The French-American 1917-2017 Bridge
One hundred years after American troops landed on French shores to come to the aid of the French during World War I, a new event has been created to honor this moment in history and the special relationship between our two countries.
"The Bridge" and its centennial transatlantic race are among the major events celebrating Franco-American solidarity and business ties. Four maxi-trimarans, the foundation of the burgeoning ‘Collectif Ultime’ league, have set sail to race from the bridge at Saint-Nazaire at the mouth of the Loire River to the Verrazano Bridge in New York, some 3,152 miles away.
Further underscoring the unique nature of this one-off event, the four tris are in a friendly race against the Atlantic’s last transoceanic cruise liner, the Queen Mary 2. The ocean liner recently aided in the dramatic rescue of a distressed sailor during an OSTAR race that was riddled with carnage, in which five sailors from three different yachts were rescued.
With a complex weather scenario facing the four trimarans, the Queen Mary 2 has stepped out to a commanding lead as she steams straight down the rhumb line. Behind her however, the four fully-crewed multihulls are in a close battle, with the leaders now sailing upwind in moderate breeze after crossing the first of the depressions.
Having swapped the lead multiple times now, François Gabart on MACIF leads Francis Joyon’s IDEC Sport by about 25 miles as the boats approach the halfway point to the Big Apple. Thomas Coville’s Sodebo sits in third, 68 miles from the lead, while Yves Le Blevec’s Actual is around 200 miles back.
Conditions don’t look especially quick on this east-to-west transatlantic crossing, so while we don’t expect the trimarans to catch up to the Queen Mary 2, we do expect to see some close, tactical racing. As the fleet continues to sail west, they should reach an area of high pressure and light winds before slingshotting themselves toward the center and then out the back of the next low-pressure system. Stay tuned to the tracker, the website, and theFacebook page for more updates on this unique race.