Artemis dismasts

Disaster for Malbon and Tourell's Transat Jacques Vabre

Artemis Ocean Racing, the boat sponsored by leading UK investment company Artemis Investment Management, was this afternoon dismasted off the coast of Spain on day four of the Transat Jacques Vabre race from Le Havre to Bahia in Brazil.

The British IMOCA Open 60, skippered by Jonny Malbon and Graham Tourell, was sailing in 35 knots of breeze when the incident occurred at around 1420 GMT. The cause of the dismasting is not yet known.

The mast broke close to the deck and fell forwards onto the boat, along with the boom and sail. The rig has been cut free and the boat is heading towards the Spanish town of Vigo, which is 100 miles to east.

Malbon, 33, and Tourell, 31, were unharmed in the incident. The pair is described as “shattered but safe”.

Artemis was in 10th position when the dismasting happened. The incident means that Artemis’ participation in the bi-annual race is now at an end.

At lunchtime Jonny Malbon had reported: "We’ve got very windy conditions at the moment just off Cape Finisterre. We have between 25-28 knots of wind that should increase later tonight to 30-35 knots. The sea state is very very big. We are sailing downwind at 15 to 20 knots, so it is quite nice sailing.

"Already this morning we had two broaches, we were pretty full on. We were really pushing earlier on. We were under full main with the big spinnaker up and we were talking about changing down to the smaller spinnaker and we had a massive white wave lay the boat on her side. So that kind of made the decision for us.

"We were fully aware that we were pushing hard to get back in the race we are also aware there is still a long way to go and we don’t want to break anything. That was why we put the big spinnaker down. It was quite good fun to be honest.

"We want to take some miles on the boats in front of us. We are really looking to hunt on Roxy. She’s doing really well and keeping up with the front pack and we want to get back in there. Tonight is going to be unpleasant. We did not really get much sleep last night. That is really physicall and pretty demanding that’s not a weather for the autopilot really."

Subsequently we have learned the following - the cause of the dismasting is not yet known. Both skippers were on deck at the time.

Malbon, taking part in his first Transat Jacques Vabre, said he and Tourell were safe but shattered by the dismasting.

“We were absolutely mortified,” said Malbon, 33, from the stricken boat. “We are very upset, not just for us but everyone who’s been involved in getting us to the start line. The team has worked so hard to get the boat in such great shape and this race has been such a big focus for us for the past year. It’s really heart-breaking.” 

Malbon said that while conditions had got worse during the course of the day and the wind has strengthened to 35 knots, the boat was performing well in the rough seas.

“We had the masthead spinnaker and the full mainsail up this morning but knew that the wind was forecast to increase, so we put one reef in the mainsail and changed to the jib. We had been pushing the boat hard to try and make ground with the front group but we weren’t pushing too hard. You wouldn’t expect this to happen in these conditions, but it always happens when you least expect it.”

Malbon described the moment when the 4,340 mile race for him and Tourell was over, after just 575 miles:

“We surfed down a wave, a pretty steep one, and then hit this wall of water in front of us. The boat literally came to a standstill and the rig just fell forwards towards the bow of the boat.

“We tried to save the boom and the bottom section of the mast but to save the hull, we had to cut them free and throw everything over the side – the rig, the boom and the sails.”   

With Malbon due to take part in the 2008 Vendee Globe round the world race starting in November, the Transat Jacques Vabre, and a solo trip back from Brazil later this month, was seen as a crucial part of his preparation for next year’s blue ribbon race.

“We are all devastated by the news,” said Mark Tyndall, CEO of Artemis Investment Management. “This race meant so much to the boys and they and the rest of the team have worked so hard in the past few months. They were very confident they could surprise a few people in this race and put some markers down ahead of next year’s Vendee Globe campaign. We are just relieved that they are both safe.”

Malbon and Tourell are currently off the coast of north west Spain, waiting for the rescue boat, which is likely to be with them in the next 12 hours.