It was at 18 hours 33 minutes and 41 seconds, this Wednesday, November 19 that Thibaut Vauchel-Camus crossed the finish line in Pointe-à-Pitre. He will have completed the course of this 10 ème edition of the Route du Rhum in 17 days 4 hours 33 minutes and 41 seconds and completed the race in 4 399 miles at an average speed of 8.58 knots.
The final was very close to win this second place, but in the end this Rhum rookie and solo sailor won against the very experienced Kito de Pavant ( Otio Bastide Medical ). At 36 years old and for his first participation, Thibaut created the surprise, winning in the most numerous class of the Route du Rhum. At the helm of Solidaires en Peloton he quickly became part of the top three in Class 40 with Kito de Pavant and Yannick Bestaven ( The Curator ).
"This is the great race that starts from where I live, and that led me to where I grew upâeuros¦ A return home by boat on the Route du Rhum, it is incredible! I wanted to enjoy it until the end. You fight to get there before everyone else, and then when it's over you say to yourself that it mustn't stop, so I made a final counter- tack to make the most of it and make a peak at 16 knots. It's a beautiful project, a dream even that I live for¦ I was skipping classes at the college not far from here to go and see the arrivals."
A professional of high level competition
Thibaut Vauchel-Camus is a French skipper born in 1978. He is a professional catamaran racer and in particular a Formula 18 sailor - he was 6 times French champion in this last category, from 2005 to 2008. He then tried other types of boats such as the trimaran Sopra Group alongside Antoine Koch. This high level competitor has a considerable experience which undoubtedly helped him to get the podium of this 10 ème edition of the Route du Rhum.
He launched into Class40 alongside Victorien Erussard, for their first race as a duo Les Sables âeuros Horta in 2013 and then again in the Transat Jacques Vabre, which proved to be a true revelation of his love for ocean racing. Having made a true friendship, Victorien left the helm of the Class40 to Thibaut, to devote himself to his role as project manager. Born in Guadeloupe in 1978, date of the 1 era edition of the Rhum, he is nicknamed the "100% Rhum Skipper". Today he lives in Saint-Malo.
