7 days

Duration

Bretagne, France

Location

Medium, Hard

Physicality

Brittany is the home of the world’s best offshore sailors. Our 7-day fast-track performance monohull course will have our favourite French native Hugo Picard turning you into a fine-tuned sailor. Your training happens on a Ferrari-like Pogo 12.5. All prices are per person.

DEPARTURE/RETURN LOCATION

La Rochelle to La Rochelle: June 26th – July 3rd, 2021

DEPARTURE TIME

Saturday at 3:30 PM

RETURN TIME

Saturday at 9:00 AM

WEAR

Comfortable athletic clothing, light shoes, hat, full sailing foul-weather gear (salopettes & jacket/smock), sailing boots, sunscreen

INCLUDED

Professional instructor

On-board accommodation

All docking fees

All local fees

Food & wine on board

Fuel costs

Certification fees

NOT INCLUDED

Food & drinks off the boat

Instructor gratuity

Course Preparation

PREREQUISITES

ASA 104, NauticEd Bareboat, RYA Dayskipper or comparable sailing experience is recommended although not required

ONLINE COURSE PREPARATION

About 10 hours, course material will be provided after booking your course.

INCLUDED CERTIFICATIONS

ASA 2x levels (if required)

Sailing Virgins Performance Course

Who is a Performance Course for?

We started our school with the belief that people under 50 want a sailing experience that is more athletic, more exhilarating than your typical cruising course. Our strong growth last year and perfect five-star ratings on Tripadvisor, Google and Facebook, making us the highest rated sailing school on the planet, suggests we’re onto something. Here is a bit more information about us.

This course follows our guiding principle, that sailing is one of the most exhilarating, athletic things you can do. Sailing courses are often held on tired old cruising boats. We have a Pogo. This thing is fast. Designed by Finot-Conq, the Pogo 12.5 is the boy-racer of monohulls. 15 or more knots is to be expected on a week in this part of the world: the mecca for offshore racers.

How many people can go on a course?

On this boat we can take five students. We have a senior instructor for the week, making sure everyone gets both boat and instructor time.

Who is the instructor?

Your instructor is Hugo Picard, known as The Sailing Frenchman on YouTube (with over 100K subscribers). Hugo has run race boats for Clipper, instructed in the Caribbean, raced single-handed in races leading up to the mini-Transat and is an unflappable, inspirational human. We love Hugo at Sailing Virgins – we all agree he’s pretty much the coolest person we know.

To be a Sailing Virgins instructor you need to have at least two seasons as a lead skipper for The Yacht Week in the Med and Caribbean, plus have at least a couple of ocean crossings under the belt. Our instructors can sail like nobody’s business. And they can get on with anyone and everyone.

Catamarans or monohulls for speed?

We like them both. The spoiler here is that it’s not about the boat so much as the crew. Nevertheless they have their pros and cons. While cats are normally faster, a Pogo will beat all but the fastest cats (one of the few who can beat it is the TS42, which we sail in our Performance Cat Course). We cover the difference in more detail here.

I still need convincing. Why Sailing Virgins?

To see if we are a fit for each other, check this page.

Additional information

Months	June

This itinerary is subject to change based on conditions.

Day 1 – Saturday 3:00pm

Today’s destination: La Rochelle. Today you will meet your instructor and fellow students, get onboard the Pogo and receive briefings, ready for pushing out in the morning.

Day 2 – Sunday

Today’s destination: Les Sables d’Olonne. Les Sables d’Olonne channel is part of the Brittany legend: this is the stretch from which the Vendée Globe racers begin the epic race and then return three months later, after having sailed around the world nonstop. It is also a good place to practice docking and for the offshore racing tragics, to have a look at some very nice boats (aka boat porn).

Day 3 – Monday

Today’s destination: Ile d’Yeu. Here is a nice little island good overnight stop at anchor if conditions allow, possibly in the harbour. During the day you will be refining your trimming and reefing being coached by Hugo to find those extra half-knots of speed in the boat.

Day 4 – Tuesday

Today’s destination: Belle Ile. During the day you will visit Houat and Hoedic Islands, providing great navigation challenges around the rocks of the area. In the evening, the appropriately named little island provides a great overnight stop, offering great food in local restaurants. You also have the possibility to rent bicycles and explore the island.

Day 5 – Wednesday

Today’s destination: La Trinité sur Mer. A lovely little bay in a sheltered harbour. As well as working on passage planning, you will be able to experience Brittany at its finest.

Day 6 – Thursday

Today’s destination: Golfe du Morbihan. Getting in here requires a few planets to align (figuratively and literally: it needs the right tide). This is also a good option to explore by feet/bicycle if people want to stretch their legs. During the day you will make a stop at Les Glénans: with blue water like in the Caribbean but in Bretagne. When Hugo was asked he gave his pithy response in favour: “shitloads of rocks and current makes it worth to go have a beer there”. That’s why we love you Hugo.

Day 7 – Friday

Today’s destination: Lorient. Today is an early start as we make our way to finish the week in the legendary port of Lorient, home to IMOCAs, ULTIMs and Class 40, and the throbbing heart of offshore racing. In the afternoon if you have any ASA exams, this is when you will sit them. In the evening you will get together with your new best friends for a final bash in the restaurants and bars of the village.