A day of major wind shifts

Geronimo passes to the south of the Tasman Sea

Day 29
Position at 2317GMT: 53°09S 149°29E
24 hour run: 480 miles
Average speed: 20 knots

After a reasonable to good 24 hour up until 2317GMT this evening Geronimo still remains roughly 500 miles or a good day's run behind the pace laid down by Steve Fossett's Cheyenne just over two weeks ago. Currently past Tasmania and crossing the southern part of the Tasman Sea, she is of course still more than 1,350 miles ahead of Orange's 2002 record.

At their current latitude the centre of a depression is due to run over them today. The crew have already had to deal with a major veering of the wind to the north. As a result we suspect they will head north a little to ensure that instead of falling into a hole they can resume sailing in the strong westerly airflow. By this afternoon the low, of a modest size for Southern Ocean standards, will have passed by and they will be sailing once again in southwesterlies. Provided they don't get caught by the centre of the low there is enough pressure out there to maintain high speeds, but tonight Geronimo's crew is likely to be suffering from exhaustion...