Competitive Sailing Meets Coastal Science at the Transat Café l’OR in Le Havre
Members of the TransEurope Marinas (TEM) network recently convened in Le Havre for a marvellous opportunity to blend competitive sailing with marine research. The visit coincided with the Transat Café L’OR Le Havre Normandie race village, providing a dynamic and high-profile backdrop for discussions on the future of citizen science in coastal environments.
Thanks to the generous support of Harbour Master Julien Lebas of Le Havre Plaisance, the visiting TEM delegation, including representatives from Vrije Noordzee Zeilers (VNZ) from Blankenberge (BE), received some truly VIP treatment. This included an exclusive guided RIB boat tour around the Bassin Paul Vatine, offering an up-close look and some fascinating stories surrounding the impressive race fleet of IMOCAs, Ocean 50s and Class 40s moored in Port Vauban. Rob Vanderburgh, harbour master of VNZ Blankenberge, expressed his gratitude to fellow member Julien Lebas, describing the experience as “truly fantastic” and highlighting the vibrant atmosphere of the racing village, which attracts some half a million visitors.
Ifremer’s LandSeaLot stand at the race village, and ocean sensor meeting.
The main focus of the gathering was a meeting and awareness campaign for the LandSeaLot project, in which TransEurope is a partner. Hosted by Ifremer (the French Research Institute for Exploitation of the Sea), within Le Havre University, the meeting featured an inspiring presentation by Ifremer’s Romeric Verney describing his work testing some cost-effective environmental sensors designed for gathering data within marinas.
Ifremer maintained a prominent presence at the race village, using two stands to inform visitors about both the LandSeaLot project and the Phenomer project, with which Le Havre Plaisance is already collaborating, by facilitating sampling kits to boaters who detect potential harmful algal blooms. Le Havre, located together with other TransEurope Marinas members within the Seine Estuary and Bay LandSeaLot Integration Lab, is set to start hosting ocean sensors next year and is preparing to feature the topic at their upcoming berth-holder meetings and community events, marking a positive step toward integrating environmental data collection into marina operations.
Harbour Master Julien Lebas, while assuring the safety of the race fleet, took the time to share local requirements and underscore why incorporating the new sensor technology would be beneficial for Le Havre Plaisance. The collaboration in Le Havre demonstrates the growing convergence of the leisure boating community with essential marine scientific monitoring.
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