Route du Rhum: Arthur Le Vaillant and Mieux succeed in their bet
Press release of November 19, 2022
The skipper took sixth place in the ranking of the Route du Rhum Destination Guadeloupe 2022, at the helm of his giant trimaran, the oldest of the Ultim 32-23 fleet, equipped by Ultim Sailing and supported by the Mieux collective, of which on-x is one of the founders.
At the helm of the giant trimaran Mieux, Arthur Le Vaillant crossed the finish line of the Route du Rhum Destination Guadeloupe at 10:41 am on Saturday. Their arrival in Pointe-à-Pitre was greeted by many following boats and Arthur Le Vaillant was welcomed on the pontoon by his comrades Thomas Coville and Yves Le Blévec, both former skippers of his boat, who had preceded him on the finish line. The skipper from La Rochelle and his trimaran finished in sixth place in the overall race ranking, 10 days, 1 hour and 26 minutes after the start in Saint-Malo. A remarkable performance for this 34 year old sailor - the youngest in the Ultim 32-23 class - and this boat which is 9 years old in this form, a little more than 20 for some parts of the boat coming from Geronimo - which makes it one of the two oldest in this same class.
Mieux crossed the Atlantic without a hitch, apart from a few problems with the hydrogenerator which forced its skipper to spend several hours tinkering at the start of the race. One of the two doyens of the fleet - former Geronimo, Sodebo and Actual, a VPLP design totally renovated in 2013 under the impetus of Thomas Coville -, has once again shown its solidity. Proof that the gamble taken by her owner, Ultim Sailing, to line up this venerable trimaran at the start of the most famous transatlantic race, against much more modern and therefore faster competitors, was not in vain.
By finishing in this 6th position, Mieux has fulfilled its contract and met the expectations of the collective that gave it its name, a group of twenty entrepreneurs, of which on-x is proud to be a part, having decided to share and disseminate good practices in CSR. The sails of Mieux bore the logos of the association Action Enfance and the foundation Partage & Vie, both supported by the collective.
As for Arthur Le Vaillant, who is one of the co-founders of Mieux, he achieved a flawless performance, despite the difficult weather conditions that hit the whole fleet at the beginning of the race. Four years after his fourth place in the Class 40 category, he completed a second Route du Rhum at the level where he was expected and at the helm of a boat from which he knew how to get the most out of while taking it easy.
"Arriving is my first great pleasure today, after a crossing on this magnificent boat. I love the ocean, even if it has not always been kind, and it is a great opportunity to be able to cross it like this. Now I will rest, before enjoying even more the beautiful adventure I have lived with Mieux."
Arthur Le Vaillant
