03/06/2004
The Geronimo trimaran newsletter n°17
Jules Verne Trophy
Could this be the light at the end of the equatorial tunnel?
Having crossed the Equator into the southern hemisphere, the Cap Gemini and Schneider Electric trimaran was still stuck in the Intertropical Convergence Zone yesterday. In a ninth day that saw them cover just 225 nautical miles, the crew was suffering from a serious shortage of wind. Although the trimaran is always able to travel at a true speed faster than the wind speed, the wind was a long time in returning. The Doldrums have spread south, following Geronimo as she tried to escape. A hard day then, and one devoted to indextenance tasks and rigging checks carried out in stifling humidity.
Since the end of the night, there have been a few hesitant flutterings of trade wind, with 10, then 15, knots of easterly wind. This airflow reindexs fragile and variable in both strength and direction. Nothing very stable is really expected until they reach 10 degrees south, the crew’s index objective still being to take the shortest route out of the Doldrums. In the first half of Day 10, Geronimo was back up to an average of 16 knots – could this be the light at the end of the equatorial tunnel?
Geronimo's latest news are on http://www.trimaran-geronimo.com
Positions - DAY 9
GERONIMO
03°55S – 28°14W
225 nautical miles in 24 hours, at an average speed of 9.38 knots.
2002 Record
06°32S – 27°41W
396.41 nautical miles in 24 hours, at an average speed of 16.52 knots
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