On board his brand new Macif, François Gabart was the first to get away at 1400 hrs GMT this Monday afternoon from the paradise island of St Barts. There are eight taking part in all, six Frenchmen and two British sailors, in this solo transatlantic race to Lorient. The length of the course (3300 miles on the theoretical route) should take around a fortnight to complete with the boats finishing in Lorient a few days before Christmas on around 20th December.

Apart from François Gabart, also lining up the triple winner of the Transat Jacques Vabre Jean Pierre Dick (Virbac-Paprec), Alex Thomson (Hugo Boss), Louis Burton (Bureau Vallée) and four sailors, who are well known in the Vendée Globe: Vincent Riou (PRB), Armel Le Cléac’h (Banque Populaire), Marc Guillemot (Safran) and Mike Golding (Gamesa). So a very competitive line-up for this winter transatlantic race, which could potentially offer tricky conditions at this time of year.

They have all said they wish to take part in this race because the Transat B to B is the final major solo race before the next Vendée Globe. So this is an excellent way for everyone to prepare for the round the world race. For the two youngest sailors - François Gabart and Louis Burton – there is an additional factor to consider: finishing this race will enable them to qualify for the Vendée Globe. The six other sailors and their boats are already qualified.