An Aussie abroad

James Boyd spoke to Nick Moloney currently racing on board Orange in the Jules Verne Trophy

65 days?

So how long does Moloney think it will take? The present record stands at 71 days and he thinks 65. "I've always said 65 days and I'm maintaining that at the moment, but it doesn't take much to get into trouble on this boat. It all too easy for something to happen and then the gig's off. We saw that almost happen to Kingfisher". He is referring to the various incidents which Ellen experienced towards the end of her Vendee Globe race such as breaking one of Kingfisher's daggerboards.

There is also the small matter of the weather, although the forecast is looking at present that it might work decidedly in their favour giving downwind conditions up the coast of south America, when they'd normally be forced to sail upwind. However Moloney says that the boat is getting faster of its own accord. "The boat's getting lighter all the time as we eat more food and use more fuel. She's becoming noticeably faster."

Moloney thinks that taking the record down to 59 days is possible. "When you think if Ellen and Kingfisher, with Alain Gautier on board, could go out and push, they could blow the doors off this record, but there is such a massive element in just finishing. Everytime there is a noise it's stressful. If you hit something at this speed it is just all over".

To date the top speed Moloney has seen was a rather impressive 39.7 knots, just a tad less than the world speed record. This happened when Orange was blasting along three days away from the Horn when they achieved a 635 mile day.

Tommorrow in part two of this interview Nick compares the Orange ride to his voyage on board Toshiba in the Whitbread four years ago and what it is like being an Aussie on an entirely French boat....

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