Orange II starts Jules Verne attempt
by Bénédicte Etienne 18 Feb 2004 14:50 GMT
The maxi-catamaran Orange II sets off for their Jules Verne record attempt © G. Martin-Raget / Orange
It was 08:41 (local time, 07:41 GMT) this morning when Claude Breton, Chairman of the WSSRC, has announced that the Orange II maxi-catamaran had crossed the Jules Verne Trophy starting line. On board, Bruno Peyron and his crew of 14 will try and break the current round-the-world record, held since May 2002 by Orange I (64d, 8h, 37mn). In order to better his own benchmark time, Bruno Peyron will have to be back off Ushant by April 22nd, at 16:17'24'' (GMT).
When the line was crossed this morning, the weather conditions were good. The seas were calm, and the boat was sailing with one reef in the main and staysail, in 21-23 knots of easterly wind. Most of the crewmembers were working on deck, Bruno Peyron at the helm. For the coming 24 hours, the wind is expected to increase.
Next update : this morning at 11:30, for the first audio session, live from the Paris race HQ.
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