The Purple Ribbon for monohulls and the Blue Ribbon for multihulls are undoubtedly the most prestigious challenges on Lake Geneva. They are awarded to boats capable of beating the absolute time record for completing the Geneva-LeBouveret-Geneva course. Until now, gliders had never taken part in this adventure, but the advent of foilers has changed all that. Two student kiters from Lausanne took the plunge. Not only have they ushered in a new era of record-hunting, they have literally smashed the previous reference time of 4h30 held since 2014 by the flying catamaran Hydros.ch.
Text: Quentin Mayerat
Marius de Mourgues and Marcin Kroczak had in mind a circumnavigation of Lake Geneva by kitefoil. This ambitious idea was also on the mind of Thierry Langenberger, President of the
When these young people told me about their project, I immediately wanted to help them. We’d wanted to create this record for a long time,” he says. I asked the Geneva Nautical Society, which already hosts the Purple and Blue Ribbons, to include our machines in the rules. Unfortunately, the rules only allow for sailing boats eligible for the Bol d’Or, and therefore exclude kites. Our association therefore took the initiative of creating its own record: the Orange Ribbon.
Nice kiss
In no time at all, a set of rules was drawn up and the course mapped out, taking into account the ban on kitesurfing in the Geneva harbor. Around 1 p.m. on July 8, the stars aligned. The wind conditions were ideal for a first attempt. A safety boat piloted by Thierry Langenberger is chartered. Leaving from the beach at Le Vengeron (GE), the two friends set off at five-minute intervals, both with 11 m2 Ozone R1 V4 wings. Marius de Mourgues opened up an early lead, passing the halfway mark at Le Bouveret with a relative gap of 7 minutes. He increased his lead on the descent of the lake, with an ultra-strong trajectory and peak speeds of 33 knots, compared with Marcin’s 31 knots.
The breezy conditions throughout the day led to an incredible finish. Marius de Mourgues literally smashed the Ruban Bleu reference time, setting a time of 3 hours 40 minutes and 56 seconds, while Marcin Kroczak completed the course 13 minutes later.
Single-handed and with limited resources, the kiters succeeded in far surpassing the performance of the windsurfing crews. This is sure to inspire other kite enthusiasts who may be tempted by the adventure. The Association Romande de Kite will support this new challenge and hopes to see it grow,” explains Thierry Langenberger. That’s why
that’s why we’re offering a prize money of CHF 1,000, but it would be interesting to expand this envelope with a few sponsors.” So, in the future, Lake Geneva, Europe’s second largest lake, could well see some of the big names in foiling arrive to win the already mythical Orange Ribbon.