On the Nature of Things | Forum

French sailor Loïck Peyron and his crew of 13 broke the world record for circumnavigating the globe nonstop under sail at the weekend in their trimaran Banque Populaire V, winning the Jules Verne trophy in a time of just 45 days, 13 hours, 42 minutes and 53 seconds.

Helped by onshore weather forecasters using satellite imagery, and the development of lightweight multihull boats that travel as fast as petrol-driven speedboats but use only the wind, sailors such as Mr Peyron have sharply reduced the time taken to go around the world by sea in recent years. The journey used to take months.

“There was a time when one couldn’t imagine doing it in less than 80 days. It was thought a crazy thing,” Mr Peyron, 52, said after completing the journey of 29,002 nautical miles at an average speed of 26.51 knots.

“Now, a few years later, it’s 45 days, and in a few years it’ll be less. Even this boat is capable of doing it in less, with slightly better weather conditions to shorten the distance.”

Banque Populaire beat the previous record set in 2010 by Groupama III, another French boat, by nearly three days, and also set other sailing records during the journey.
France is home to many of the world’s fastest long-distance sailors, and Brian Thompson, a British crew member, described Mr Peyron as “the best multihull sailor there is”.

Follow 2 Canadians, Bob Lush and Mike Birch, aboard their yachts during the 1980 Observer Singlehanded Transatlantic Race. More than a record of this prestigious international sailing event, the resulting film is the starting point for an epic of challenge and determination.

Parodite wrote: ↑Sat Jan 20, 2024 5:22 pm

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