Around Alone update

Sir Robin Knox-Johnston tells madforsailing of his latest thoughts for his singlehanded round the world race

There has been much deliberation over the last few months about whether the Route de Rhum would become one of the first legs of next year's Around Alone, the singlehanded round the world race with stops. However Around Alone's Sir Robin Knox-Johnston has announced that he and the organisers of France's leading singlehanded transatlantic race have been unable to find a mutually beneficial solution.

The Route de Rhum is only rivaled by the Vendee Globe as the most important event in the French yachting calendar, but historically it has always clashed with the Around Alone (formerly the BOC Challenge). This has put French competitors, who represent the bulk of the Open 60 and 50 fleet, into a dilemma over which to enter. The Route de Rhum is worth much more to their domestic sponsors, but the Around Alone is a more ambitious event and better for those working up to the Vendee Globe.

"The matter is one of timing," Knox-Johnston told madforsailing. "St Malo can't move its date. If we do the Route de Rhum on their date and carry on, we're going to be putting boats round Cape Horn at the end of March, which is not a good idea."

The sticking point has been that moving the November start date of the Route de Rhum to October or even September creates a greater risk of the fleet encountering hurricanes en route to the Caribbean. But there is also the small matter of the Route de Rhum's start date currently coinciding with half term in France. "It hasn't worked out, but that's not for want of trying on both sides," commented Knox-Johnston. "We've both recognized each other's problems."

Clipper Ventures who earlier this year bought the Around Alone, have announced that the original Rules and Conditions of Entry for Around Alone 2002-3 have been withdrawn and will soon be replaced by a new set including the course for the race.

Knox-Johnston says that the course he favours would start on the east coast of the USA, would then go to the UK, Cape Town, New Zealand, Salvador in Brazil before returning to the USA. The start date is likely to be 21 September 2002. Compared to previous races this adds a much needed European component to the event (most of the competitors are European).