Welcome to Tour de France sailing
It’s a little-known fact a Kiwi is in the top 10 at the Tour de France and has even won a couple of stages.
Sailing’s version of the Tour de France — the Tour de France a` la Voile — copies the cycling one in many ways.
Not only does it tour the country for three weeks in July but it also has coloured “jerseys” to signify the leaders: a blue spinnaker for the overall leader, green for the first amateur and red for the first youth (under-24) team.
It’s just a little difficult to have the equivalent of a polka dot jersey because it’s a stretch to think the fleet can traverse the Alps or Pyrenees, although the conditions in the Atlantic can sometimes throw up big seas to challenge the sailors.
Sir Russell Coutts took part in the race in 1999 and found it so arduous on one leg to Dieppe, he reportedly struggled to get off his boat because his body ached so much.
New Zealand’s Jason Saunders, who finished fourth at the Rio Olympics with Gemma Jones in the Nacra 17 class, is competing this year. His Beijaflore team have had some success, winning a couple of stages, but have also struggled at times and went into this weekend’s racing seventh of 29 teams on general classification.
This year’s tour, the 40th edition, started off Dunkirk on July 7 and has worked its way down the west coast. The fleet had a stopover in Roses, Spain, this weekend and will finish in Nice on July 30.
In each port, there’s a longdistance race which usually takes about five hours. The second day sees short, sharp races close to shore, similar to Olympic medal races or the America’s Cup.
Thousands visit the race village each day and many more watch on TV as the 7.25m-long Diam 24 trimarans zip up and down the coastline.
“Everyone knows the cycling version and on the coast, this is a pretty big deal,” Saunders said.
“They have to pay quite a bit of money to host. Sailing in France is huge. It’s as big as it is in New Zealand and has a pretty good reputation.
“It’s a pretty important regatta for the French sailors and a lot of the very good ones are doing it. After each stage, you have to pack the boat up, put it in a trailer and drive to the next place.
“You rig up your boat that night, find your hotel and sail the next morning, so it’s really intense. It’s definitely an experience because I have never done anything like this. It’s pretty tiring because you don’t get a lot of sleep during the tour.”
He won’t have much time to catch up when it finishes. Saunders, who lives in France, will spend a couple of days at home in La Rochelle before heading to Aarhus in Denmark to join up with Jones, who has been getting to grips with the new foiling Nacras to be used at the 2020 Tokyo Olympics.
The pair were one of the first combinations to receive their new Nacra, which are significantly faster but more unstable than those at last year’s Rio Olympics.
“The boats are really fast,” Saunders said. “It’s certainly our kind of racing because we love a fast and furious style. It’s going to suit us really well.”
He thinks his experiences on the Tour de France will also help his Olympic campaign — working in a bigger team, regular racing and trying to understand different boats and tactics.
“It’s been huge for my confidence. It was a bit daunting to start with, because it’s a full French team and I have to speak French on the boat. I’m tactician on the boat, so just explaining what we were going to be doing was tough to start with. But it’s been an awesome experience.”
It’s part of the reason why he’d like to see a Kiwi team involved in the future.
“I think it would be a pretty big deal for France to have a Kiwi entry,” he said.
“They really enjoy having other countries involved — there are Swiss, English, Spanish and Russian teams this year — and I have had a few people tell me they would really like to get a few more Kiwis involved. I’d love to be involved with a Kiwi team and I think it suits our style of sailing.
“New Zealanders have an amazing reputation on the sailing front, especially with what is happening with the Team New Zealand guys.”
Team New Zealand brought sailing and cycling closer together with cyclors on their America’s Cup boat. The French do it with the Tour de France.
Sailing in France is huge. It’s as big as it is in New Zealand and has a pretty good reputation. It’s a pretty important regatta for the French sailors. Jason Saunders