JV Update–Et Tu, Cheyenne?: Now we know why setting the non-stop round-the-world sailing record is so hard. Sailing that fast, for that long, in conditions that rough, is just brutal on the boats and gear. Last night, as Cheyenne’s crew was preparing for a midnight gybe, someone noticed that the headstay–which is just slightly important when it comes to keeping the mast standing–was, errr, disconnected. Imagine what that will do to your heart rate. Luckily, the crew got the 150-foot mast secured before it came tumbling down, a catastrophic event that could easily have taken out some body parts. Fossett ordered the boat toward Cape Town, South Africa, 1000 downwind miles away.

Fossett comments:

“We recognize that our attempt may be finished, but the crew is gamely trying to find a solution. The mast has now been secured with spare halyards but this configuration is only strong enough for moderate downwind sailing. We actually cannot see the forestay because it is inside the roller foils and the furled solent. Next step is to remove the Solent and lower the Forestay/Furling apparatus to the trampoline. The best case is that a fitting has come unscrewed and the forestay can be reconnected. Hope is slim…We should know by the end of the day on Monday if we must retire from the Round the World Record attempt.”

The break happened in a good spot if it had to happen, south-southwest of Cape Town. Cheyenne can head for port, but at the same time try to fix the problem. And if they somehow pull that feat off, they are not far off the record track and can resume their attempt in decent shape. Still, this is a real shame. Cheyenne and her crew had been doing everything right. They overcame poor winds at the start, they kept pushing, and by the time the headstay parted they had put up their biggest daily run (about 580 miles), had stretched out to a 500-mile lead on Orange’s 2002 record pace, and were starting to revel in fast Southern Ocean sailing conditions. So where we once had three maxi-multihulls racing around the world we now have…none. Okay, that’s the bad news. The good news is that two of them, Orange II and Geronimo, are back in port in France working their asses off to get ready to take off again. Geronimo has its defective gennakers at the loft, and Olivier De K is standing behind the sailmakers with a shotgun (okay, TWC made this last part up). And Orange II is in Lorient, gluing new bows in place. Bruno Peyron is talking about another weather window on Feb. 26 if the repairs can be completed in time. Maybe Geronimo will be ready then, too. So, swallow your disappointment and sit tight. Fossett is probably done. But the racing is not over…yet.



“Hey Steve, can I please come down now? It’s just not as much fun up here without a headstay…..”

(Photo: Nick Leggatt)

Have A Wetass Weekend…:

Jules Verne Jumble–Orange Peeled: Well, TWC proves prescient. “Technical incident” was in fact a euphemism for “Holy Merde, the bow fell off”–in this case the false bow on the starboard hull. The big maxi-cats are built with breakaway sections on their bows–called “crash boxes”–so if they hit something at 30 knots they can keep sailing and don’t end up with a hull full of water, which would almost certainly pull the boat apart. Getting these sacrificial bows right is very tricky engineering. They have to be built light enough to break off on impact, but not so light they just fall off as they smack through the waves at high speed. Bruno Peyron says he is positive that the boat did not hit anything, that the crew would have felt the impact, so it appears that the crash boxes on both bows need to be rebuilt and reinforced, which is exactly what Peyron plans to do. “If we had been in the middle of the Pacific, the question of turning back would not even have been mentioned. But in that case, after only one day at sea, it would not have been reasonable to carry on, knowing we had the possibility to come back easily,” he said in a radio interview. Interestingly, this is exactly the same problem the previous generation of maxi-cats designed and built by Multiplast suffered. “Club Med” lost a bow crossing the Atlantic, and then-skipper Grant Dalton had to get into a screaming match with designer Gilles Ollier–who kept insisting that the boat must have hit something–to get the plans to the boat so he could rebuild and strengthen the bows. That process took Dalton and Club Med weeks, but Peyron hopes that Orange II will be back at the yard by Sunday, and that the bows can be rebuilt in just 2 or 3 days. TWC is skeptical, but Peyron has gone through this before. In 2002, Orange I set out and lost the top of her mast. Peyron returned to port, fixed the mast, and set off again…to set the current record. If things work out correctly, maybe Peyron and De Kersauson can bring their boats to the start line at the same time, and race head to head around the world. Would be great, or what? Come on guys, throw us a frickin’ bone here…



It Doesn’t Look Like This Anymore…

(Photo: James Boyd, The Daily Sail)

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…

TWC News Flash–Orange Oops: Two down, one left sailing. After her blistering opening day run, Bruno Peyron and Orange II have turned around to go home. The reason? An unexplained “technical incident” (usually a euphemism for something like: “Holy Sh*t, the bow broke off…”) suffered at 30 knots. Whatever it was, it was serious enough to undermine Orange II’s chances of a new record. So, high-ho, high-ho, it’s back to port they go….Fossett is now all alone on the big blue ocean, with his French rivals nursing their boats toward the yard. Orange II and Geronimo will get back out there, but the later they leave the nastier the weather in the Southern Ocean will be. Sea-trialing a monster cat on a world voyage is not for the faint of heart (or for the sane), but at least Orange II broke before Peyron and his boys got too far out there. More details as they emerge…if they emerge…



“Hey, Bruno, I can’t get this thing to sail flat. Maybe it was a mistake to stow all our supplies in one hull….”

Jules Verne Jumble–Fossett, Orange, Orange, Fossett…: Steve Fossett and “Cheyenne” have finally passed the ghost of “Orange I”. After 12 days of sailing, and a very slow start they are now ahead of the existing record-holder’s 2002 record pace. Not very far ahead, and their lead could evaporate again in the next few days as they work their way through the tricky light airs of the South Atlantic High and try to hook into the massive Southern Ocean low pressure systems that parade around Antarctica. But a lead is a lead, and at least they know they are in the fight. Mostly Fossett is focused on “Orange I,” but there’s no doubt that he is also looking over his shoulder at “Orange II,” Orange I’s new bigger, badder brother, which is showing some serious power. In the first day at sea, Bruno Peyron and the 120-foot cat covered 554 miles compared with Fossett’s first day of just 342 miles. “Orange II” has some tricky weather coming up this weekend, but if they get lucky they’ll be at the Equator in under 7 days (Fossett took more than 8). Fossett likes to hang on to records, but he likes to set them even more. So even if “Orange II” manages to take away any record Fossett might set, Fossett will consider his voyage a success as long as he holds the world record for a few weeks. And soon “Orange II” and Peyron will be looking over their shoulders. Olivier De K and “Geronimo” are due back in Brest later this week, and are already looking for a new weather window to set off in after they make their sail repairs, hopefully in the next two weeks. With these two fast boats behind them, looking to steal any glory they might win, what does the crew of “Cheyenne” do to relax? They read (when they have a few minutes) and navigator Adrienne Cahalan conducted an onboard survey to see what books each crew brought along. Here’s what she discovered….

Moose (Mike Beasley): ‘The Brethren’ by John Grisham and Captain Cook ‘Into the Blue: Boldly going where Captain Cook has gone before’ by Tony Horowitz. Why? One for fiction and one is a bit of history Moose can relate to.

Fraser Brown: Lance Armstrong ‘Every Second Counts’ Why? That’s obvious Fraser tells me.

Jacques Vincent: ‘The God of Small Things’ Jacques says he is not sure who it is written by but everybody knows who, Jacques says. Why? He has been 2 years trying to read the book but he will not give up and thought he will have some time on this trip. He is currently at page 26.

Dave Scully: Jonathan Livingston Seagull. Why? Retro inspirational

Damian Foxall: No book brought due to weight constraints and everyone else will bring one anyway. (Well that’s the wrong attitude we all think because what if no one bought a book?).

Mark Featherstone: No book brought either but says if he had he would have bought a book about venture capital he’s reading as he is on the last chapter.

Brian Thompson: ‘One Hit Wonderland’ a comedy book. Why? Wants to keep it all light hearted.

Guillermo Altadill: Guillermo say he pulled some book off the shelf which is in Spanish – and about a drug deal. (G never likes to give away too much information).

Nick Leggatt: ‘Seabirds: Identification and Guide’ by Peter Harrison. Why? What little time he has spare he wants to spend on something educational. (!)

Steve Fossett: ‘What Went Wrong, Western Impact and Middle Eastern Response’ by Bernard Lewis, ‘Round the World Flights’ by C.V. Glines, and ‘Wings of Madness: Alberto Santos Dumont and the Invention of Flight’ by Paul Hoffman. No need to ask ‘why’ there.

Whirley (Paul Van Dyke): ‘Sacred Hoops’ Phil Jackson (it¹s about the Chicago Bulls, coaching and basketball).

Justin Slattery: Only joined the boat with 24 hours notice so didn’t have time to get a book.

Adrienne Cahalan: ‘A History of Western Philosophy’ by Bertrand Russell. Why? Guaranteed never to get to the end of it and had it since 1989 so about time to try and get through it. After 11 days (actually 14 years really) I am still just into the introduction.”

TWC bets that it’s the Grisham that will get the most severe workout….



Adventurous Adrienne: “Hmmm, 65 days with twelve very smelly guys. At least they can read….”

(Photo: Nick Legatt)

Annals of Adventure–Leave It to The Poles: Polish sailor Roman Paszke and his 9-man crew are on their way to a new world record for sailing non-stop around the world in a fully crewed monohull….unless they sink the boat. As mentioned yesterday, no one has ever gone after this record so Paszke and his former Volvo Ocean racer, Bank BPH, will set the benchmark as long as they finish. If they get around in one piece they’ll probably get to enjoy their world record for about a year. Why? Because next winter Bob Miller and his massive 140-foot schooner, without doubt the fastest ocean racing monohull on the planet, will be sailing the same route and hoping to become the first monohull ever to best the Jules Verne threshold of 80 days. Paszke and Bank BPH have no hope of hitting 80 days, but they had better beat singlehander Michel Desjoyeaux’s 93-day solo, non-stop mark. The 60-footer Paszke bought for the attempt was designed to be at sea up to about 30 days in the Volvo Ocean races, so it has been modified to prepare it for a voyage three times as long. Paszke is a TWC favorite, the original Polish Wetass. He’s a world class sailor, and participated in The Race in the smallest multihull in the fleet. He and his Polish crew became fan favorites with their jolly take on temperatures in the Southern Ocean (“Have you ever been in Gdansk in February?” they laughed), their enthusiasm for the freeze dried food (which reflected poorly on their native cuisine), and their plucky determination to beat the odds (despite being nailed by an 80-knot gale off Cape Horn) and finish. Unfortunately, they hit something off Brazil and holed a hull, and had to put into port for repairs, ending their quixotic quest. So, if the past is prologue, this record attempt will be worth watching, if only for the exuberant spirit that Paszke and his crews always seem to exhibit…..



“Remember, Roman, I only promised to sit on this rail for 90 days if you bought French freeze-dried cuisine….”

(Photo: Thierry Martinez)

Annals of Hype–Disney Defrocked: Disney is currently pumping its new movie, “Hidalgo,” the story of an American cowboy who takes his trusty steed Hidalgo all the way to Arabia to take on the best of the best in the 3,000 mile “Ocean of Fire” endurance race across the Arabian Peninsula. You can guess the ending. Desperate for box office success, the studio suits are claiming their movie is based on the true story of one Frank T. Hopkins. Except there is one little problem. According to the L.A. Times, Hopkins was a fraud and the story of Hidalgo is bull…I mean horsesh*t:

“There’s another take on the hero of the coming-soon movie “Hidalgo”: Frank T. Hopkins was not the greatest long-distance rider ever to jab his toe into a stirrup. Not even close. He was a counterfeit cowboy and gifted spinner of Old West yarns who lived in the industrial East and worked as a subway tunnel digger, harbor diver and circus horse handler. Disney may tout “Hidalgo” as “based on a true story,” but, according to a headstrong posse of fact-finders, the only thing Hopkins ever galloped across was the vast plains of his imagination.”

Ooops (“Get me marketing!”) Of course, no movie studio ever let the facts get in the way of a good story. And maybe even bad publicity is good publicity, in a box-office boosting sort of way. If the doubters are correct, Hopkins was a world class con artist, who also claimed to have ridden with Teddy Roosevelt and to have starred in Buffalo Bill’s Wild West show. Come to think of it, the true story of Frank T. Hopkins sounds a lot more interesting than the rosy myth Disney is promoting to separate children from their lawn mower money. Maybe they should have made a movie about that…



Hyperventilating Hopkins: “So I said to the Sheik, if I beat your nags in the “Ocean of Fire” you have to give me some of those pretty young wives over there. And make ’em virgins…”

Jules Verne Scrum–Fossett has Company Again: Orange II crossed the start line in the English Channel this morning, with a much better weather outlook for the first week than Fossett enjoyed. Instead of working the spanking new boat up carefully over a period of months, Peyron and his crew are basically sea-trialling it on a round the world voyage. It’s risky, and the boat could easily start falling apart, but Peyron knows more about these giant multihulls than just about any sailor in the world so he could pull it off. Meanwhile, down in the South Atlantic, Fossett and Cheyenne have been slowed a bit by lighter winds. They are still within a few hours of Orange I’s 2002 record pace, and are getting to a spot where Orange I was really slow. So if Fossett is lucky, he could be ahead of the record by the end f the week. If he’s not, he’s still got two-thirds of the globe to try and catch up. What’s it like onboard? Here’s a Scully update:

“Sail, eat, sail, sleep, sail, how can you beat it?” asks crewmember Damian Foxall. Well, it can take a little out of you, too. Since yesterday’s festivities, we have been close reaching in stiffish trades. The boat is working hard, bucking like a mechanical bull as she drives through the frothy blue crests.

We are walking the fine line between making time, and pushing the boat beyond her limits. It was a beautiful night’s sailing, the stillnes of the stars and the horned moon counter-pointed by the spray shattering rush of the boat’s progress.

Reefing, unreefing, changing headsails, we need to get some longer daily runs in while the going is good.

No word on a restart date for Geronimo, but it could be as soon as next week. And just to make the course a little more crowded, a Polish crew is setting out today in a 60-foot monohull to set the first non-stop, fully crewed monohull mark. Non one has ever bothered to go after this one before, so even if it takes them a year they’ll have the record (at least for a little while). More details to come….



Peyron with a New Boat, New Record Attempt: “This thing better make it through at least the first week without falling into pieces….”

Annals of Oceanography–What The Hell Is This?!: It was 40 feet long. It weighed 13 tons. And it washed up on a beach in Chile last July. And no one could figure out just what it was. For a while the scientific community got all excited because it was thought The Blob might be the remains of the intriguing, elusive and rarely seen Giant Squid. Or perhaps the world’s largest piece of bubble gum. But Skip Pierce, a biologist at the University of San Francisco, used electron microscopy to determine that The Blob is in fact the putrid, rotting, remains of a….sperm whale. Oh well. The hunt for the Giant, or Colossal, Squid continues…



Damn, it’s just a massive whale loogey…..

(Photo: The Oracle)