Please select your home edition
Edition
Pantaenius 2022 - SAIL & POWER 1 LEADERBOARD AUS

Sprint to Auckland - Team Australia’s half-way gone

by Lisa Ratcliff on 17 Oct 2013
Team Australia, Sean Langman’s giant ORMA 60 trimaran with a crew of 6 attempting to break the record Sydney to Auckland Andrea Francolini Photography http://www.afrancolini.com/
Conditions have abated to steady for the weary Team Australia crew now past the half-way point of their Sydney to Auckland record bid.


At 7:00pm tonight yacht tracker is showing them travelling east at 18.7kts. With a front coming from behind, respected meteorologist Roger ‘Clouds’ Badham says they can expect 20 knot average winds all night.
At 4.30pm (Sydney time) Team Australia had chewed through 620 nautical miles and made it through the roughest patch of the 1,260nm voyage in terms of swollen seas and high winds, which turbo-boosted the 60-footer to a top speed of 38kts, or 70km/h, without a hand brake.

For the crew, being on deck at extreme speed on this imposing 5.6 ton multihull is akin to being under a high-pressured fire hose. Down below is less fire hose more steady leak with water infiltrating the living space through the hatches and making it tough to find somewhere dry to grab a kip.

There could be another rough patch up ahead requiring a different type of concentration. Light winds are forecast to plague the final stages of the attempt, as the crew make their way around New Zealand’s North Island and down the east coast to the finish between the southern edge of Auckland’s North Head and the front light beacon of the Rangitoto Channel leading lights.

Skipper Sean Langman measures his ocean conquests in terms of the yachting classic he’s best known for. A 23-time Rolex Sydney Hobart veteran, without any of the fanfare Langman took on Bass Strait and the passage record from Sydney to Hobart back in February and set a new benchmark for the famous stretch of water of 29 hours 52 minutes 23 seconds. Today Team Australia completed the same distance, only two hours quicker, and the total distance he needs to cover to again be added to the World Sailing Speed Council’s annals is… 'two Hobarts'.


Five of the six crewmen have settled into a routine while navigator and boat captain Josh Alexander takes naps when he can and eats to stay awake. 'The boys have a little rotation going, roughly three hours on three hours off,' Alexander said late this afternoon, adding one gripe, 'It’s hard to teach the young blokes to be tidy, they leave stuff everywhere!'

Today was a day of firsts for a couple of the new crew.
Andy Woodward saw his first flying fish and Ben Kelly drove the 60-foot trimaran faster than he’s steered any boat.


Team Australia’s sprint to Auckland can be tracked via the Official Website

Updates posted regularly on the official Facebook page

RS Sailing 2021 - FOOTERJeanneau Sun Odyssey 350Allen Dynamic 40 Footer

Related Articles

Zhik to supply the NorthStar SailGP Team
As official technical clothing supplier for Season 5 The NorthStar SailGP Team proudly announces ZHIK as its official technical clothing supplier for Season 5 of SailGP.
Posted today at 5:00 pm
Vendée Globe Day 12
A date with a low Thomas Ruyant (VULNERABLE) took over the lead of the Vendée Globe solo race round the world very early this morning benefiting from his position to the west of his rivals which include his teammate British sailor Sam Goodchild who holds second place.
Posted today at 4:37 pm
Vendée Globe Thursday Afternoon Update
Flying South! Plus exclusive Knut Frostad interview The leaders in the Vendée Globe have now escaped the Doldrums and are flying at 20+ knots towards the eastern tip of South America.
Posted today at 3:41 pm
Introducing the Red Bull Italy SailGP Team
Led by double Olympic gold medallist Ruggero Tita as driver The 12th and final team to join the most exciting racing on water ahead of the 2025 Season has been revealed today - the Red Bull Italy SailGP Team hits the startline this weekend at the Emirates Dubai Sail Grand Prix, presented by P&O Marinas.
Posted today at 3:00 pm
iQFOiL International Games in Shenzhen day 2
Light and inconsistent winds early in the day cause delays Day Two of the iQFOiL Asian Championships and iQFOiL International Games brought a packed schedule of races across all fleets, after a challenging start on the opening day, yesterday.
Posted today at 1:26 pm
New classes at Foiling Week Pensacola 2025
Adding three fast-foiling boards and an 'open' class discipline Foiling Week Pensacola 2025's line-up has been bolstered with the addition of three fast-foiling boards and an 'open' class discipline, taking it to fourteen classes participating so far.
Posted today at 1:11 pm
Call for Bids
49er and Nacra 17 Classes invite expressions of interest for 2026-2028 The 49er and Nacra 17 Classes invite expressions of interest from host cities, sailing clubs, and organizations to bid
Posted today at 10:10 am
Vendée Globe Thursday Morning Update
Escape from the Doldrums! The leaders of the Vendée Globe are just now releasing themselves from the grip of the Intertropical Convergence Zone, preparing themselves for the Equator and a ride down the South Atlantic.
Posted today at 7:12 am
Vendée Globe Race - Day 12 - Ruyant leads
Thomas Ruyant takes over lead. Keel problems for Fabrice Amedeo Sam Goodchild continues to lead the Vendee Globe Race for the second successive day, as leaders clear the Doldrums. Race control has reported Keel problem for Fabrice Amedeo on Nexans - Wewise.
Posted today at 2:37 am
Eight teams jockey for 2024 44Cup podium in BVI
Racing sets sail Thursday out of Nanny Cay, Tortola in the British Virgin Islands Racing sets sail Thursday out of Nanny Cay, Tortola in the British Virgin Islands for the concluding event of the 2024 44Cup.
Posted today at 12:40 am