Yannick Bestaven passed 80 miles south of the longitude of Cape Horn yesterday about midday our time, having had another fast day’s run, of 463 miles. He experienced winds from the north west of 33 knots. Charlie Dalin followed 15 hours later. Both made day’s runs of 383 miles since yesterday morning. Linked Out is 330 miles further back leading the hunting group of nine, now spread over 300 miles and all of them should be past by Tuesday morning. Pip Hare is still lying 15th and Miranda Merron 23rd
The time for Maître CoQ was 55 days and 22 minutes from Les Sables to Cape Horn. It's not the record, that is just over 47 days, but it illustrates how far we have come with design and equipment in half a century. 52 years ago it took me 217 days to get to the Horn from Falmouth, or almost four times longer. OK, the waterline length of Suhaili is only 26 feet, and the Open 60’s have a waterline length within inches of 60 feet, and yes, an Open 60 has four times the sail area, but the fascinating thing is how sailing has developed to produce such fast craft.
Of course, in those days one had no idea where the competition was. Bernard Moitessier had been four weeks behind me at New Zealand, but neither of us knew where the other was after that. In fact, I rounded the Horn three weeks before him but we only found out about that some months later. He and I used to exchange letters for many years after the Golden Globe race. We only met once, at the announcement of the Jules Verne Trophy, but I wish I could have spent more time in his company.
Back then, no one was sure what the ideal boat was for a solo circumnavigation. There were boats especially built for the voyage that failed. There were few written records of experience of the Roaring Forties and Screaming Fifties to use for reference of what to expect and how to handle the huge waves to be expected. There were no satellites to allow us instant communication or access to weather information, well, there was no weather information available anyway. We could only rely on the barometer, the wind direction and the clouds, but nothing could tell us how low and nasty an approaching depression might be
Was Suhaili the ideal boat? No one thought so when we set off. She is a John Atkins design from 1922, his Eric. It was designed for cruising, not racing, but based on the Colin Archer designs for the Norwegian sailing lifeboats, it was inherently seaworthy, provided you handled her sensibly. And it took time in some rather nasty and frightening weather, to learn how she wanted to be handled. Her rugged build undoubtedly helped as it gave time, whilst she was being punished, for me to think out what she wanted for both of us to survive.
So now the leaders are around the great Cape. It is a different game these days as all have access to weather, instant communications and amazing equipment. But is it any easier? The winds are the same, the huge waves are still there, the dangers are still there. The difference is that these sailors have to compete with similarly equipped boats, and they know where their competition is. This is an added pressure on them. It is how they interpret all that information that satellite communications provide and are prepared to press on, that will count in the end.
For all the competitors it will be a huge relief to get free from that constant series of depressions and the relentless swell they have experienced ever since passing the Cape of Good Hope. But their problems are not over. The South Atlantic is showing some very confusing weather system for them to steer through. And with so many boats close together no one can predict who might get lucky or get it right.
From a spectator's perspective, it does not get much more exciting.