat to halt suddenly. The outcome was limited to a big scare and a dent at the front of the bulb, and both boat and skipper were able to carry on with the race. In the same vicinity, just a few hours earlier, in a strong, gusty wind, TMI Technologies, Joe Seeten’s boat, was sailing an average 17-20 knots, when it stopped extremely violently at the bottom of a wave. « Something extraordinary » even for Joe’s extensive experience. Did he hit a floating object, an animal or a rogue wave ? Joe, thrown by the shock to the opposite side of the cabin, broke his shoulder and cut his forehead. The water was rushing inside the boat when Joe noticed that the bond between the keel and the boat’s structure had been damaged. A few hours later, he was rescued by a cargo ship. Passive security systems performed perfectly, especially the buoyancy volumes, with the boat floating even with 50 cm of water inside. The builder, and us designers, permanently wary about the strength of our boats, apply safety factors twice superior to those usually recommended by standards and norms. Nevertheless, we are still left to wonder if these precautions are sufficient enough considering the high speed these boats can reach nowadays.

GwalarnV.B.Stichelbaut/chantier Structures

It is necessary for everyone to consider that no one is safe from risks at sea (floating objects, waves too large for the boat past a certain speed)
It would surely prove an excellent idea that skippers, race promoters, builders and designers get together to give this a constructive thought…

www.philsharpracing.com

www.routedurhum.org/fr

www.rivacom.fr