And they're off

Geronimo sets sail on San Francisco to Yokohama record attempt

At 07:40:42 local time today (14:40:42 GMT), Olivier de Kersauson's maxi-trimaran Geronimo crossed the start line off San Francisco under grey skies with a light southwesterly breeze of 5-10 knots.

Having cast off late yesterday evening to avoid port traffic, the Capgemini and Schneider Electric sponsored trimaran finally crossed the start line and a set course for Yokohama. “It's a complex course, and therefore an interesting one”, explained skipper de Kersauson before the start. “The Pacific is governed by three or four different weather systems, which makes some passages rather challenging. Unlike the Atlantic, these are waters we aren't very familiar with”. Having set off in highly variable wind conditions, the maxi trimaran will have to clear San Francisco Bay before she finds more favourable weather.

The current record: San Francisco (USA) - Yokohama (Japan): Steve Fossett - 19 days, 15 hours, 18 minutes, 9 seconds – 1996

The crew list:
Olivier de Kersauson,Didier Ragot, Larry Rosenfeld (USA),Jean Charles Corre, Lucas Zamecnik, Xavier Douin, Antoine Deru, Philippe Laot, Rodolphe Jacq, Pas cal Jagut, Kazuhiro Nishimura (Japan),Matt Bryant (USA).