Marcel Buffet was already 32 when the Caneton 505 was introduced in 1954. 
The rapid growth of the 505 attracted many top sailors who contested the world championship starting in 1956. Marcel was one of these sailors, and with crew, P. Wolff, he won the 1959 and 1960 505 World Championship at ages 37 and 38. Buffet even dates the younger Paul Elvström, who won the 1957 & 1958 world titles with P.Poullain.

In the 1960s, Marcel occasionally raced 505s in Sweden and Germany. Pelle Båth, long-time Swedish 505 racer and past European 505 Champion, recalls:
"When ...[I] first met Marcel at Kiel Week 1965 [Marcel was 43 in '65] no one in Sweden older than 25 years of age sailed a dinghy. When we first set eyes at 'this old man' we could not believe our eyes - how does he cope.....?
Now some 35 years later, WE youngsters have all stopped sailing 505s a long time ago, but Marcel is still racing! 
Makes you think that age has nothing to do with it, does it not?"
I remember a race in the 1995 World Championship in Mounts Bay where Marcel (at age 73) was second, behind Peter Colclough and son, at the first weather mark. I recall Marcel sailing high and fast after gating early in the last race of the 1996 World Championship and forcing many competitors to tack away for clear air.

But Marcel is not just remarkable for having won two 505 World Championships or for racing 505s into his 80th year. He is also renowned for his sportsman-like conduct and winning through fair sailing, hard work, and a determination to be the best sailor he could. This was aptly pointed out by Jan Eppers at Marcel's surprise party last year. I witnessed him spending hours before racing helping other 505 sailors. He is not just the "grand old man" of the 505 class, he is also the kind of 505 sailor we should all strive to be.
Marcel is still racing 505s at 80 years of age. What will you be doing at that age?

Ali Meller

• Marcel Buffet 80th birthday party

• A surprise party for Marcel Buffet

Story of a 505 champion

Marcel Buffet has been involved with the 505 from the earliest days of the class. Racing against Paul Elvstrom and other famous sailors, he won the 1959 and 1960 World Championships.
Committed to the 505, he has raced in almost every 505 Worlds ever held, only missing a few while doing an Olympic Campaign in the Flying Dutchman. He raced the heavy air 1992 Santa Cruz 505 Worlds at 71 years of age, raced in the 1995 Mounts Bay Worlds, finishing 24rd, and the 1996 Worlds in Townsville Australia, where he was 10th in the last race.
No one has more war stories than Marcel Buffet, the ironman of the class. At 76 years old, Buffet has attended more 505 championships than any man alive or dead. He still crisscrosses Europe sailing his Five-0 more than 130 days a year. His lean, fit body and thick white mane standout like neon in a fleet of younger sailors, and yet at each event there's a moment when Buffet makes his presence known. In the penultimate race of the '98 championship, he rounded the first mark in tenth and nabbed three boats at the jibe mark as he nailed a crisp jibe, hopped in the straps and planed over the pack.
He figures he's driven 2.5 million kilometers with his boat behind his car, road tripping to the next event. He works out at least three days a week at the health club, swimming or biking for an hour. And each year he ships his boat to the far reaches of the planet for the world championship. Why? When asked, he flashes the smile of a man who delights in the questions of a child and says, "The 505 is the perfect boat."
 

In the small 5o5 World, Marcel Buffet is a legend. World Champion in 1959 and 1960, he is about to race the 36th World at the age of 76. With his white hair and his face drawn by the sea itself, he does not look like a beginner. And so he is not since he finished 5th overall of the French Open Championship in Morgat at the age of 75 and he is looking forward to race the next World in Denmark. Famous sailor in the dinghy world he is the oldest sailor racing the event. He is well respected by his peers. "I started sailing the 5o5 in 1957. My helm did not like light breeze and one day he let me steer the boat thinking that I would keep quieter and do better than him. He was just about right".

This is the way he became World champion (in 59) - title he managed to keep in 1960 - after Jacques Lebrun and Paul Elvstrom. "To become World champion, one must not only pick the right boat and the right set of sails, in addition one must bring something new. Beyond the fact that I was out sailing every day, whatever the weather conditions, I was first to use a compass on a dinghy. At the beginning, everyone was laughing at me and thought I did not know where I was on the course". These raillery did not last for long since it was so efficient ; and soon after the other competitors used it as well. Since most dinghies are using a compass.

Olympic games on the Flying Dutchman

Following his titles won on the 5o5, Marcel decided to race the Flying Dutchman. He raced this boat for three years and he was selected for the Olympic games in 1964 in Tokyo (finishing 4th overall on a broken boat). But soon after he came back to its beloved 5o5. "The 5o5 is a versatile boat which allows to sail in different sorts of windshifts. It turns out to be very tactical and it gives great feelings and fun".
Since then he is faithful to this dinghy and he is about to race the 36th World championship. "I am no longer a top competitor, and per say far from the top, I am sailing in the middle of the pack. Competition keeps me young and fit though."

The only thing this old "Loup de mer" (experienced sailorman) regrets about the 5o5 is that this boat is not regarded as well as she should be in France. Where she is sailed in the UK, the USA, Australia and in more than ten other countries, the 5o5 does not get a similar success among the french. The 5o5 is currently one of the best dinghy despite she was designed in 1954 by the English architect John Westell.
To the happy few...

Marcel Buffet : A 5o5 fan
 

Histoire d'un champion de 505

Dans le petit monde du 505, Marcel Buffet est une figure pour le moins légendaire. Champion en 1959 et 1960, il s'apprète, à 75 ans, à participer au 36e championnat du monde. Portrait d'un vieux loup de mer. Cheveux blancs, le visage dessiné par la mer, Marcel Buffet n'a pas le profil d'un débutant. Et pour cause, à 75 ans, le regard tourné vers le large, il s'est classé cinquième (!) au championnat international de France de 505 à Morgat, en attendant les championnats du monde qui se dérouleront mi-août au Danemark. Figure légendaire du dériveur, il reste le doyen de la compétition, respecté par ses pairs. «J'ai débuté le 505 en 1957. Mon barreur détestait le petit temps, et un jour il m'a donné la barre, pensant que je resterais plus calme que lui. Il avait raison».

Et c'est ainsi que deux ans plus tard, il devint champion du monde -un titre qu'il conserva en 1960- succédant alors au palmarès à Jacques Le Brun et Paul Elvstrom. «Pour devenir champion du monde, il faut tout d'abord bien choisir son bateau et ses voiles, mais il faut surtout apporter quelque chose de nouveau. Hormis le fait que je m'entraînais tous les jours, quel que soit le temps, j'ai surtout été le premier à utiliser un compas de route en dériveur. Au début, on m'a pris pour quelqu'un qui ne savait pas où il était, et on se moquait de moi». Des moqueries qui ne durèrent qu'un temps, car devant son incontestable supériorité, les autres concurrents l'imitèrent quelques années plus tard. Depuis, les dériveurs sont équipés de compas.

Les JO de Tokyo en Flying Dutchman

Suite à ces titres remportés en 505, il décide de se consacrer au Flying Dutchman. Durant trois ans, il naviguera sur ce type de bateau, et sera même sélectionné pour les JO de Tokyo en 1964. Mais il reviendra rapidement à ses premières amours. «Le 505 est un bateau évolutif qui permet de jouer avec les différents courants de vent. C'est un véritable jeu tactique, procurant des sensations formidables».
Depuis, il reste fidèle au dériveur, et s'apprête à participer à ces 36e championnats du monde. «Je ne suis plus au top niveau, loin de là, mais je suis désormais au milieu du classement mondial. La compétition me permet de rester jeune et de garder la forme».

Seule ombre au tableau du 505, d'après ce vieux loup de mer, le désintérêt dont il fait l'objet dans l'hexagone. En effet, pratiqué en Angleterre, en Australie, aux États-Unis, et dans une dizaine d'autres pays, le 505 ne connaît pas le même engouement chez les Français. Il est pourtant considéré comme l'un des meilleurs dériveurs à l'heure actuelle, et ce malgré son âge (il a été créé en 1954 par l'architecte anglais John Westell). Alors, avis aux amateurs.

Marcel Buffet : un passionné du 505
 

Svenska 505 Förbundet

Uppdaterad 2009-08-22