Friday, February 13, 2004
TWC News Flash 2--Geronimo Out: Easy come, easy go. Just as we are about to get Orange II out there, Olivier De K announces that "Geronimo" has turned around and abandoned her record attempt. The big tri is heading back to Brest, the victim of sail problems. Seems that 2 of the 3 gennakers (a headsail critical for light and medium winds) Geronimo was carrying blew out in the past few days, apparently due to a defect in the way they were built since 2 of the 3 were brand new. That's the way it goes with Jules Verne record attempts. Only 4 out of 13 have succeeded since multihull sailors started to try to break the 80-day barrier in 1993. Still, I wouldn't want to be the guy at the loft when De Kersauson comes storming in. TWC assumes Geronimo will try to restart, though it's not clear what sort of spares De Kersauson has ashore, or how quickly the defective sails can be repaired. Stay tuned...
Disappointed De Kersauson: "F*cking sailmakers......"
Disappointed De Kersauson: "F*cking sailmakers......"
TWC News Flash--Orange II Goes Code Orange: It just keeps getting better...Bruno Peyron has just announced that he and his weather router--"Clouds" Badham, one of the world's best--have spotted a a potential weather window for this coming Monday. If it holds up, Peyron and his 125-foot, spanking new cat, Orange II, will set off in pursuit of Fossett and Olivier De K. So there could be three mega-multis in the global record hunt at the same time, and all within reasonable range of one another. Anything could happen. Anything. Peyron and Badham will review the situation tomorrow and make a "go/no-go" decision then. Keep your fingers crossed....
"Steve! Olivier! Better start looking over your shoulder because here I come!...Maybe."
"Steve! Olivier! Better start looking over your shoulder because here I come!...Maybe."
Annals of Adventure--Visiting Santa: This month, American Wave Vidmar (cool name, dude) will attempt to become the first American to trek solo and unsupported to the North Pole. He will leave from Russia's Artichevsky peninsula, and getting to the top of the world will require him to walk, ski and swim more than 600 miles, pulling a 350 pound sledge. If the 39-year old Wave makes it--he's aiming for 45-60 days--he will be only the third person to get to the geographical pole solo and unsupported. You can follow his polar bid here. Mountain Zone checked in with Wave before he left his hometown of San Francisco. Here are some excerpts:
MZ: You will face a variety of dangers - cold, bears, swimming arctic waters, weather - to say the least. What do you think is your greatest danger or risk?
Vidmar: The greatest danger is likely falling into the ocean and freezing/drowning to death. My greatest fear is swimming in the inky black water, with unknown killer whales (Orcas) and great white sharks. The most probable danger is frostbite and frostnip.
MZ: How safe are you sleeping at night in your tent?
Vidmar: That's a relative question. More accurate to ask what dangers will I face while sleeping. Attacks from polar bears are still likely, though I'll have a perimeter wire attached to trip flares to alert me to their presence (and hopefully scare them away). Also, the ice could crack beneath my tent and the ocean could swallow me whole. Or the ice could be rammed under or over another piece of ice.
MZ: How did you train for this trip?
Vidmar: I've been preparing for nearly a year now. Physically I have been swimming underwater, doing weights and Nautilus, bicycling, hiking, and dragging a semi-truck tire around to simulate pulling heavy sledges. Also, gaining weight has been an important part of my training. I had less than 4% body fat when I decided to go to the pole, so far I've gained over 50 lbs and another 12+% of body fat (this aspect has been the hardest for me, to gain weight).
"Welcome to my world, Wave. Oh. And thanks in advance for fattening yourself up......."
MZ: You will face a variety of dangers - cold, bears, swimming arctic waters, weather - to say the least. What do you think is your greatest danger or risk?
Vidmar: The greatest danger is likely falling into the ocean and freezing/drowning to death. My greatest fear is swimming in the inky black water, with unknown killer whales (Orcas) and great white sharks. The most probable danger is frostbite and frostnip.
MZ: How safe are you sleeping at night in your tent?
Vidmar: That's a relative question. More accurate to ask what dangers will I face while sleeping. Attacks from polar bears are still likely, though I'll have a perimeter wire attached to trip flares to alert me to their presence (and hopefully scare them away). Also, the ice could crack beneath my tent and the ocean could swallow me whole. Or the ice could be rammed under or over another piece of ice.
MZ: How did you train for this trip?
Vidmar: I've been preparing for nearly a year now. Physically I have been swimming underwater, doing weights and Nautilus, bicycling, hiking, and dragging a semi-truck tire around to simulate pulling heavy sledges. Also, gaining weight has been an important part of my training. I had less than 4% body fat when I decided to go to the pole, so far I've gained over 50 lbs and another 12+% of body fat (this aspect has been the hardest for me, to gain weight).
"Welcome to my world, Wave. Oh. And thanks in advance for fattening yourself up......."
TWC Quick Hits:
Meet Chris Kilham, Medicine Hunter: "Indiana Jones" of plant world travels globe, searches for herbal remedies, has a high ol' time firewalking and shooting blowguns...
Porn-Star Snowboards Getting Parents Hot and Bothered: Teens love 'em, Sims Snowboards sells 'em, Vivid Video star Jenna Jameson endorses 'em...
Caution: Users could experience abnormal hair growth on palms.....
Meet Chris Kilham, Medicine Hunter: "Indiana Jones" of plant world travels globe, searches for herbal remedies, has a high ol' time firewalking and shooting blowguns...
Porn-Star Snowboards Getting Parents Hot and Bothered: Teens love 'em, Sims Snowboards sells 'em, Vivid Video star Jenna Jameson endorses 'em...
Caution: Users could experience abnormal hair growth on palms.....
Have A Wetass Weekend...:
Thursday, February 12, 2004
TWC Video Extravaganza--Watch "Crazy" (you think?) Ed Lucero Kayak Over a 105-foot Waterfall: Another score for Outside Online. They've got this world record "huck" (yup, that's what it's called) on tape. The time: last summer. The place: Alexandra Falls in Canada. The previous record: 101 feet. "Crazy Ed" was sucked underneath the water at the base for a full four seconds before he emerged alive, slightly older (but probably not any smarter). Click here to watch it in Quicktime, and here if you prefer Windows Media. Don't bother if you don't have a fast connection. You need bandwidth, baby, to get the full TWC experience....
Huckster "Crazy Ed" Hits the Lip: "Hey, Ed, we're going to have to upgrade your nickname to "Insane"......
(Photo: Jed Selby via Outside)
Huckster "Crazy Ed" Hits the Lip: "Hey, Ed, we're going to have to upgrade your nickname to "Insane"......
(Photo: Jed Selby via Outside)
Jules Verne Death Match Update--Another Contender Ready at Ringside: Steve Fossett's "Cheyenne" has finally tucked into the steady trade winds and is rocketing south toward the Equator. The 125-foot maxi cat is about a day and a half off the record pace, and Fossett and his team will hope to make some of that up passing through the windless Doldrums, and then later in the Southern Ocean, where Orange had some slow days. In any case, "Cheyenne" is lucky to still have a mast. Watch captain David Scully describes the action yesterday:
"The sun rose on the sparkling sea this morning, to reveal that our rig was about to fall down. Guillermo Altadill, walking forward after his trick on the helm, happened to look up, and noticed that the large pin securing a link plate in the shrouds, had wandered part of the way out of it's mounting. Pausing briefly for a few Hail Mary's, we jibed, took a hammer to it, and restored our rigging to it's normal integrity. At some time, probably during our fifty knot upwind slog to the start, the split pin securing the big rigging pin in place had sheared, and the big pin had been slowly leaving the boat ever since. Had we jibed and unloaded the pin, our return jibe might have been made memorable by the graceful descent of the rig and sailplan. Thanks to the sharp eyed Catalan, we are not, at this writing, paddling to the Canaries.
Sailing today is pleasant, but not very fast. We are sailing downwind angles, jibing on shifts. The wind has picked up some this morning, but the pace is still a bit docile. Adrienne [navigator] assures that we are sailing into more wind, and we hope she is right. No accurate position fix on OdK. We expect that he is totally becalmed somewhere around Madeira, wishing he had taken up accountancy in his youth, rather than sailing."
Scully is a great sailor with a dry sense of humor, but unfortunately for "Cheyenne" Olivier De K is very happy to be a sailor at the moment, because "Geronimo" has made much better time than "Cheyenne" in the early going and is less than a day behind, chasing hard. Some figures: after 5 days "Cheyenne" has sailed 1682 miles. De K has done 1224 in just 3 days (at Day 3 "Cheyenne" had done just under 1000). This is good for "Cheyenne" because it will keep them pushing a full speed to stay ahead. At the same time, it will be stressful to have another boat so close. Imagine getting all the way around the world, breaking the record, and then having another boat break it again just a day later. D'oh. Worse, this problem is about to get worse for both Fossett and De K. Bruno Peyron, the French sailor who basically invented this class of giant multihulls, has just launched and christened the latest generation version of these sailing beasts, a 120-foot catamaran, sponsored by French telecoms giant "Orange." Peyron and his crew of 13 have barely sailed the thing, but they are about to go on standby to take up the chase. If we get three maxi-multihulls out on the track at the same time, this Jules Verne Death Match is going to get extreme. In fact, there is a possibility that the world record will be broken three times in a couple of weeks...
Next in the Start Grid: "Orange" should be the fastest ocean racer on the planet, if Bruno Peyron can keep his spanking new cat from teething problems...
"The sun rose on the sparkling sea this morning, to reveal that our rig was about to fall down. Guillermo Altadill, walking forward after his trick on the helm, happened to look up, and noticed that the large pin securing a link plate in the shrouds, had wandered part of the way out of it's mounting. Pausing briefly for a few Hail Mary's, we jibed, took a hammer to it, and restored our rigging to it's normal integrity. At some time, probably during our fifty knot upwind slog to the start, the split pin securing the big rigging pin in place had sheared, and the big pin had been slowly leaving the boat ever since. Had we jibed and unloaded the pin, our return jibe might have been made memorable by the graceful descent of the rig and sailplan. Thanks to the sharp eyed Catalan, we are not, at this writing, paddling to the Canaries.
Sailing today is pleasant, but not very fast. We are sailing downwind angles, jibing on shifts. The wind has picked up some this morning, but the pace is still a bit docile. Adrienne [navigator] assures that we are sailing into more wind, and we hope she is right. No accurate position fix on OdK. We expect that he is totally becalmed somewhere around Madeira, wishing he had taken up accountancy in his youth, rather than sailing."
Scully is a great sailor with a dry sense of humor, but unfortunately for "Cheyenne" Olivier De K is very happy to be a sailor at the moment, because "Geronimo" has made much better time than "Cheyenne" in the early going and is less than a day behind, chasing hard. Some figures: after 5 days "Cheyenne" has sailed 1682 miles. De K has done 1224 in just 3 days (at Day 3 "Cheyenne" had done just under 1000). This is good for "Cheyenne" because it will keep them pushing a full speed to stay ahead. At the same time, it will be stressful to have another boat so close. Imagine getting all the way around the world, breaking the record, and then having another boat break it again just a day later. D'oh. Worse, this problem is about to get worse for both Fossett and De K. Bruno Peyron, the French sailor who basically invented this class of giant multihulls, has just launched and christened the latest generation version of these sailing beasts, a 120-foot catamaran, sponsored by French telecoms giant "Orange." Peyron and his crew of 13 have barely sailed the thing, but they are about to go on standby to take up the chase. If we get three maxi-multihulls out on the track at the same time, this Jules Verne Death Match is going to get extreme. In fact, there is a possibility that the world record will be broken three times in a couple of weeks...
Next in the Start Grid: "Orange" should be the fastest ocean racer on the planet, if Bruno Peyron can keep his spanking new cat from teething problems...
Wednesday, February 11, 2004
Annals of Achievement--Four-Paws Planted on Summit: There aren't many mountaineering firsts left...at least for humans. The doggie world is another story, and Outside Online reports that last week Rubia, a two-year old Golden Retriever, scaled 22,834 foot Aconcagua, the western hemisphere's highest mountain. Rubia--who was accompanied by two two-footed companions--didn't require supplemental oxygen, but she did wear boots, goggles and a snowsuit. Normally, dogs aren't allowed on the mountain, but Rubia was allowed up as part of a high-altitude rescue-dog study. It's not actually clear Rubia was the first dog to the top of Aconcagua. Ten years ago a German and Austrian climbing team told a newspaper they were followed to the top by a stray dog. Yes, there are Wetass canines...
Go-High Golden: "Enough with the pictures. I gotta go pee on all the spots that stupid stray hit..."
Go-High Golden: "Enough with the pictures. I gotta go pee on all the spots that stupid stray hit..."
TWC Quick Hits:
Trawlers Are Scraping the Bottoms of the Oceans Clean: Bye-bye sponges, corals, Nemo.....
Biotech Companies Are Threatening to Plunder Antarctica in the Scramble for New Microbes: Hunt for useful "Extremophiles" is a billion dollar 21st century gold-rush. Bye-bye sponges, oops, I mean bye-bye Antarctic cod, cold-loving lichens, and lots of other, umm, stuff...
Australian Man Drives For Help With Stubborn Shark Clamped To Leg: Yeah, but did the shark wear his seat belt...?
Maoist Rebels in Nepal Are Mugging Trekkers: If they break your legs you can't hike. Embassy advice: Pay up...fast.
"That's right bourgeois, running-dog, trekker. Hand over our "fee" or we'll make you stand on one leg all day....."
Trawlers Are Scraping the Bottoms of the Oceans Clean: Bye-bye sponges, corals, Nemo.....
Biotech Companies Are Threatening to Plunder Antarctica in the Scramble for New Microbes: Hunt for useful "Extremophiles" is a billion dollar 21st century gold-rush. Bye-bye sponges, oops, I mean bye-bye Antarctic cod, cold-loving lichens, and lots of other, umm, stuff...
Australian Man Drives For Help With Stubborn Shark Clamped To Leg: Yeah, but did the shark wear his seat belt...?
Maoist Rebels in Nepal Are Mugging Trekkers: If they break your legs you can't hike. Embassy advice: Pay up...fast.
"That's right bourgeois, running-dog, trekker. Hand over our "fee" or we'll make you stand on one leg all day....."
"Wrong-Way" VDH Update--"Don't Forget About Me": With maxi cats carving up the oceans, and hoping to carve up the record books, spare a thought for singlehander Jean Luc Van Den Heede, who is well on his way to smashing the non-stop solo record, sailing westabout against the prevailing winds. VDH is 96 days into his voyage, and over the weekend passed South Africa's Cape of Good Hope, the last Great Cape of his voyage. He and "Adrien" are now working their way north toward the Equator, with a massive 26 day lead over the record pace. This is VDH's fourth attempt at this record, and it looks as if his persistence is about to pay off. He still has to negotiate the windless Doldrums, but the only serious threat to finishing with a new record is 1) if he loses his mast; and 2) if he hits a floating object like a container, and either holes the boat or loses his rudder. So VDH is sailing very carefully and keeping his fingers crossed. The mental stress is building:
Everything has disappeared again! The nice SSE wind that I’d had since rounding the Cape of Good Hope has become unreliable in strength and direction, the Sun has gone in behind the clouds, which have now made the sky overcast, even the birds think I’m too far away from their homes... Only the swell remains, but that is something I could quite do without, as it stops my spinnaker from staying filled up, and it makes my mainsail swing around from one side to the other, in spite of being clamped to the boom.
In these circumstances, when the boat rolls from one side to the other, because there isn’t enough wind, the strain on the rigging and sails is huge, and always worries me, as there’s nothing I can do when this happens.
This is arguably the most brutal record in sailing, so don't let VDH's modesty fool you. He's quietly putting up a BIG, BIG number.....
"Thank God I put my shorts on before that helicopter arrived...."
Everything has disappeared again! The nice SSE wind that I’d had since rounding the Cape of Good Hope has become unreliable in strength and direction, the Sun has gone in behind the clouds, which have now made the sky overcast, even the birds think I’m too far away from their homes... Only the swell remains, but that is something I could quite do without, as it stops my spinnaker from staying filled up, and it makes my mainsail swing around from one side to the other, in spite of being clamped to the boom.
In these circumstances, when the boat rolls from one side to the other, because there isn’t enough wind, the strain on the rigging and sails is huge, and always worries me, as there’s nothing I can do when this happens.
This is arguably the most brutal record in sailing, so don't let VDH's modesty fool you. He's quietly putting up a BIG, BIG number.....
"Thank God I put my shorts on before that helicopter arrived...."
Tuesday, February 10, 2004
Annals of Oops--"Sorry about the $40 million plane, Colonel": Flying for the US Air Force Thunderbirds is not for the faint of heart. Come to think of it, GOING to a Thunderbirds show is not for the faint of heart. On Sept. 14, 2003, Capt. Christopher Stricklin had to punch out as his F-16 jet headed for an unscheduled touchdown. Stricklin had the presence of mind to steer his jet away from the crowd, and hit the eject button just a slim eight-tenths of a second before impact. Click here for a spectacular 2.7 meg picture of the key moment. The plane turned into a fiery comet and skidded to a stop just 100 feet short of the control tower. Click here for a video of both the crash and the fireball heading towards the control tower (note: I don't think the bouncing object at the end of the clip is Capt. Stricklin; he survived).
Bad, Bad Day at the Office
(Images via AVWeb)
Bad, Bad Day at the Office
(Images via AVWeb)
Annals of Extinction--Grizzlies?...In California?: Yup. Where do you think the bear on California's state flag came from? In fact, grizzly bears used to be so plentiful in California that they roamed Santa Barbara's coast and Santa Monica's canyons. One setter complained in 1850 that grizzlies were "more plentiful than pigs … as to make the rearing of cattle utterly impossible." That didn't last long, though. The last grizzly in California was wiped out in the early 19th century. And how this came to be is documented in a new book called "Bear In Mind" (Heyday Books). As the LA Times explains in a review:
"The end came with the breech-loading rifle and the Gold Rush, which sent a floodtide of trigger-happy prospectors to claim every rock and twig in grizzly territory. From here it was a short trip to bear rugs, den massacres, Grizzly Adams' bear circus and arenas staging bear-versus-bull fights. "
It's a sad and all too unsurprising story, worth reading....
LA Times, 1908: Hope the honey was good....
"The end came with the breech-loading rifle and the Gold Rush, which sent a floodtide of trigger-happy prospectors to claim every rock and twig in grizzly territory. From here it was a short trip to bear rugs, den massacres, Grizzly Adams' bear circus and arenas staging bear-versus-bull fights. "
It's a sad and all too unsurprising story, worth reading....
LA Times, 1908: Hope the honey was good....
JV MegaMulti Death Match Update-Round 1 to "Geronimo": Fossett's "Cheyenne" is slowly accelerating, but still picking her way South at 15-20 knots and hoping to find steady winds so she can really start blasting along. She's about a day, and 300 miles, behind the pace that current record-holder "Orange" set two years ago. Oliver De K, meanwhile, picked the better start time. "Geronimo" left about a day and a half after Fossett, and has averaged almost 20 knots over her first day, putting her slightly ahead of "Orange's" Day 1 pace. In short, DeK is kicking Fossett's ass, for now...
Ass-Kicked Fossett: "Maybe if I put on this rubber drysuit it won't hurt so much...."
Ass-Kicked Fossett: "Maybe if I put on this rubber drysuit it won't hurt so much...."
Monday, February 09, 2004
Annals of Inanity--In Other Planetary News...: With the Bush Administration pushing a return to space exploration, Space.Com informs us that land sales on various planetary orbs are picking up. Proving that in the internet era there is a sucker born every second, land-sale scams pitching plots on the Moon, Mars and beyond have relieved 2.5 million people in 180 countries of more than $1 million of their money. Deeds to, say, a one-acre crater on the Moon (going for $33, up dramatically in recent years), are totally bogus...sort of. A 1967 treaty outlaws property ownership by nations and governments beyond earth. But that hasn't stopped Dennis Hope, the self-proclaimed "Head Cheese" of LunarEmbassy.com, from claiming he owns the rights to planetary property across the solar system. Hope claims a loophole in the treaty (i.e. it doesn't prohibit individuals from owning property or homesteading beyond earth). And even though the title "Head Cheese" does not inspire confidence, Hope has got interplanetary legal scholars in a tizzy. It all could end up in court (can't wait for "U.S. vs. Head Cheese;" could be bigger than OJ). Meanwhile, and it makes TWC weep,....plenty of Earthly morons are buying in, particularly since there is no shortage of interplanetary real estate agents. Take LunarRegistry.com . It doesn't claim to own anything. But it does promise "a program through which you, your family, or your business enterprise can legally claim ownership of property on the Moon." Proceeds will be pooled "in order to create the investment capital required to occupy and develop the Moon." You can also buy the rights to name a star at the site (wouldn't that be a perfect Valentines Day gift?), and the low-key pitch must be working. LunarRegistry claims more than 400,000 people have forked over the cash. But if TWC were in the market for a little land way, way out there, it would turn to the marketing geniuses at BuyUranus.Com, who make full use of the humor potential in the unfortunately-named planet. Here's their pitch:
"We're not just offering you a tiny, 1 acre parcel of land on the Moon, Mars or any other boring planet like some companies.
No, we're giving you free and clear, legal title to a full square mile piece of Uranus!
Included in your deed are the full mining rights so you can penetrate deep inside your piece of Uranus.
If you're worried about the population explosion on Uranus and don't want to buy a piece of the surface of Uranus you can have a ring around Uranus or even a big bright moon!
As well as the bragging rights to claim you own a piece of Uranus you also get this wonderful presentation package of memorabilia to show how proud you are of it.
Once you own this packet you'll never stop talking about Uranus."
Perhaps. But it could cost you more than the price of the deed, if UK legal scholar Virgiliu Pop gets his way. In 2001 Pop laid claim to the sun, and the right to charge all users of its solar energy on other planets a fee. Now that would be some serious money....
Crater Condo: "Honey, honey. I know it doesn't have running water, or heat, or, ummm, oxygen....But the view is spectacular!"
"We're not just offering you a tiny, 1 acre parcel of land on the Moon, Mars or any other boring planet like some companies.
No, we're giving you free and clear, legal title to a full square mile piece of Uranus!
Included in your deed are the full mining rights so you can penetrate deep inside your piece of Uranus.
If you're worried about the population explosion on Uranus and don't want to buy a piece of the surface of Uranus you can have a ring around Uranus or even a big bright moon!
As well as the bragging rights to claim you own a piece of Uranus you also get this wonderful presentation package of memorabilia to show how proud you are of it.
Once you own this packet you'll never stop talking about Uranus."
Perhaps. But it could cost you more than the price of the deed, if UK legal scholar Virgiliu Pop gets his way. In 2001 Pop laid claim to the sun, and the right to charge all users of its solar energy on other planets a fee. Now that would be some serious money....
Crater Condo: "Honey, honey. I know it doesn't have running water, or heat, or, ummm, oxygen....But the view is spectacular!"
Mars Rover Update--Rockin' On the Red World: It's costing $820 million. The technology is fabulous. And we're learning a lot about...rocks. NASA's got two rovers on the planet Mars and in the past few days both have dedicated their little robot efforts to drilling and scanning the hard stuff. Spirit drilled a hole, and Opportunity did some hi-tech caressing. No results yet, but don't get too excited. Coming up: Spirit will amble over to a crater dubbed Bonneville, about 1150 feet away. If the rover gets there that will set a new record for distance traveled on Mars. Records. That's the sort of stuff TWC wants out of this mission. And if NASA was really cool, Spirit would pop some wheelies on the way....
Drilling on Mars: "This won't hurt a bit...."
Drilling on Mars: "This won't hurt a bit...."
Cheyenne Day2--Hopscotching Weather Systems: Wetass Supremo Steve Fossett said that the first two days of his non-stop, globe-girdling sailing record bid would be complex. And it has been. Fossett's 125-cat, "Cheyenne," has been bobbing and weaving its way south, never going much more than 20 knots, and sometimes slowing to 4 or 5. After 2 days, "Cheyenne" had only covered 575 miles. Normally, she could cover all that in one good day. So Fossett and his crew are lagging behind the record pace, and the first few daily runs of current record holder "Orange" (see comparative positions here). Fossett, as is his style is staying cool:
"We didn't actually stop for lunch, but we did hit an unexpected pocket of High pressure earlier today - and have missed one of our weather gate options. But we are finally going again and plan to head West until later tonight, when we will turn South and head straight for the Canaries, where we expect to pick up the Trades and a strong ride South. We'll be satisfied to get to the equator 8-1/2 days from the start."
8.5 days would be fine (it would be about a half day behind Orange's transit). It's a long, long track with lots of opportunities to make gains. But "Cheyenne" better get some pace on. Last night, TWC's favorite Frenchman, Olivier De Kersauson, started his Jules Verne record bid in his huge trimaran. Typically, De Kersauson, who has more Jules Verne record attempts than anyone on the planet, announced that if he didn't like the weather and his progress after 3 days...he would just turn around, go back to the start and wait for a better weather window. Hopefully, that won't be necessary. Because right now, we have the global match race of the decade in progress.....
In the American corner....
In the French corner....
"We didn't actually stop for lunch, but we did hit an unexpected pocket of High pressure earlier today - and have missed one of our weather gate options. But we are finally going again and plan to head West until later tonight, when we will turn South and head straight for the Canaries, where we expect to pick up the Trades and a strong ride South. We'll be satisfied to get to the equator 8-1/2 days from the start."
8.5 days would be fine (it would be about a half day behind Orange's transit). It's a long, long track with lots of opportunities to make gains. But "Cheyenne" better get some pace on. Last night, TWC's favorite Frenchman, Olivier De Kersauson, started his Jules Verne record bid in his huge trimaran. Typically, De Kersauson, who has more Jules Verne record attempts than anyone on the planet, announced that if he didn't like the weather and his progress after 3 days...he would just turn around, go back to the start and wait for a better weather window. Hopefully, that won't be necessary. Because right now, we have the global match race of the decade in progress.....
In the American corner....
In the French corner....
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