DAY 40 - Club Med Breaks 24 Hour Record 638.5 miles run in 24 hours with an Average Speed of 26.6 knots
News - Thursday, 02/08/2001, 5:50 AM GMT

Position	02/08/2001 5:50 AM GMT
1st	Club Med (8647 nm from finish. Club Med has broken the 24 hour record - 638.5 miles, avg speed 26.6 knots)
2nd	Innovation Explorer (798 nm from the leader. Taking a gybe to the south, avg speed 21.0 knots)
3rd	Team Adventure (4896 nm from leader. Out of the light wind and back up to cruising speed, avg speed 22.8 knots)
4th	Warta Polpharma (5801 nm from the leader. Getting back up to speed, avg speed 13.4 knots)
5th	Team Legato (6690 nm from the leader. Steadily gaining on Warta, satellite problems, avg speed 17.8 knots)
6th	PlayStation DNF

Club Med has broken the 24 hour record that she had initially set, then had been broken by Innovation Explorer.

Club Med registered at the 2.30 AM GMT fix, Thursday February 8, the distance record of 638.5 miles run in 24 hours at an average speed of 26.6 knots.

This effort, which overwrites the previous one, needs to be ratified by the World Speed Sailing Record Council (WSSRC) before becoming official. It could clearly be surpassed again in the coming hours because Club Med is still sailing in exceptional conditions with a flat sea and a southwest wind of 25 knots on her quarter.

Innovation Explorer have been caught in strong westerly winds to the north of the low pressure. They cannot go south after Dalton because they risk getting caught by extreme storm conditions near the centre of the low. And they don't want to go too far north, because they are adding extra miles to the course. So, Peyron is being forced to gybe downwind. And VMG running is a point of sail his doesn't have any decent spinnakers for, result; Dalton has gained more than 120 miles in the last 24 hours.

Peyron: "We had three reefs and a storm jib up, and then the wind lifted us 20 degrees and decreased from 45 to 30 knots very rapidly, so we took out a reef and then changed to the mainsail. We then took out another reef and then changed to the solent jib. Now it has stabilized and the sea is a bit more regular, and we're heading south and we've gybed back and forth. We're searching for a bit more air on the southerly option but planning on not going too far south. We're trying to level out at 57 to 58 degrees".

Gilles Chiori, Meteo Consult: "Club Med and Innovation Explorer may be very close as they pass Cape Horn and then, anything can happen in the South Atlantic. The third ‘leg’ of The Race could indeed be the most thrilling - the St Helena high, the equator and the Doldrums, the high pressure over the Azores. So many "openings". In this situation, Innovation Explorer may be able to take advantage of her role as ‘pursuer’ "to react tactically". All the way through this "out-and-out race", the slightest error by Club Med will be a godsend for Loïck Peyron. A final factor to take into account is fatigue, on the boats more than on the crews," added Gilles Chiorri. Because by the end of this race, "the boats will be mostly beating to windward." This means that "mechanical constraints will be tougher than in the tailwinds of the Southern Ocean".

From the NOW live tracker, www.now.com

Innovation Explorer is in turqoise Club Med in yellow Team Adventure is green

PlayStation is in red Warta is orange Team Legato is blue

Team Adventure finally passed the Cape Leeuwin longitude about 09:00 GMT, at that time suffering in light winds. Team Adventure is a few miles short of the Tasman Sea and is back up to cruising speed, steering west-southwest at about 23 knots, carried along by winds varying between 20 and 25 knots.

Warta Polpharma had been in an area of light airs of 4-5 knots, but are now able to make steady progress averaging 13 knots an hour, and has changed course for a more southerly heading also in search of stronger westerly winds.

Team Legato: closing slowly, Team Legato continues to thrive in the 15 knots northwesterly winds as they power east at 18 knots, steering 138 degrees magnetic.

Team Legato is having satellite problems on board.

From the NOW live tracker, www.now.com

Innovation Explorer is in turqoise Club Med in yellow Team Adventure is green

PlayStation is in red Warta is orange Team Legato is blue

Map images courtesy of Virtual Spectator, click here to go to The Race site for a free download of the software.

Club Med in blue Innovation Explorer is in green Warta Polpharma is yellow

Team Adventure is in orange Team Legato is in brick-red PlayStation is in orange-red

Map images courtesy of Virtual Spectator, click here to go to The Race site for a free download of the software.

Club Med in blue Innovation Explorer is in green Warta Polpharma is yellow

Team Adventure is in orange Team Legato is in brick-red PlayStation is in orange-red

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