Ellen - back in the lead!
Feb 1, 2005 11: 59 EST
After losing all her advantage last week, in her 66th day out and only 658 miles to go Ellen's lead now extends to 3 days and 6 hours - her biggest lead since rounding Cape Horn over two and a half weeks ago.
Light winds ahead
Boat speeds have been averaging around 19 knots: "Looks like we've got another two days of this fast sailing, and then we're going to be heading in to the high. We'll get the sun back, but the wind will go light and we might have to gybe around the top of the high, go through all the sail changes possible, and then sail upwind to the finish."
Every muscle and joint is hurting me
"It doesn't fill with my joy to think of the sail changes to be honest. Every muscle and joint is hurting me. Hard to imagine being in much before the record at the moment, at least another week to go..."
An arrival before Monday, 7th February is looking unlikely but whatever happens MacArthur must cross the finish line off Ushant by 0704 GMT on Wednesday, 9th February to break the 72 day, 22 hour and 54 minute world speed record set by Francis Joyon.
Ellen is on a winter attempt on the world record held by Francis Joyon: Round the World, non stop, singlehanded, 72d, 22h, 54m, 22s. She crossed the start line off Ushant at 08:10:44 GMT Sunday, November 28, 2004. She will have to cross the finish line by 07:04:06 GMT on February 9, 2005.
Ellen MacArthur shot to fame when she became the fastest solo woman to sail round-the-world in 2001’s Vendee Globe. Now she has her sight set on breaking the world solo speed record over the next two years in a brand new £1.5million trimaran designed by Nigel Irens. Named Castorama B&Q, after its sponsors, the 75 ft long triple-hulled boat is built for speed, said to reach over 35 knots.
Ellen is eyeing several records including the 24-hour distance record as well as making it round-the-world fastest. Typically, trimarans are fast boats, but trickier to handle in high winds. After last year’s dismasting on her catamaran Kingfisher 2 in the Jules Verne Challenge and everything it took to come this far, Ellen is thrilled to be on the water again.
Image © Vincent Crutchet/DPPI.
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| Fedor - less than a week to go! Jun 3, 2005 | | Saito San - closing in on home and record! Jun 2, 2005 | | Atlantic Four: And they are off! Jun 1, 2005 | | Ollie - is anybody out there? May 31, 2005 | | ExplorersWeb Week in Review May 30, 2005 | | And they are off! May 27, 2005 | | Ellen gives transatlantic record a second battle May 27, 2005 | | Vagabond update - Polar bears, 200 candles and ice melting in Inglefieldbukta May 26, 2005 | | ExWeb interview - Atlantic Four: "It was all about persuading our wives" May 25, 2005 | | Iridium: "Invalid battery - matches found, 0" May 24, 2005 |
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