Possible go for Joyon

After waiting more than a month Joyon and his faithful trimaran may set out on solo transat record imminently

After waiting for more than a month for an opening in the weather, Francis Joyon is now ready in New York, where it may well be possible for him to set sail within the next 24 hours. His router, Jean-Yves Bernot, has confirmed that a decent weather system looks like it may be on the horizon.

The skies seem finally to be clearing in front of the IDEC trimaran, signalling the (possible) end to her stand-by period in Manhattan's North Cove marina. Chasing after
records can easily become a lengthy game of patience. However, a start possibly is indeed not far off this time.

"It may be tomorrow, as a small low-pressure area is moving in," says Bernot. "What is important now is to watch how it develops. Once we start, the conditions will be good, but Francis will nevertheless have to manage to cover the 100 miles or so separating him from the zone, where he will pick up the weather system. Lows are created around Cape Hatteras (North Carolina) and initially tend to be rather unpredictable, before they gradually settle down into a pattern. In theory, the wind conditions should be good - 25 to 30 knots, hardly any stronger - and in any case, we shall be setting out, if we see that the journey is possible within less than seven days.

"With winds of this strength and a decent angle of 110° to 130° TWA, we can easily keep up an average of 20 knots without too much effort, but of course, we can’t expect perfect conditions throughout the whole trip. The main risk on this route is to see the flow drop off towards the finish, to the extent that we’ll be getting home in pre-summer conditions. Having said that, a lot of records have been broken in late June or early July. If tomorrow’s opportunity is confirmed, the start will take place around 1800 GMT. If not, there will be other occasions later in the week or early next week. We’ll keep you informed…

Route from New York – The Lizard (theoretical distance calculated by
the WSSRC) : 2925 miles (5417 km)
Single-handed record: Laurent Bourgnon, Primagaz, 7 days 2 hours 34 minutes 42 seconds (June 1994)
24-hour single-handed record: Laurent Bourgnon, Primagaz, 540 miles (June 1994)