Season 3 SITREP

Back in France!

Time to kick off season 3 of this campaign! On Thursday afternoon (30 March) I made it back to La Trinité-sur-Mer where Terminal Leave has been waiting for my return. The deck was covered all winter and down below is in good shape. The skipper of the next boat over was keeping an eye on her, so there were no big surprises.

After two planes, two trains, and a short drive in a rental van I made it back to the boat. My initial plan was to unload the boat, but the weather has not been cooperating. With rain showers each day, I kept everything down below, cranked up a dehumidifier, and focused on running errands in preparation for a few projects. After scrubbing the deck and hull, she is starting to shining again. Down below I hooked up a battery charger to get the electrical system back up and running. With an initial check of the electronics (sailing instruments, autopilot, vhf radio, GPS, lights) everything appears to be in working order. This is honestly the biggest relief, because the electronics can be difficult to troubleshoot without hiring a local professional who has specialized equipment. It is costly and can take weeks to schedule a technician.

La Trinité-sur-Mer is in the Bretagne (“Brittany”) region of north-west France. This little port town is on the Quiberon Bay, which is about 10 miles wide and only 5 miles long with a peninsula and a few islands. Beyond this small bay lies the iconic Bay of Biscay. Known for its fierce sailing conditions, this body of water spans the entire west coast of France from the entrance of the English Channel down to the northern coast of Spain.

This is the start to my third season in France. The Bay of Biscay is where I have been preparing for the Mini Transat, because it is where most of the Classe Mini 6.50 fleet trains. With about 30 Minis located in La Trinité-sur-Mer, it is a great location for my preparations and training. Most ports fill up and have a maximum quota of Minis, which makes finding a spot challenging for foreigners. My first season I had a location secured at the port, but last year I was moved to a waiting list and had to find storage quickly. I found a great new spot (where there are now six other Minis) just a few lots over from my original location. To launch the boats, we tow them about 2 km down the road to the port mast up and all! It is not uncommon to see boats of all sizes being driven down the main road on trailers.

The first race of the season on France’s Atlantic coast is the Plastimo Lorient Mini (PLM). This will be a 250 nautical mile double-handed race with a maximum capacity of 80 entries (many more on the waiting list). For the first time ever, it will be raced as a mixed event which means each boat will have a man and woman onboard. This is a great initiative to help provide opportunities for more women to join this class of racing. Luckily for me, I already had an awesome female sailor in mind for this race before we knew about the new race format. My partner (and key member of my shore support) Jane will fly here to France next week and join me as the co-skipper for this race!

Jane is also a mentor for The Magenta Project, which supports women in sailing through mentorship and providing opportunities across the sport. There will be multiple mentees from this international organization racing in the PLM, so Jane is helping to host a women’s meet up during this event.

Fundraising: Thank you to everyone who has donated throughout this campaign over the past few years! We even have many repeat donors, THANK YOU!!! Going into this season we have raised over $21,000 through mostly donations and a few sponsorships. This is a strong start but far from reaching the goal. This helps cover costs that include race administrative fees, logistics, food, boat improvements, and more. I hope to get a more detailed update posted soon explaining the budget, costs, and fundraising status. I am fully committed to this campaign and contributing a significant amount of my own money to prepare the boat and myself for a safe and competitive race. We are far from covering all of the costs over three seasons, so every donation truly helps!

Do you want to support this campaign through a donation or sponsorship?

There are three main options to provide support!

Donation through U.S. Patriot Sailing: You can now donate directly through the 501(c)(3) as a tax write off! There is a new page on the website for this campaign, just click the donate button! Make sure to check the box for ”PGN's Terminal Leave - Mini Transat” and it will help support this campaign directly with no processing fees. https://www.uspatriotsailing.org/page-18221
Donation through GoFundMe page: This method was the original online option for donations and is still available. Since I started it in 2022, most of the total donations number is from the previous season. While the website takes a small fee, it is worth it for the processing convenience for some donors. Plus, it is another method for me to update those specific supporters! https://gofund.me/f43e698e
Check by mail: Do you enjoy sending letters or the feeling you get when you sign your name on a physical check? Then feel free to support this campaign by sending a check, that option is always available too! Just send me an email (peter@pgnoceanracing.com or jane@pgnoceanracing.com) and we will let you know what our address is in Annapolis. Checks are still a great option even when I am in France!
Thank you for your continued to support, please make sure to tell your friends and family about my mission to race in the Mini Transat!

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