Did you know? You can participate in the EXCESS Challenge as a team! Put together a team of 4 people to try to win a cruise worth €8,500 aboard an EXCESS catamaran! Motivate your friends, colleagues, family and compete as a team to win this exceptional cruise! In addition to your team participation, you will also compete solo for the chance to win an EXCESS catamaran worth €300,000! Discover the EXCESS Challenge teams that reached the podium this month.
As of March 31, the "virtual teams" named Gazo, Paul and Vikings finished the record course in 1st 2nd and 3rd place respectively. The race committee congratulates these 3 teams and invites you to discover some tips from the first two teams, which helped them to climb on the virtual podium of the EXCESS Challenge!
TEAM GAZO
Boats: Ehanou / Trapaloff / Povralys / Gwennili
Flag: France
Record: 13 days 0 hours 56 minutes and 51 seconds
TEAM PAUL
Boats: Ama / Amah / Amal / Amazone
Flag: Germany
Record: 14 days 18 hours 44 minutes 22 seconds
TEAM VIKINGS
Boats: Gusty85 / Jack the Ripper / Le Compagnon / Le Majestueux
Flag: France
Record: 16 days 17 hours 3 minutes 34 seconds
What did you think of the route?
Team Gazo: The course is technical enough, as it is long enough to have difficulty finding the right weather for the entire course. Eastern Corsica is generally the most difficult to negotiate.
Team Paul: It's a long journey but a very interesting one. For us it was the first time we have participated in a virtual regatta like this, so we were the novices.
Your best strategy?
Team Gazo: We chose a good weather window and we all started at the same time. To motivate us, we followed the most competitive member of the team and tried to get ahead of them as soon as possible. The suspense was great and, following a bad choice on his part, we even managed to overtake him north of Corsica!
Team Paul: Our strategy was to constantly change sails to always adapt to the strength and direction of the wind. We also had to choose the right weather window and study our options carefully: either favor a direct route or choose the route with the best wind conditions, to reach the finish as quickly as possible!
Any difficulties encountered?
Team Gazo: The overall experience was good fun but a little long at times: maintaining good sailing throughout the course can be difficult. But isn't that the reality of ocean racing?
Team Paul: the periods without wind are difficult... In reality we would use the engine in these moments, whereas in this challenge we have to do everything to avoid too quiet areas. Unfortunately, this wasn’t always possible. In addition, since we could not be "on board" constantly, we had to turn on the autopilot.
What did you prefer?
Team Gazo: As regular participants in virtual regattas, the fun aspect was a real plus to this challenge whose prize is unprecedented. In any case, thank you again for your challenge. All that remains is to dream of winning the draw and preparing for a real trip.
Team Paul: We loved seeing the other boats sailing around us. We could see their choices of route and tried to pass them. It was very exciting!
If you too want to be one of the best "virtual skippers": Come on board now for only €9
Would you like to challenge your colleagues and create a team spirit in your department? You can organize an internal EXCESS Challenge within your company, thanks to our special offer! To organize this virtual EXCESS record, please contact us: contact@excess-catamarans
