Oceanracing 2004 - Orange II/Bruno Peyron mit zwei Rekordfahrten Atlantik und Mittelmeer

Orange II - neuer Rekordversuch von Bruno Peyron
- zur Übersicht

www.orange.fr
Press Release N° 23
Marseilles, Thursday 24th September 2004
RECORD OF THE MEDITERRANEAN
Marseille - Carthage (Tunisie)
ORANGE II FLAT OUT ON THE MEDITERRANEAN

- At 13 :15 (French time), the Orange II maxi-cat was positioned at the latitude of Northern Sardinia, only 5 hours after having left Marseilles! - Since the start, this morning at 08:13 (06:13 GMT), Orange II has been sailing at 30 knots of average speed, in very tough conditions- 35 / 40 knots of winds with gusts at 45, and very choppy seas.
- At 15:00 (13:00 GMT) this afternoon, the crew was still indextaining the boat speed between 32 and 35 knots, on a 160° heading. Orange II is for the moment ahead of PlayStation's performance on the course.

"Photo Gilles Martin-Raget/Orange"

RESTLESS MORNING...
Bruno Peyron, skipper of Orange II, seemed relieved early in the afternoon, after having experienced hard times this morning. "It's been very risky all morning, and we even asked ourselves if we would not have to give up altogether - the conditions were really extreme. With 45 knots of wind at times, the boat was sailing at 35 to 40 knots, speeds unseen until today... The whole crew was on deck, hands on the sheets in order to be able to ease off at once if required. Only the very experienced helmsmen took the wheel, which means Sébastien Audigane and Lionel Lemonchois. But despite our constant attention, the boat went wild on two occasions, under violent gusts, and we came close to the wipe out! Quite stressful, but at the same time very thrilling. Since noon, fortunately, the conditions are easier, the winds and the waves are more manageable. We'll soon send more canvas up, to optimise our angle towards the South Sardinian waypoint. We've been living wonderful moments since we've left the Marseilles harbour, towed by our fishermen pals who have been great. On board, the crew is at its best, very excited by the speed and totally concentrated on our final objective"...