And Don’t Forget About “Wrong Way” VDH…: Solo sailor Jean Luc Van Den Heede is on his last chart (North Atlantic, which will take him all the way home to France) and should cross the Equator (it will be his 15th time) to regain the northern hemisphere tomorrow. He’s been plagued by lightish airs the past two days, and for once has been losing miles to current record holder Philippe Monnet. But he’s sitting on a big fat 25 day lead, and is expecting a fast crossing of the Doldrums. VDH is 105 days in–that’s a long, long time at sea–and must be ready for a real shower. For the moment he’s waxing philosophical about the vagaries of the weather, which is the only way to avoid being driven insane if you are trying to break records on the water:

“Living like this, relying totally on the weather and the sea, teaches you a little to believe in fate. What is there to do about it? It also teaches you to be humble, because in front of nature, all you can do is try to adapt, even if with Pierre Lasnier, we are attempting to find the best route possible.”

VDH has about 3500 miles to go, so he could get home in about 3 weeks if he’s not attacked by a giant squid…



VDH Is Shrinking The Globe…