[January 12, 2001 - 8:46:39 PM]
Ellen MacArthur (Kingfisher) passed Cape Horn in second place
behind Michel Desjoyeaux at 1953hrs French time on 12th
January 2001 - now she has officially sailed around the world
on ’Kingfisher’ since the boat was launched and sailed from
New Zealand in February 2000 all the way back to the UK.
Here are Ellen’s immediate thoughts as she rounded this
landmark in the race and in her life and that of the boat.
"Well I feel quite overwhelmed really. The stress and
difficulties of the last few days seem to be melting into
emotion as I approach the Horn. The second time for
Kingfisher and I together. It’s a great symbol for the two of us
personally, as the very first time I was ever alone on her, was
just a few miles from this famous rock.
"I cannot help but feel moved deep inside. The thoughts of
the past storms and struggles are far off at this point. This
race has been hard, but when I think of those here hundreds
of years ago I feel very humble sitting here in my hi-tech
Musto wet weather kit. For them, the corner was literally life or
death, and my heart goes out to all those who have struggled,
survived and died on this piece of water. Those memories
shall never be forgotten here...
"The weather is misty, I strain my eyes to see, but I must wait
till I’m a little nearer....
"Each time I think of where we are, and where we’ve been I
find my eyes welling with tears. It’s been a long haul since the
launch in NZ, and the most incredible adventure of my life. Not
one just of the story of a girl alone at sea, but far more than
that. For me its a story of teamwork, friendship and love. The
story of so many people working towards a goal, and if not
working - willing us on...I feel there are so many others with
me on board, I’ve never been lonely - far from it - even in
times of stress. I’ve been happy here with my friend
Kingfisher, and am now looking forward to the Atlantic trip.
Firstly so we can be on our way home, and secondly so we can
get our repairs done in warmer condition. I cannot help but
feel we are ’wounded’ right now, and need the warmer weather
to repair and get our strength back....
"So roll on Atlantic Ocean."
ellen
xxx
Latest news: We’ve just heard that since she passed the rock,
Ellen is sailing upwind in no wind and has already done 20
sails changes. She is feeling quite stressed.
Source: Kingfisher Challenges
[January 12, 2001 - 8:16:11 PM]
Ellen MacArthur (Kingfisher) has just passed Cape Horn at
1953hrs French time - surfing at top speeds in 30 knots of
wind!
In a brief phone call from the Kingfisher Challenges race HQ,
we were informed that Ellen MacArthur (Kingfisher) passed
Cape Horn at 1953hrs French time on January 12th 2001.
"... it was all a bit of a blur as we surfed at 19 knots with the
boat of Yvon Fauconnier trying to direct me for TV images - all
a bit too hard as we went flying past Cape Horn. A pretty good
feeling to have completed a round the world voyage."
A quick calculation shows that she passed 2 days and 46
minutes after leader Michel Desjoyeaux (PRB), and that her
time is 2 days, 17 hours and 24 minutes ahead of Christophe
Auguin’s record.
International Comms: mary.ambler@vendee-globe.vizzavi.fr
[January 12, 2001 - 7:45:05 PM]
There is wind in her sails and Whirlpool can finally show what
she is capable of. Following a period of 8-knot average
speeds, Whirlpool is now powering along at 12.7 knots on her
way to the Horn. Skipper Catherine Chabaud is happy with this
new pace.
Despite 50-knot squalls, the low-pressure area that these
Vendee Globe skippers had been waiting for actually turned
out to be a lot less deep than expected. During the greater
part of Thursday winds reindexed steady, between 40 and 45
knots. Catherine’s midday fax:
" I’m still progressing in a westerly wind, starboard tack right
now but winds are weakening a little (25-30 knts compared to
35-40 to 45 knts yesterday), 2 reefs in index and storm jib
flying. Very difficult to get the right sail combination
yesterday: not enough up with 3 reefs, too much with 2. Have
been manoeuvring a lot, trying to find the right balance. Have
filled rear ballast windward tanks, steadies the boat quite well
as more weight aft. Strong seas, crossing waves, lots of
breakers with swell of 4 to 5 meters, difficult to estimate
correctly…Lots of surfing, very pretty to see this boat surf but
nevertheless stressful as boat shakes as it passes
through waves. Starboard rudder making lots of noise which
makes me reduce sail cover sometimes. Have tried helming
but not easy at all, automatic pilot does a better job. Besides,
freezing cold on deck with arctic type wind conditions."
Catherine’s co-ordinates are 54°15 S; she has "plunged" three
degrees in two days.
Noise levels on board Whirlpool are ear splitting. The wind in
Noise levels on board Whirlpool are ear splitting. The wind in
the rigging, the engine running to recharge batteries and the
sea bashing against the hull create such a noise pollution on
board that Catherine has taken to wearing ear plugs.
Near Cape Horn, a becalmed zone is beginning to take shape.
The meteorological forecasts do not correspond to the reality
in this part of the world. Catherine had hoped to continue her
route with this westerly wind, however, this is proving to be
difficult as the wind is now slacking off and should eventually
turn. In this case, Whirlpool will soon be sailing close-hauled.
Should Catherine head north or continue south? Her choice will
be easy to see within the next few hours.
" I’m progressing with the tail of this low pressure zone for the
moment so I’ve got clear skies right now. The deep South,
with its gloomy darkness described by Titouan Lamazou
during the first Vendee Globe, is the direct opposite of the
type of conditions I have been experiencing. Had quite a lot
of sun, which always boosts morale. I’ve seen some beautiful
days with amazing light shows. At night, the full moon (waning
since yesterday) is out and so it’s quite bright on deck. Its
strange to see the moon in the north and very low in the sky."
As for on board hobbies, Catherine Chabaud is an avid fan of
any good book. Having finished "Magellan: la terre est ronde
" by Jean-Michel Barrault, Catherine has now started "Le
vagabond des étoiles" by Jack London, given to her by
Isabelle Autissier. "It’s the story of a condemned man who
dreams constantly, allowing his mind to travel beyond the
prison walls. He travels within the fabric of his "past lives".
Odd jobs, on board are frequent. Catherine spent some time
repairing the watertight seals on her wind generator and drying
out the bilges next to the port rudder as she has slight water
seepage in this area.
Catherine is looking forward to some close hauling as she
knows that her
Lombard design hull is particularly well adapted to this trim.
She is concentrating on keeping a good pace without having
any major breakdowns or problems and hopefully, gaining
some precious miles on her opponents.
Source: Hickory Sports
[January 12, 2001 - 6:07:07 PM]
Latest news from Thomas Coville (Sodebo)
Good day yesterday: I did a couple of sewing jobs and also
repaired the wind vane. Last night I got caught in a zone with
many violent squalls in the cold front of the low pressure who
passed us during the day. THe wind went two times above 60
knots. I managed to drop the sails in time.
Two hours later I hoisted the indexsail with two reefs and tried
to sleep - it was difficult to find the sleep. I felt the boat
wasn’t feeling good. I gybed several times to find the good
angle with the sea. We were completely down wind. It was
quite hard to gybe in these conditions. It’s hard to realise how
much energy you need to hoist a index sail when you sail down
wind with 30 knots of wind! I try to gain in the South but it’s
not easy with the wind we have at the moment. Tom"
Source : Corine Renié-Péretié, Carré mer
[January 12, 2001 - 4:48:23 PM]
Fedor Konyoukhov (MUH) has been sending brief status
reports via fax the the Race HQ, which get transmitted,
translated and sent back there by his son Oscar. Here is a
summary of the latest news on board the Russian boat:
"All is well on board of MUH. For the last 10 days the wind was
very unusual for Southern Ocean: 15-18 knots S-W. I
presume the weather won’t change for some more days, as I
have such a heavy fog, that hardly can see my front sail."
In a later fax he added: "I am in great spirit, good mood as a
wind speed 20 knots, boat running very well. I am having a
really good time".
Fedor is now right in the middle of Indian ocean doing 8 knots
under broken index sail which he will repair after Cape Horn.
Source: Oscar Konyoukhov
[January 12, 2001 - 4:38:38 PM]
Joe Seeten (Nord Pas de Calais - Chocolats du Monde): "It’s
quite nice in this part of the Southern Ocean"
" After two quiet days, the wind is stronger and it’s good for
the speedo, days are still very nice and sometimes I can even
have a shower outside but it’s quite freezing though!" writes
Joe.
" Onboard all is fine, I couldn’t do anythng about the bad
weather in the last 48 hours and the light winds. It’s hard to
get the boat going, especially when you still have a reef in the
indexsail. This evening there is a clear sky, an amazing moon
and many stars. I am discovering that it’s quite nice in this
part of the Southern Ocean."
Tomorrow Joé Seeten should touch more wind and he should
catch up on Bernard Gallay who is currently 192 miles ahead
but he should also be passed by Mike Golding in the few
hours to come.
Without too many technical problems since the start Joé has
had some problems with his wind generator yesterday: " I had
to undo the wind generator for the second time. It wasn’t
producing enough power, after 3hrs30mn of repair it was ok
and I will not have to use my engine two times a day and an
economy of 0.88 l gaz oil, which represents 40 engine starts,
so less mechanical troubles. I think it’s the influence of the
South Pole."
Joé Seeten said " Mich " was doing a fantastic course but that
he didn’t suffer from the technological difference between PRB
and Nord Pas de Calais – Chocolats du Monde : " It’s the
design evolution and Michel’s human condition. He knew how
to create an excellent machine from the other’s experiences
and also from Isabelle Autissier’s input. Boats are faster, the
auto pilots more precise. Michel has worked a lot on the
weather ... so it’s normal . I plan to be in Cape Horn between
the 22nd and 23rd of January. I hope to see somebody there,
may be Yvon Fauconnier and his daughter Karine.".
Source: Kaori - Marie Le Berrigaud
[January 12, 2001 - 2:55:44 PM]
Kingfisher set to round Horn tonight - the great Pacific stirs at
last - analysis by Philippe Jeantot.
Following Michel Desjoyeaux’s (PRB) rounding of Cape Horn on
Wednesday evening, the next three competitors in the
Vendée Globe are approaching the infamous rock. However, it
Vendée Globe are approaching the infamous rock. However, it
would not be prudent to place bets yet on their order.
In fact Marc Thiercelin (Active Wear) has managed this
morning to sneak ahead of Roland Jourdain (Sill Matines La
Potagere) into third place and now lies just over 200 miles
from Ellen. The skipper was remarkably surprised to hear of
this, and then revealed briefly his own horror story. "My
autopilot went crazy, I did a double ‘S’. All the battens I had
changed broke, I heard a big cracking noise and saw that the
index sail was torn. I spent 4 hours in total trying to repair it
all."
Holding on to second place still, Ellen MacArthur (Kingfisher)
reckons that she’ll round late tonight. She still had 100 miles
to go mid-morning, and yet admitted then on the radio: "I
hope I’ll pass Cape Horn before Marc! He could catch me up,
without my gennaker!" Sail damage is some handicap, and
Ellen herself stressed how imperative it was for her to mend
her ripped gennaker if she is to reach the kind of speeds
necessary to come back on PRB sailing upwind in the Atlantic.
"It’s in 3DL so it won’t be easy" she added.
Certainly these boats are showing signs of stress and even
leader Michel Desjoyeaux, who still has his lightweight sails
unlike Ellen, made a sage remark today: "I’ve got a 600 mile
lead, that’s 2 and a half days. If I can’t relax at that, when will
I ever chill out! But we know that accidents can happen at any
time and the goal is to get back to Les Sables."
If the Pacific has been living up to it’s name for offering mild
conditions to the fleet, this great ocean seems to have stirred
finally, and is already showing her true face to the second
pack of boats. One final and more characteristic depression is
whipping them with 45 knot winds, and will continue to propel
the boats towards Cape Horn over the next three or four days.
Dominique Wavre (UBP) expressed his utter joy at the return
to top speeds and exceptional downwind surfing – the stuff
Southern Ocean memories are made of. "The wind has really
picked up again and the sky was thunderous yesterday. (A
deafening crack sounds) Ah ha! I’ve just been knocked
side-on by a wave there! Awesome, a good 40 degree heel in
one hit! The kettle’s still in one place though!" Wavre, an
ex-Whitbread team sailor himself, is really noticing the
differences between a circumnavigation in solo mode and in a
team, and highlighted the number one enemy, which was
never a problem in the Whitbread: fatigue. He puts this factor
down as the reason why all the ex-Figaro sailors like
Desjoyeaux and Jourdain are leading this single-handed
circumnavigation.
It takes a certain kind of skipper to manage himself and his
boat through hell and high water for three months plus, alone,
around the world. Mike Golding (Team Group 4) may be
someone who strikes one as an ‘all work and no play’ kind of
sailor, but on the contrary! He admitted today to be a closet
DV film addict on board when he wants to switch off. "I’m
afraid I run them to death. When I eat my evening meal I
watch a bit of a movie and then pick it up the next day." He
also cut his own hair – perhaps the most dangerous thing he
has attempted in the race, according to his own judgement!
Javier Sanso (Old Spice) has reached Perth, Australia, and
therefore the Vendée Globe fleet is now down to 17 boats in
the rankings. Sanso intends to set off and finish the
circumnavigation in the adventurous spirit of the race and in
good company with Dinelli and Dubois.
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