13.12.2003
A tough and exhausting 24hrs on Ecover
samedi 13 déc. 17:18
Mike Golding has had a tough and exhausting 24 hours on ECOVER, loosing 1 Code sail, dropping a 2nd and also loosing a halyard. However, Golding has only lost 15 miles to the lead since yesterday. He is currently blasting along at 20 knots and confident that he can make up some of the deficit.
Yesterday afternoon, Golding had been spinnakering in 27 knots of breeze and sailing hard. He changed down to the Code 5, which blew up within minutes of use. He then put up the Code 0 and continued with good progress. 20 minutes later, the Code 0 halyard failed, forcing the sail to drop in to the water. This was a new-style of halyard that was created in response to some of the problems experienced in the Transat Jacques Vabre. Golding stopped for an hour and a half, to try to free the sail and salvage it for further use in the race. Golding has a plan for resolving the problem if the Code 0 is required later in the race. Golding also has the option of using the Code Eco sail as a relatively satisfactory replacement.
"When the Code 0 dropped in the water, I spent quite a lot of time, trying to rescue it, which meant I stopped for at least an hour. So it has taken me quite a while to get going again, but I'm doing 20 knots at the moment and looking forward to getting into La Rochelle. Only 4 days to go I hope! Basically this boat is very quick, but we are still experiencing teething problems, all of which I'm confident can be resolved for the future. I'm trying to find the groove and need to push the limits sometimes to learn as much as possible. The last 500 miles have been really tricky, but oddly enough its also been great sailing. Some of the nicest sailing I've done! The sad bit is that the guys behind are closing up a bit and the guys in front are steaming along. It is not the best kind of sandwich to be in! VMI have changed position on me and are sailing a little lower. It has won them a few miles, but I'm hoping it'll go in our favour in the end."
Source: Mike Golding Yacht Racing
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