About thirty hours after leaving Cadiz, on Tuesday morning, Francis Joyon’s maxi-trimaran IDEC passed the obligatory passage point of Gran Canaria. It was an excellent start to Joyon’s Discovery Route record attempt as he was, by then, over 100 miles ahead of  Thomas Coville.
Now for the Atlantic!

Francis Joyon hasn’t held back since the start, with speeds often above 25 knots and 580 miles in one 24 hour period.

“I’ve been between 25 and 33 knots on the run to the Canaries” said Joyon just after tacking to get through the islands “and covered a good distance over this first day.” He went on to say that the night had still been something of a free for all, with constant vigilance needed to be ready to ease sheets in case of squalls. Francis admitted to not having slept much, adding “I never sleep much the first night. I listen to the boat, I try to understand it, adapt to it.”
Which was why IDEC sailed very close to the Moroccan coasts yesterday, as the wind veered slightly north and weakened a little. That was the end of the reefed sails! “I sent all the sails up, main and solent, in 17 to 25 knots of northerly wind. The boat accelerates under the clouds and slows down when there aren’t any, but I am always between about 21 and 22 knots without clouds and up to 27 or 28 nodes when I hang onto one of them.” said Joyon.
As he starts crossing the Atlantic proper, Francis Joyon will probably be slowed in the wind shadow of Tenerife. “It can reach out up to 100 miles from the island and I’ll have to be carfel not to get becalmed.” he said. “In the longer term, there may be a transition zone to get through, 3 or 4 days from now, but for the moment everything is under control, all goes well on board and I can focus on going quickly”.

Translation Marian Martin/BYM News

Voir Francis Joyon images:

Last Updated ( Wednesday, 29 October 2008 )