Main Page | Newsletter | Sailing calendar | America's Cup | Glossary

Jules Verne Trophy, in the footsteps of Phileas Fogg

LONDON, England -- Since man discovered the Earth was round he has dreamt of circumnavigating it as quickly as possible by land, sea or air.

In the early 1990s two French sailors, Titouan Lamazou and Florence Arthaud, created the Jules Verne Trophy, inspired by the fictional explorer Phileas Fogg from Jules Verne's novel Around the World in Eighty Days.

Lamazou' had set a solo record of 109 days in a monohull yacht, but both were convinced the 80-day barrier could be beaten with crewed multihulls.

In 1993 Bruno Peyron was the first to beat the 80-day mark, followed by Peter Blake in 1994.

Now the challenge is to beat Frenchman Olivier de Kersauson's 1997 record of 71 days, 14 hours, 22 minutes and 8 seconds.

The rules are simple -- any wind powered yacht and any start time. The start and finish line runs between the Lizard Point on the south-west coast of England and the island of Ushant off the coast of Brittany, France.

The route is via the Cape of Good Hope, Cape Leewin and Cape Horn.

An average speed of 14.32 knots is required if the 26,000-mile circumnavigation is to be done within the 80-day time limit.

In January 1993 three yachts crossed the start line. Kersauson was the first to cast off on board his 27-metre trimaran Charal, an extensively modified version of Un Autre Regard in which he sailed solo around the world.

He was followed six days later by fellow Breton Peyron on his catamaran Commodore Explorer and New Zealander Blake on his catamaran Enza.

The boats rounded the Cape of Good Hope after 23 days and were already 72 hours ahead of the forecast schedule.

Conditions in the Roaring Forties were testing with winds gusting at up to 70 knots and 15-metre waves.

Charal ran into a block of ice and one of the floats was ripped, forcing Kersauson and his crew out of the race. The same fate awaited Enza and Blake had to admit defeat.

On board Commodore Explorer, Peyron spoke of conditions "closer to survival than an attempt to break a record." Skipper and crew narrowly escaped capsizing when rounding Cape Horn in winds of up to 80 knots.

Finally, they crossed the finish line, completing the voyage in 79 days, 6 hours and 15 minutes to take the Jules Verne Trophy.

Kersauson and Blake took up the challenge again.

The trimaran Charal, modified and renamed Lyonnaise des Eaux, and the extended catamaran Enza, set sail on January 16, 1994, for an epic duel on the high seas.

After a week Blake was six hours ahead of the time set by Peyron and 39 hours ahead of Kersauson. The gap grew and by February 8 Lyonnaise des Eaux was 1,300 miles behind its rival.

Kersauson stormed through the Southern Ocean setting a new 24-hour record of 524.6 miles and closed within 26 hours of Blake as the two boats rounded Cape Horn.

On the sail northward up the Atlantic, Blake, guided by his American router Bob Rice, reached the finish line on April 1 after 74 days, 22 hours, 17 minutes and 22 seconds at sea, beating Peyron's record by four days.

Kersauson arrived two days and six hours later, also beating the old record. After two years of planning and development, Kersauson set sail again on Sport Elec, his substantially modified and improved trimaran with a new mast and Bob Rice as his shore based router.

He made a new attempt on December 31, 1996, but failed. After 17 days he was well behind a record schedule and turned back.

He cast off again on December 31, 1997. Unfavourable winds on the way south down the Atlantic meant that Sport Elec was four days behind schedule crossing the equator, but Kersauson refused to give in.

He rounded Cape Horn one day ahead of Enza's record time and crossed the finish line after 71 days, 14 hours, 22 minutes and 8 seconds.

Now he is looking to beat his own record and finish inside 60 days in his trimaran Geronimo.