Nautor Challenge yachts christened

madforsailing reports from Puerto Cervo, Sardinia

The other issue Dalton is having to deal with is the girl's boat. Prior to them deciding that the second boat would be sailed by a girl's crew, several other ideas for it had been mooted, including a youth crew and a mixed crew. Despite his hardnosed Kiwi appearance, many of the girls who have been with previous campaigns say that Dalton has always quietly been a keen supporter. He was one of the first to send his condolences when Tracy Edwards' catamaran lost her mast on the Jules Verne Trophy and again when the same thing happened to EF Education in the last race. "I was a fan of the full woman approach," says Dalton. "Lisa, backed up by Katie (Pettibone). I never considered anyone else".

At present as the boats are bound for northern Spain, with a short detour to make up the necessary 2,000 miles of the qualification passage, the women and men's teams are mixed and the general view seems to be that there is little novelty in this and no real regard for sexuality. If the engine goes wrong it is as equally likely to be a girl who fixes it as a bloke.

The girls took the Frers designed Amer Sport One out for an overnight passage to do some bonding, but apart from that Dalton says the first time they will sail together again will probably be the passage up to the Southampton for the assembly period. "I guess I've been really impressed wtih the their (the girl's) attitude. They work harder if anything than the guys," says Dalts.