Kite

V and B is a Class40 designed by Sam Manuard and built by a yard in La Trinité-sur-Mer (JPS). She was launched on 21 August 2015 and carries class hull number 144. Maxime Sorel raced her from the 2015 Transat Jacques Vabre, with the designer on board: the pair finished second in Itajaí, less than two hours behind the winner.

In 2016 the boat collided with a cargo ship off Penmarc'h during the Transat anglaise, forcing Sorel to retire. She then finished eighth in the Transat Québec-Saint-Malo and third in the Normandy Channel Race with Hugo Dhallenne. In 2017 she was third in the Grand Prix Guyader and the Normandy Channel Race, and won the Rolex Fastnet Race.

Her greatest success came in November 2017: with Antoine Carpentier, Maxime Sorel won the Transat Jacques Vabre by only 18 minutes over Aïna Enfance et Avenir. On the way the boat set a Class40 24-hour distance record (377 miles) and beat the Le Havre–Salvador de Bahia record held since 2007 by Telecom Italia.

In 2018 V and B broke a rudder on a floating object during the 1000 Milles des Sables, then was dismasted in her first Route du Rhum in November and had to be shipped home from the Canaries by cargo.

In 2020 the boat took the Kite colours and was sailed by Greg Leonard. She finished 29th in the 2022 Route du Rhum at Pointe-à-Pitre and 12th in the 2023 RORC Caribbean 600.