Corto takes second place in the Panerai Transat Classique 2012! Father Christmas had a welcome surprise in his sack for Hacène Abbar and the crew of the powerful Carter design built in 1970. Theirs was a fabulous run up to the finishing line thanks to the ferocious racing spirit of Hacène and his brother Malik, and the staunch support provided by Bruno Jourdren, the highly-prized navigator, the youthful Romain Bouchet and Damien Cloarec, risings stars of the Mini 6.50s and the Figaro, and Jean-Claude Hervy. They battled right up to the line to take second place in corrected time which, earlier, seemed destined for The Blue Peter. Less than two hours separated the boats after a full three weeks at sea! Obliged to withdraw in 2008, Corto has more than made up for the disappointment of four years ago. An hour later and the big ketch Valteam rolled into town after sundown. Short-handed, not much practice in the warm-up events and lacking any decent weather information for the latter part of the race, Valteam’s performance is worthy of our respect. The close-knit crew, under the orders of Jacques Levasseur, included Marc, Thomas, Joël, Ludovic and Jean-Marie. Their magnificent team spirit was a joy to behold and their laughter in Bridgetown infectious as they celebrated the end of their adventure into the early hours. The Panerai Transat Classique 2012 has, undoubtedly, more surprises in store as the yachts continue to arrive. The duels between Persephone, Gweneven and Croix des Gardes and, further back, Artaius, Cipango and Gimcrack, are now the focus of interest in this fine transatlantic event. And the determination of Marie des Isles also demands our admiration.