End of January departure possible

Steve Fossett and the crew of Cheyenne remain on standby

Skipper Steve Fossett and his 12-man crew on the 125ft (38.1m) maxi-catamaran Cheyenne have spent the past several days considering an immediate opportunity for their round the world record attempt - but Steve reported this morning that the wind prognosis had deteriorated overnight and a departure this week has been rejected as 'just too marginal' in getting decent winds to the equator.

"We are fully prepped, fully loaded and would much rather sail than sit," said Fossett. "But the current weather pattern is quite weak to the equator - and while we might just thread our way south past Portugal towards the Canaries, it would be too slow. We were prepared to consider it in order to get going, but have now dropped the idea.

"On the other hand, a 'monster' low pressure system - the same one we have been tracking since last week - is now over Newfoundland. It will work its way across the Atlantic, with a high pressure cell centered in the Atlantic behind it, allowing for a possible departure around 28-29 January. This is a classic weather pattern to drive us quickly to 0 degrees latitude. Our target for this first segment will be 8 days or less.

We know Geronimo is also on standby - so it looks like we'll have company."