The yole races
The yawl is the business of a whole people," said Aimé Césaire, and indeed, yawl regattas go far beyond the sporting or event-related dimension. Gradually abandoned as a fishing boat with the arrival of a more modern, motorized fleet, the yawl owes its survival to the conservation movement set up by the fishermen themselves, who organized the first races. Since 1985, the yawl races have been a major sporting and cultural event, taking place every year in July, with a dozen boats competing over a period of five to seven days, in stages around the island.
An ancestral tradition
The history of the yawl goes back to the time of the first Amerindian navigators, who criss-crossed the islands of the Caribbean arc to travel and fish. The same type of craft can be found on other Caribbean islands, as well as in Brazil. At the time, yawls were light boats, with sails or oars, inherited from African pirogues and made from gum trees. The yawl was inspired by this typical Caribbean tree known as "bwa fouyé" (hollowed wood). The trunk was hollowed out and carved, producing a light, fast canoe.
But fishermen realized that the gum tree was unstable and becoming rarer on the island, so they began to build a different kind of craft: a fishing canoe, with a flat bottom for stability, enabling them to increase the sail area and sail further. Over time, the technique improved and these boats became yawls, the result of a blend of naval techniques from different components, giving rise to a fishing boat around 6.50 meters long, narrow, light and round-cut for greater stability on the water. A boat without a keel, steered by an oar! A real technical feat.
The construction of a yawl requires unique know-how, stemming from a tradition inherited from marine carpenters. As in all shipbuilding, the yawl has a keel, a stem and a stern, as well as rounded ribs that give the yawl its name of "round yawl", and to which the planks are attached for watertight sealing.
The technique of yawl construction cannot be improvised. It's the result of ancestral know-how, passed down orally by a handful of initiates through an apprenticeship that's akin to "compagnonnage" and often family-based, without the aid of any plans or models: it's all in the heads of these marine carpenters, the only ones who know the yawl's well-kept manufacturing secrets! These craftsmen of the sea need all the know-how they've inherited from their ancestors to create a hull with pure lines and a large square sail with no ballast.
The wood is cut according to the lunar cycle, which has a proven influence on the sap's path. So, you have to wait for the sap to go down before you can cut the wood used to make the yawl. It takes two to three months to build a skiff! And all without a plan.
A symbol of Martinican know-how
On their way home from their daily fishing trips, it was not uncommon for fishermen to organize friendly competitions between themselves to see who could get to port first. Over the years, the yawl's hull was modified to create an ever-faster craft. From a purely utilitarian boat, the yawl became a competitive object, a sport unique in the world and typical of Martinique. And so, in 1985, the Tour de la Martinique des Yoles Rondes was born, offering a unique spectacle of light boats with colorful sails racing between the island's various ports. The yawl became a symbol, and the regatta an intense moment that today mobilizes tens of thousands of Martinicans.
At the same time, the yawl became more professional. No longer completely round, they became a little flatter and slightly raised at the edges, to combine stability and speed. For a long time made from Martinique wood (the only material authorized for yawl construction is solid wood), notably pearwood, yawls today are mainly made from white mahogany or Guiana wood. The wood used is generally imported, pre-treated and lighter, to increase speed. The mast, located at the very front of the boat, is usually made of ribbed wood, but as this wood is becoming rarer in Martinique, it is now being replaced by a carbon mast.
In addition to its unique construction process, the yawl requires special navigation techniques, based on a spirit of association and collaboration. The boat's captain, or "boss", is, as it should be, sole master on board. He's surrounded by helper skippers and an outhaul man, responsible for the "lines" connected to the sail's "clews". It's he who eases the sail or, on the contrary, tacks it, depending on the wind's speed and strength. Next come the "bwa dressés" or training crew. Their role is to balance the yawl according to the strength of the wind, by perching spectacularly on posts outside the planking.
All these specific features led the Fédération des Yoles Rondes de la Martinique, responsible for defending and promoting the craft, to obtain recognition for the Martinique round yawl, which has become a strong symbol of the island. A move that has borne fruit, as the yole was recognized as a sporting discipline, then included in France's national inventory of intangible cultural heritage in 2017. Since January 2021, the yole has also been listed in the Unesco register of "good practices for safeguarding intangible heritage".
More than just an accreditation, this recognition is a reminder of the invaluable know-how of the Martiniquais, so that it can be safeguarded and passed on to future generations.
