Gitana 13 retire

Broken rudder on French maxi-cat scuppered Route of Discovery record attempt

Yesterday, Tuesday 20 March at around 22:30 (French time), the crew of the maxi-catamaran Gitana 13 informed its HQ ashore that the boat had just hit an UFO (unidentified floating object). The starboard rudder has apparently been broken at stock level but remains attached to the hull, but is impeding the boat’s progress. This damage is however sufficiently prohibitive to cause the boat to turn around. All is well on board, but Gitana 13 has had to abandon its attempt on the record for the Route of Discovery between Cadiz and San Salvador.

Lionel Lemonchois and his crew are currently heading for the nearest dry land, in this case the island of Gran Canaria, but before stopping off the crew are planning a dive in order to free the section of the rudder that risks damaging the rear underside of the starboard hull. It is for this reason that the boat is currently making very slow speed. This essential work must be carried out swiftly, but it’s going to be tricky on account of current weather conditions.

Depending on the final diagnosis made when the boat is berthed in Gran Canaria, a temporary repair may be made in order to allow Gitana 13 to return to her base at La Trinité-sur-Mer.

Lionel Lemonchois, skipper of Gitana 13commented on what happened: "It was night time when we became aware that the starboard rudder was malfunctioning. It seems that an impact broke the stock clean through and the rudder is now hanging beneath the hull. We have to try to remove it as soon as possible. It’s vital as otherwise we won’t be able to continue due to the risk of holing the boat and taking on water. Léopold Lucet will go down and we’re in the process of preparing for the operation. It's going to be difficult at open sea and in the current weather conditions, but we have no choice, we have to try. Otherwise, it’s 4 knots max. as far as Gran Canaria so as not to damage the boat. The problem is that we’ve now got ideal conditions for cracking on towards San Salvador rather than going back!"