In difficult conditions in the Southern Ocean, the Frenchman Bruno Peyron and his team have further expanded their lead on the existing record for the fastest circumnavigation of the world.
Yesterday the team of the maxi-cat "Orange II" passed Cape Leeuwin with a lead of more than four days on Steve Fossett's "Cheyenne".
And that, although the conditions are anything but easy: The boat currently has no functioning radar, and a storm front in front of the Kat makes for a violent and very confused sea with wave heights of around eight meters, the boat and crew demanded everything: "Yesterday Suddenly a block and a winch for one of the backstays exploded under the load - a clear alarm signal to take off the gas, "says Bruno Peyron. At this point the Kat shot through the wave crests at a boat speed of up to 35 knots.
Today "Orange II" is approaching the point that marks half of the trip - after only about 23 days! Should Peyron keep up the pace, a circumnavigation of the world seems feasible in around 50 days, which would be an unbelievable achievement in view of the record of 58 days set just last year. But as Ellen MacArthur's tight record has shown, a fabulous record time can quickly shrink to the last one or two thousand miles.