The Grand Pavois de La Rochelle is an international boat show in the water. During one week, visitors can discover new products, and even test boats at sea. The show is punctuated by events that punctuate the week.
The last weekend is reserved for the Grand Pavois Fishing competition in which I participated this year 2022 under the colors of April Marine.
The atypical choice of the helmsman boat
Bass fishing competitions are almost always played with semi-rigid boats. I chose to participate with my helmsman, a Bénéteau Barracuda 7 powered by a Suzuki 200 hp outboard engine.
It is fully equipped with Simrad electronics: Chirp and Structure Scan 3D sounders, C-Map GPS mapping, radar, remote autopilot, VHF AIS radio.
I also use my Windows 10 tablet with TimeZero Pro v4 (formerly Maxsea) navigation software for home preparation, navigation and real-time bathymetry at sea.
This boat is clearly not the fastest boat to reach the spots, but it is definitely the most comfortable boat to sail in the dry while having a coffee. It has a port and starboard gangway for fishing around the wheelhouse.
Heavy logistics for transport
Participating in this competition requires a lot of logistics. This year, I participated in only one international competition in England ( Sea Angling Classic ) by leaving by sea from my home port to cover 110 miles. But from Dieppe to La Rochelle, the Barracuda 7 must be transported by road.
Since my dear Clio and its 250.000 km on the odometer is not willing to tow the boat, I called Opel Dieppe, distributor of many brands. I was lucky enough to be able to use the Isuzu D'Max N60 series to tow the 2.2 ton Barracuda 7 including the load. The maximum towable load is 3.5 tons. The total weight (the GVWR) must not exceed 6 tons as required by the regulations, but this 4x4 is capable of much more, it is a monster of power.
The trailer is a Sun Way Galaxy GD16 double-axle. I put the boat on the trailer using the harbor cranes to avoid damaging my through-hull probe, which would require the trailer to be completely submerged.
By the way, it is interesting to ask the crane operator the weight of your boat, it will give you a valuable indication of your weight in load with all the fishing gear and the various equipment. As far as I am concerned, we are on a convoy just under the limit of the BE license, but it's ok. I'm ready to hit the road, let's go to La Rochelle !
We arrived on Wednesday at the port of Les Minimes in La Rochelle, ready to ensure the reports, the meetings, the interviews and the prefishing. A beautiful weekend awaits us!
