June 16 - 'Yachting World'
You hear a lot of unsubstantiated talk about pirates and cruising
boats, but leave it to 'Yachting World' (England) to present a
well-researched and documented article on the eight cruising yachts
that have been attacked in the Gulf of Aden and the southern Red
Sea since April of 1999. The excellent article appears starting
on page 60 of the July 2000 issue. For more information on 'Yachting
World', visit them at www.yachting-world.com.
The other particularly dangerous area for cruisers seems to be
the western Caribbean, the freeway for drug smuggling to the United
States. There have been several reports in recent issues of 'Latitude
38', and the July issue will report on a cruiser who was shot
five times in the Rio Dulce.
The Beauty of the
PacificJune 16 - Cocos Island
If you like sharks, waterfalls, tranquility and isolation, you'll
love Costa Rica's Cocos Island. The two shots - of the Ranger's
Hut at Chatham Bay and of Chatham Bay itself - were taken by John
Neal and Amanda Swan-Neal in May of 2000.
Both Photos Courtesy Mahina Expeditions
Joyon Finishes
FirstJune 16 - Europe 1 New Man Star
Every underdog in the world has to love the success story of Frenchman
Francis Joyon, who sailed his trimaran 'Eure et Loir' to a new
record in the singlehanded transatlantic race. Unlike his main
competitors, who were well-funded and had all the best in gear
and sails, Joyon enjoyed no such advantages. In fact, he pieced
together his effort by borrowing money to buy the once capsized
'Banque Populaire' and then fitted it with a borrowed mast. Not
only is the mast 10 feet shorter than the 'latest and greatest',
his sails are old and have lost some of their shape. Even though
Joyon was surprised to see that he could pretty much keep up with
the newer boats, he figured his only chance was to sail a somewhat
different course - which he did, by heading lower than his competitors
when a new breeze filled in 1,200 miles from the finish on day
seven. In so doing, he gained 91 miles on the previous leader
and held on to take honors by close to two hours and 45 minutes.
And you have to love the fighting spirit of Ellen MacArthur of 'Kingfisher', who continues to lead the monohull fleet with about 500 miles to go. In recent days she broke a finger, slipped on diesel and banged her head, and hit a whale. Yesterday, she ran over her spinnaker and had to sail backwards for three hours to retrieve it. And she still leads the rest of the fleet by 56 miles!
Europe 1 New Man Star Photos
Roland Jordaine continues in second, while Mike Golding of England
has replaced Catherine Chabaud in third. For details, see www.europe1newmanstar.com/uk/
'Club
Med' Certain to Smash East-West Atlantic RecordJune 16 - Club Med
Sailing at between 20 and 27 knots in a well established 15-knot
easterly, 'Club Med' is joyfully progressing towards the Bahamas
and almost certainly will set a new East-West Atlantic record.
At 11:30 this morning, the boat had a 575-mile lead over 'Jet
Services V's record with less than 600 miles to go. Check out
all action at http://www.therace.clubmed.com/press/index.phtml
Club Med Photo
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