100 year record falls as attention turns to line honours
by Bob Miller 1 Jun 2005 12:35 BST
I am proud to report that Mari-Cha IV crossed the 'virtual' line by the Lizard Lighthouse at 10:05:23* UTC this morning to break Charlie Barr's 100 year old record set on 'Atlantic' back in 1905. Our crossing time was 9 days, 15 hours, 55 minutes, 23 seconds*, more than 60 hours faster than the previous record.
The feeling onboard was electric but also emotional, as, even though we have crossed the Atlantic faster onboard this great boat, this has definitely been the toughest test yet for Mari-Cha IV and her crew. It has been a difficult, hard fought crossing all the way, but now, I am pleased to say, a most satisfying one.
However, as is characteristic of this fantastic crew, our moment of joy has been put aside briefly while we continue to push hard racing up the English Channel to complete the second and final part of this race, which will end at the Needles, Isle of Wight. We have come a long way, but will remain focussed on being the first boat to cross the race finish line and look forward to taking up our mooring outside the Royal Yacht Squadron later on today.
More news to come so stay tuned.
* To be ratified by the WSSRC