60 knots for de Kersauson

Geronimo maxi-trimaran approaches Albany on her round Australia record attempt

12 days, 3 hours and 1 minute after crossing the start line of The Challenge, off the Sydney Opera House, the Capgemini and Schneider Electric sponsored trimaran Geronimo has covered more the two thirds of her 6500 journey around Australia and is approximately 200 nautical miles south of Albany on the south west coast of Western Australia.

Geronimo has had a couple of testing days as she made her way down Australia’s west coast; she is now into the challenging waters of the southern ocean with large seas, very strong winds and freezing air temperatures. A number of areas of lighter wind had the team a little concerned as they battled to meet the weather front that would make their trip from Cape Leeuwin to the southern tip of Tasmania a fast one.

Skipper Olivier de Kersauson reported from on board this morning the maxi multihull headed across the Great Australian Bight towards Tasmania: ‘While I'm talking to you, we have three reefs and trinquette (number three headsail) and are sailing at 27, now 29, no 31 knots, too fast....okay it is better now at 25 knots. We must be conservative because the wind reaches 60 knots in the squalls sometimes and the crew have begun to get a little tired. Only the most experienced take the helm as the speed in the waves needs huge concentration and big experience. We are so far from Queensland, and I dream about the quiet waters of Sydney Harbour....Mind you this is nothing compared with the week long gale we suffered in south Pacific last year (up to 80 knots before the Cape Horn). These strong conditions are not dangerous, just very strong. We are trying to set a good bench mark for this challenge, so it is worth some stress, humidity and big winter weather. That is part of this exceptional path around Australia."

After the race to get in front of the weather system, travelling across the same path they have to take to travel across the Great Australian Bight to round South East Cape in Tasmania, Geronimo is now flying through the colder waters as she really heads down under. "If we can get to Cape Leeuwin before the cold front arrives, we will have a very fast end, maybe an arrival in front of Sydney Opera on 8 July," continued de Kersauson over the weekend and they have managed to do just that. "From the start up to today (Saturday), this has been a magnificent sail. This round Australia route is just the most beautiful complete voyage we have ever made for my crew and I - much more interesting and demanding than the ‘Round Britain’, and much more beautiful than any other passage’."

As Geronimo travelled down the Western Australian coast past Perth and Fremantle she was sailing approximately 200 miles off the coast in order to lay a course for Cape Leeuwin. "Within the same gust we can feel on our face the cold and the warm air together. The progress is painful in a hard and choppy sea. It's a nice test for the crossbeam repair. We have had to perform numerous manouevers due to wind shifts of ten to twenty degrees and helming is difficult. Geronimo suffers in the black night but the progress in the night is still fast. Outside foul weather gears and harnesses, inside it’s impossible to sleep in this shaker,’ remarked skipper Olivier de Kersauson last night as they sailed at approximately 18 knots in a 40 knot breeze from the west sou’west.

Over the last 24 hours the Franco-Australian crew on board has pulled out all the stops to place themselves in the optimum position for their passage to Tasmania and Maatsuyker Island and the southern tip of Tasmania. The crew have approximately 1,400 miles to travel across the Great Australian Bight and the bottom of the country before she makes her last turn onto the home straight to the finish line off the Opera House in Sydney Harbour.

"The watches come down whitened by the salt, but with the smiling faces at the end of a successful match. Meals are simple: pasta with the cooker tied down in the galley, some vitamins, water to rinse the eyes burnt by the salt - even with the protection glasses, followed by an attempt to sleep which is far from easy. But do we really need to sleep when we are so happy? Magic Australia," continued de Kersauson. "Everything is alright, no problem for the moment, we cannot be much faster than we are but have found a good compromise. 25 knots average with a building sea. Don't worry about us; it is just cold now, very cold..."

Meteorologist Richard Whittaker from The Weather Channel predicts "Geronimo has managed to place herself very close to the front but there is the possibility of big swells up to four metres running through the track she is taking. There is a gale warning for the area but it is anticipated that the breeze will moderate over the next 24 hours. If Geronimo is placed off the east coast of Tasmania by Friday she will be assisted in her home run by a southerly surge with predicted breezes of 20 to 25 knots.’

If Geronimo can maintain her current speeds she will set a record for a 6,500 miles journey of less than 20 days, a fantastic achievement by anyone’s standards. The Challenge shore crew are making preparations for Geronimo’s arrival in Sydney Harbour later this week.