Just seconds before the start of leg 2 in La Solitaire Urgo Le Figaro, Mayo’s Joan Mulloy suffered gear failure that saw her mainsail come crashing down. Luckily, the rules allow for outside assistance to make repairs before a certain point and she spent the remainder of the race playing catch up as the fleet raced across the Bay of Biscay towards Spain.
The setback put Mulloy 3 hours and 20 minutes behind the ultra-competitive fleet as they left the French town of Saint-Brieuc. Meath’s Tom Dolan on his yacht Smurfit Kappa stuck with the group for most of the race and finished in 29th place out of 36 largely French entrants. Mulloy clawed back two places and managed to finish 34th.
Speaking on arrival in Ría de Muros e Noia, Mulloy said, "I had to push really hard for the first 24 hours after the start because of the halyard problem. I had to pull in and get the halyard replaced. I did not sleep at all on the first night and just was chasing, chasing all the time. I was just thinking 'I can do it, I can do it, I can do it’. Every single bay and rock, I was just trying to squeeze the most out of everything. I was just totally determined to be with the pack before Biscay.”
Mulloy and Dolan are the only two Irish entrants in what is considered the most competitive offshore solo race series in the world. In France, it is a firm fixture for aspiring round the world racers with dreams of the Vendée Globe. The most experienced will dedicate years to La Solitaire Urgo Le Figaro before progressing to larger boats. Both Mulloy and Dolan are considered ‘Rookies’ as it is their first year competing.
Speaking about the Bay of Biscay Mulloy said: “Biscay was fine 30 knots (of wind) and bumpy, but I think all the time my mind was on Finisterre. It was hard not knowing how I was getting on with the rest of the fleet.”
After two legs Mulloy is lying 27th and Dolan is in 31st following his retirement in leg 1. Leg 3 of this 4 leg series starts on Saturday leaving just a few days for the fleet to recover. The next leg will see the fleet return to French waters ahead of the final leg, a 24 hours sprint that will bring this years event to a conclusion.