Leopard Sets Transatlantic Record

Briton Mike Slade’s 100-ft maxi ICAP Leopard passed the Lizard just before 8:30 p.m. local time yesterday to claim the west-east transatlantic record for boats with power-assisted winches. Sailing at an average speed of 15.5 knots and topping out at 37.4 knots, the crew of 12 finished the course in 7 days, 19 hours and 21 minutes — trimming 8 hours off the existing record set by the 246-ft Phocea.

Although a day short of the outright monohull record set in 2003 by the 140-ft schooner known then as MariCha IV, what’s remarkable about the record attempt is that for ICAP Leopard it was a ploy to add a little excitement to the seasonal migration home from the Caribbean. "This was a delivery without a full sail wardrobe, and we almost lost a full day avoiding southerly icebergs in the mid-Atlantic, as well as experiencing a full-on collision with a monstrous sunfish," Slade said.

For what it’s worth, Slade is one of the cooler big boat owners around. He’d brought one of his previous boats, the 80-ft Farr-designed Longobarda, to the St. Francis Big Boat Series many years ago. As for his skipper, Aussie Chris Sherlock, we’ve never seen a harder working or more hands on skipper. Well done!