5 ms·

Breaking transatlantic sailing record by more than a day (2016)

39 points by robaato 2y ago

kennethwolters 2y ago
I am fascinated by off-shore sailing, competitive and otherwise. How racers manage to do the vendee globe (solo, from france around-the-world back to france) in just 80 days with just sails and ropes as engines is beyond me. FYI the fastest solo sail around the world was set in 2017 at 40 days in a Trimaran
- wlll 2y ago
  I've got a number of YouTube channel recommendations if you weren't aware of them already (https://willj.net/posts/youtube-sailing-channel-recommendations/ https://willj.net/posts/youtube-sailing-channel-recommendati...). A large number of those channels have done a lot of off-shore sailing, and many have done multiple ocean crossings.
  - LiamMcCalloway 2y ago
    you can add the sailing frenchman -- great mix of caribean sailing, singlehanded racing, pretty down to earth: https://www.youtube.com/@TheSailingFrenchman https://www.youtube.com/@TheSailingFrenchman
    - wlll 2y ago
      Huh, I thought he was on there. I will try to get round to adding him.
  - kennethwolters 2y ago
    Thank you, I will have a look :) This YT channel is gem I found: https://www.youtube.com/@SailingTipsCa https://www.youtube.com/@SailingTipsCa Doesn't post a lot, not very high production quality but very high quality information.
  - mad_tortoise 2y ago
    Are there any channels that deal specifically with the America's Cup and learning about it and the boats? TIA
    - wlll 2y ago
      No, these are all cruisers rather than racers. There's a mix of sailing and lifestyle, but then for a lot of them it's hard to just film the sailing because there's only so much sailing you can actually do when you live on your boat.
    - globular 2y ago
      Mozzy is by far the best and most detailed channel out there for the AC, 10/10 recommend. Has the systems understanding, ability (and confidence) to make predictions, while keeping the video's at a length that is still digestible. Also has a nice speaking voice which brings a level of classiness to it. https://www.youtube.com/@mozzysails https://www.youtube.com/@mozzysails
  - dadadad100 2y ago
    One sailor that I enjoy watching is Patrick Laine[1]. The back catalog has a lot of coastal single-handing (coast of France mostly). Then he started circling the Atlantic. [1] http://www.youtube.com/@patricklaine6958 http://www.youtube.com/@patricklaine6958 Edit: official channel URL
  - throw0101c 2y ago
    > Sailing Millennial Falcon On hiatus from sailing due to family reasons; most recent video: * https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oZdON6ld6Ks https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oZdON6ld6Ks
- manuel_w 2y ago
  > around-the-world Not to dimish their perfomance, but still worth noting that they are taking the curves as tightly as anyhow possible. Which is okay, I guess, it's a race after all. https://www.vendeeglobe.org/themes/custom/front/dist/assets/112114cd193fee4caebf.webp https://www.vendeeglobe.org/en/what-vendee-globe edit for those on screen readers: The links show the route of that race, which is from France down to south pole, around it, and back up to France. This race is not "along the equator" as some might read "around the globe".
  - kennethwolters 2y ago
    fair point!
  - Tepix 2y ago
    There's a continent in the way... </snark>
    - tzs 2y ago
      There is a reasonably circular path you could take to sail around the world. Just sail near the edge of what is visible in this view [1]. https://www.google.com/maps/@-31.0010223,-173.4498925,3.01z https://www.google.com/maps/@-31.0010223,-173.4498925,3.01z
      - hervature 2y ago
        That's the current course and the subject of the debate. The point is Tierra del Fuego (the southern tip of South America) is very close to Antarctica and so that circumnavigation is very short.
      - s1artibartfast 2y ago
        "around the world" is a fairly arbitrary definition using around the rotational axis as the criteria. If pesky antarctica werent there you could sail around the the world in a very small amount of time. The record would be determined by the turning radius of the boat. This is of course ok, given that any other criteria would be equally subjective.
- sandworm101 2y ago
  >> just sails and ropes as engines Tides/currents make a huge difference too. There is a right way and a "wrong way round" when sailing the globe. Rather than head south from europe and left towards asia, you turn right towards the south pacific.
  - throw0101c 2y ago
    > Rather than head south from europe and left towards asia, you turn right towards the south pacific. Yes, but people have gone the "backwards" way as well: > The oldest person to sail around the world singlehandedly and non-stop is Bill Hatfield (Australia, b. 14 January 1939), who was aged 81 years 39 days when he sailed into The Spit on Australia's Gold Coast on 22 February 2020. He embarked on his eight-month (295-day) solo circumnavigation – on the more challenging westerly route, against the prevailing winds – on 8 June 2019 in his 11.5-m (38-ft) yacht L'Eau Commotion. * https://www.guinnessworldrecords.com/world-records/oldest-person-to-sail-around-the-world-(solo-and-non-stop) https://www.guinnessworldrecords.com/world-records/oldest-pe... * https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bill_Hatfield https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bill_Hatfield
- mickael-kerjean 2y ago
  > with just sails and ropes as engines is beyond me then you should check this amazing sailor named Yann Quenet who built his own 4m sailboat [1] (yes 4m is crazy) on which he did a circumnavigation and once he came back worked at improving his little boat and just left 8 days ago for another circumnavigation. He has been documenting his journey on youtube[2]: ref: [1]: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SDGR9LtRUBw https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SDGR9LtRUBw [2]: https://www.youtube.com/@quenetyann396 https://www.youtube.com/@quenetyann396
dorfsmay 2y ago
So "surfing a weather system" more than really sailing.
- newsclues 2y ago
  No, I read most of it and they were actually sailing, not riding a wave, which is in fact a racing skill taught to sailors.
  - buildsjets 2y ago
    Yes. He said surfing a weather system, not surfing a wave. Which is exactly what they did. As a person who does surf, his analogy was accurate and meaningful.
    - newsclues 2y ago
      Surfing has a specific meaning, where you ride the forward part of a wave and the movement of the wave behind your hull propels the boat forward. Sailing in front of a weather system to get optimal wind for your sails is not surfing. Imprecise language is sloppy and problematic for people with a functional vocabulary. Surfing is a technique used in sailing and this isn’t the same thing.
      - ghodith 2y ago
        It's called a metaphor.
Tepix 2y ago
The 24h monohull world distance record was broken in the north Atlantic last year, Boris Herrmann and crew managed a 50km/h (26.71 knots) average. Mindblowing: https://www.imoca.org/en/news/news/team-malizia-s-boris-herrmann-we-pushed-the-limit-and-managed-to-take-the-world-record- https://www.imoca.org/en/news/news/team-malizia-s-boris-herr...
jcgrillo 2y ago
This short documentary covers Comanche's transatlantic record run: https://youtu.be/DDmz9iqyeSU https://youtu.be/DDmz9iqyeSU
gcanyon 2y ago
Who knew a significant part of speed sailing is weather prediction?
- Am4TIfIsER0ppos 2y ago
  I have no idea of the tone on that question so... Everyone since the sail was invented. Every sailor at least.
  - gcanyon 2y ago
    Heh, I was not being sarcastic, I just meant that the article seems to be at least as much about waiting for/predicting the right conditions as it is about the boat. Certainly before this article I understood the concept of not taking off for a sail in the middle of a storm, but it never occurred to me that setting a trans-Atlantic record required finding/predicting a weather system that would: 1. provide just the right conditions for maximum speed sailing 2. itself move across the Atlantic at a pace the boat could match, so as not to fall out of it.
throw0101c 2y ago
A 22m doc on Comanche and being on board during their record-setting run: > Even the most daunting world records are meant to be broken… eventually. For elite navigator Stan Honey and a crew of sailing all-stars, beating the prestigious monohull transatlantic sailing record was the ultimate accomplishment. And it was no easy feat. On July 22, 2016, the Comanche—a custom-built, 100-foot racing yacht—set sail from New York to the southern tip of England. Precisely five days, 14 hours, 21 minutes and 25 seconds later, the Comanche’s crew shattered the world record … by more than a day. Brave the high seas as we set sail on one of the most amazing and inspiring journeys ever to take place on film. * https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DDmz9iqyeSU https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DDmz9iqyeSU A few years ago Scorpios was built to be even faster than Comanche: * https://www.yachtingworld.com/supersail/fastest-yacht-the-giant-record-breakers-134826 https://www.yachtingworld.com/supersail/fastest-yacht-the-gi... * https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=H3tpu7tgVqc https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=H3tpu7tgVqc Note: the above are non-foiling designs. If you go with foils then you can go much faster: * https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sailing_hydrofoil https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sailing_hydrofoil
- spookie 2y ago
  Aren't hydrofoils a big no no when you go into the high ocean?
  - venv 2y ago
    No, they are used in some classes of ocean passage races. IMOCA 60 is one such class.
    - spookie 2y ago
      Oh, I thought they would be a bit too fragile or difficult to maneuveur. Thanks for the input!
- s1artibartfast 2y ago
  I didnt see it noted in the article, but this is specific for the monohull category. The trimaran Banque Populaire V [1] has the unrestricted record at 3d 15h 25min 48s and 33 knots [2]. This is pretty staggering when you compare it to something like the transatlantic voyage of Christopher Columbus at ~61 days. Banque Populaire V was more than twice the length and sail area of the Santa Maria, but ~15% the weight. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Banque_Populaire_V https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Banque_Populaire_V https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Transatlantic_sailing_record https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Transatlantic_sailing_record
jeffbee 2y ago
[flagged]
- deleted 2y ago
  [deleted]
mlhpdx 2y ago
Modern sailing is an incredible departure from the traditional. The technology has come so far that when I watch an Americas Cup trifoil float above the waves (on two legs), turn on a dime and race away at 90km/h I can’t help but think back to classic science fiction. It’s become real and is beautiful.
- mlhpdx 2y ago
  Sorry, correction — SailGP boats hit 90+ km/h while the Americas Cup boats are a bit below that for now (75-80 km/h, IIRC).

39 points by robaato 2y ago

I am fascinated by off-shore sailing, competitive and otherwise. How racers manage to do the vendee globe (solo, from france around-the-world back to france) in just 80 days with just sails and ropes as engines is beyond me. FYI the fastest solo sail around the world was set in 2017 at 40 days in a Trimaran

wlll 2y ago
I've got a number of YouTube channel recommendations if you weren't aware of them already (https://willj.net/posts/youtube-sailing-channel-recommendations/ https://willj.net/posts/youtube-sailing-channel-recommendati...). A large number of those channels have done a lot of off-shore sailing, and many have done multiple ocean crossings.
- LiamMcCalloway 2y ago
  you can add the sailing frenchman -- great mix of caribean sailing, singlehanded racing, pretty down to earth: https://www.youtube.com/@TheSailingFrenchman https://www.youtube.com/@TheSailingFrenchman
  - wlll 2y ago
    Huh, I thought he was on there. I will try to get round to adding him.
- kennethwolters 2y ago
  Thank you, I will have a look :) This YT channel is gem I found: https://www.youtube.com/@SailingTipsCa https://www.youtube.com/@SailingTipsCa Doesn't post a lot, not very high production quality but very high quality information.
- mad_tortoise 2y ago
  Are there any channels that deal specifically with the America's Cup and learning about it and the boats? TIA
  - wlll 2y ago
    No, these are all cruisers rather than racers. There's a mix of sailing and lifestyle, but then for a lot of them it's hard to just film the sailing because there's only so much sailing you can actually do when you live on your boat.
  - globular 2y ago
    Mozzy is by far the best and most detailed channel out there for the AC, 10/10 recommend. Has the systems understanding, ability (and confidence) to make predictions, while keeping the video's at a length that is still digestible. Also has a nice speaking voice which brings a level of classiness to it. https://www.youtube.com/@mozzysails https://www.youtube.com/@mozzysails
- dadadad100 2y ago
  One sailor that I enjoy watching is Patrick Laine[1]. The back catalog has a lot of coastal single-handing (coast of France mostly). Then he started circling the Atlantic. [1] http://www.youtube.com/@patricklaine6958 http://www.youtube.com/@patricklaine6958 Edit: official channel URL
- throw0101c 2y ago
  > Sailing Millennial Falcon On hiatus from sailing due to family reasons; most recent video: * https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oZdON6ld6Ks https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oZdON6ld6Ks
manuel_w 2y ago
> around-the-world Not to dimish their perfomance, but still worth noting that they are taking the curves as tightly as anyhow possible. Which is okay, I guess, it's a race after all. https://www.vendeeglobe.org/themes/custom/front/dist/assets/112114cd193fee4caebf.webp https://www.vendeeglobe.org/en/what-vendee-globe edit for those on screen readers: The links show the route of that race, which is from France down to south pole, around it, and back up to France. This race is not "along the equator" as some might read "around the globe".
- kennethwolters 2y ago
  fair point!
- Tepix 2y ago
  There's a continent in the way... </snark>
  - tzs 2y ago
    There is a reasonably circular path you could take to sail around the world. Just sail near the edge of what is visible in this view [1]. https://www.google.com/maps/@-31.0010223,-173.4498925,3.01z https://www.google.com/maps/@-31.0010223,-173.4498925,3.01z
    - hervature 2y ago
      That's the current course and the subject of the debate. The point is Tierra del Fuego (the southern tip of South America) is very close to Antarctica and so that circumnavigation is very short.
    - s1artibartfast 2y ago
      "around the world" is a fairly arbitrary definition using around the rotational axis as the criteria. If pesky antarctica werent there you could sail around the the world in a very small amount of time. The record would be determined by the turning radius of the boat. This is of course ok, given that any other criteria would be equally subjective.
sandworm101 2y ago
>> just sails and ropes as engines Tides/currents make a huge difference too. There is a right way and a "wrong way round" when sailing the globe. Rather than head south from europe and left towards asia, you turn right towards the south pacific.
- throw0101c 2y ago
  > Rather than head south from europe and left towards asia, you turn right towards the south pacific. Yes, but people have gone the "backwards" way as well: > The oldest person to sail around the world singlehandedly and non-stop is Bill Hatfield (Australia, b. 14 January 1939), who was aged 81 years 39 days when he sailed into The Spit on Australia's Gold Coast on 22 February 2020. He embarked on his eight-month (295-day) solo circumnavigation – on the more challenging westerly route, against the prevailing winds – on 8 June 2019 in his 11.5-m (38-ft) yacht L'Eau Commotion. * https://www.guinnessworldrecords.com/world-records/oldest-person-to-sail-around-the-world-(solo-and-non-stop) https://www.guinnessworldrecords.com/world-records/oldest-pe... * https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bill_Hatfield https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bill_Hatfield
mickael-kerjean 2y ago
> with just sails and ropes as engines is beyond me then you should check this amazing sailor named Yann Quenet who built his own 4m sailboat [1] (yes 4m is crazy) on which he did a circumnavigation and once he came back worked at improving his little boat and just left 8 days ago for another circumnavigation. He has been documenting his journey on youtube[2]: ref: [1]: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SDGR9LtRUBw https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SDGR9LtRUBw [2]: https://www.youtube.com/@quenetyann396 https://www.youtube.com/@quenetyann396

dorfsmay 2y ago

So "surfing a weather system" more than really sailing.

newsclues 2y ago
No, I read most of it and they were actually sailing, not riding a wave, which is in fact a racing skill taught to sailors.
- buildsjets 2y ago
  Yes. He said surfing a weather system, not surfing a wave. Which is exactly what they did. As a person who does surf, his analogy was accurate and meaningful.
  - newsclues 2y ago
    Surfing has a specific meaning, where you ride the forward part of a wave and the movement of the wave behind your hull propels the boat forward. Sailing in front of a weather system to get optimal wind for your sails is not surfing. Imprecise language is sloppy and problematic for people with a functional vocabulary. Surfing is a technique used in sailing and this isn’t the same thing.
    - ghodith 2y ago
      It's called a metaphor.

Tepix 2y ago

The 24h monohull world distance record was broken in the north Atlantic last year, Boris Herrmann and crew managed a 50km/h (26.71 knots) average. Mindblowing: https://www.imoca.org/en/news/news/team-malizia-s-boris-herrmann-we-pushed-the-limit-and-managed-to-take-the-world-record- https://www.imoca.org/en/news/news/team-malizia-s-boris-herr...

jcgrillo 2y ago

This short documentary covers Comanche's transatlantic record run: https://youtu.be/DDmz9iqyeSU https://youtu.be/DDmz9iqyeSU

gcanyon 2y ago

Who knew a significant part of speed sailing is weather prediction?

Am4TIfIsER0ppos 2y ago
I have no idea of the tone on that question so... Everyone since the sail was invented. Every sailor at least.
- gcanyon 2y ago
  Heh, I was not being sarcastic, I just meant that the article seems to be at least as much about waiting for/predicting the right conditions as it is about the boat. Certainly before this article I understood the concept of not taking off for a sail in the middle of a storm, but it never occurred to me that setting a trans-Atlantic record required finding/predicting a weather system that would: 1. provide just the right conditions for maximum speed sailing 2. itself move across the Atlantic at a pace the boat could match, so as not to fall out of it.

throw0101c 2y ago

A 22m doc on Comanche and being on board during their record-setting run: > Even the most daunting world records are meant to be broken… eventually. For elite navigator Stan Honey and a crew of sailing all-stars, beating the prestigious monohull transatlantic sailing record was the ultimate accomplishment. And it was no easy feat. On July 22, 2016, the Comanche—a custom-built, 100-foot racing yacht—set sail from New York to the southern tip of England. Precisely five days, 14 hours, 21 minutes and 25 seconds later, the Comanche’s crew shattered the world record … by more than a day. Brave the high seas as we set sail on one of the most amazing and inspiring journeys ever to take place on film. * https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DDmz9iqyeSU https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DDmz9iqyeSU A few years ago Scorpios was built to be even faster than Comanche: * https://www.yachtingworld.com/supersail/fastest-yacht-the-giant-record-breakers-134826 https://www.yachtingworld.com/supersail/fastest-yacht-the-gi... * https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=H3tpu7tgVqc https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=H3tpu7tgVqc Note: the above are non-foiling designs. If you go with foils then you can go much faster: * https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sailing_hydrofoil https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sailing_hydrofoil

spookie 2y ago
Aren't hydrofoils a big no no when you go into the high ocean?
- venv 2y ago
  No, they are used in some classes of ocean passage races. IMOCA 60 is one such class.
  - spookie 2y ago
    Oh, I thought they would be a bit too fragile or difficult to maneuveur. Thanks for the input!
s1artibartfast 2y ago
I didnt see it noted in the article, but this is specific for the monohull category. The trimaran Banque Populaire V [1] has the unrestricted record at 3d 15h 25min 48s and 33 knots [2]. This is pretty staggering when you compare it to something like the transatlantic voyage of Christopher Columbus at ~61 days. Banque Populaire V was more than twice the length and sail area of the Santa Maria, but ~15% the weight. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Banque_Populaire_V https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Banque_Populaire_V https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Transatlantic_sailing_record https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Transatlantic_sailing_record

jeffbee 2y ago

[flagged]

deleted 2y ago
[deleted]

mlhpdx 2y ago

Modern sailing is an incredible departure from the traditional. The technology has come so far that when I watch an Americas Cup trifoil float above the waves (on two legs), turn on a dime and race away at 90km/h I can’t help but think back to classic science fiction. It’s become real and is beautiful.

mlhpdx 2y ago
Sorry, correction — SailGP boats hit 90+ km/h while the Americas Cup boats are a bit below that for now (75-80 km/h, IIRC).